LuftWasser 2024 Powered by the Skoda Octavia

For any Porsche enthusiast in Southeast Asia, Das Treffen in Thailand is the go-to event to immerse in Porsche culture. However, other events have since sprouted out in the region, and the most prominent one is LuftWasser.

A play on the German words for air (luft) and water (wasser), Luftwasser alludes to older air-cooled Porsche models as well as the transition to newer, water-cooled models. In essence, it celebrates all manner of Porsches in Malaysia, whether old or new. Naturally, fans from neighbouring countries also drove down to join their fellow Porsche enthusiasts.

I made the journey from Singapore in a rather more humble Volkswagen Group sibling, the Skoda Octavia. This would be a much longer trip after I took the very same car to Desaru. Needless to say, the Octavia munched the miles with ease, adapting even better to the longer highway distance as it hummed confidently within the powerband of its little but mighty 1.0L turbo engine.

I arrived in good time and first checked out The Gasket Alley, a car-themed cafe and restaurant village that also houses the showroom of Venturi Motors. Compared to attempts of a similar concept in Singapore, the difference with The Gasket Alley is that it truly felt like a destination in itself, even for people who aren’t car enthusiasts. There are proper vibes to the eateries and the food seems well-rated on Google Maps. There were even queues before lunchtime.

However, car enthusiasts will surely drop their jaws at the vehicles on display. With many modern classics and legends on display as well as for sale, any Singaporean would gawk in awe at what one can get in Malaysia. It isn’t just the cheaper prices as well, for the quality of the cars on offer are a sight to behold.

Time passed too quickly and it was already time for LuftWasser 2024. Located at the Pinnacle go-karting track at Subang Jaya, the incredible turnout was evident from the time estimated for me to reach my destination on Google maps - 30 minutes for just 1 km of travel. It was extremely crowded, but it was well-worth the wait. The Octavia made the traffic crawl easy to bear too.

Adopting the Flacht Kühlt (flat, cooled) theme, LuftWasser 2024 curated several areas, including 50 Years of Porsche Turbo, Colours of Porsche and the RWB Showcase. There was also an emerging ‘off-road’ theme that was prevalent. Compared to Singapore, the variety of older Porsches still running as well as their sheer numbers were awe-inspiring. This is the unspoken side effect of the COE system: purging of older cars such that only very few ever survive across COE cycles. In Malaysia, however, older cars abound. In total, more than 500 Porsches attended from Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore (check out our gallery for the highlights).

It was time to head back to Singapore (with a tired wife and son in tow), and the Octavia’s LED headlights shone the way back through the night. I was glad I attended LuftWasser 2024, seeing many cars in one place that I would never ever get to in Singapore. I would highly recommend attending next year’s iteration for any Porsche enthusiast.

Photos by James Wong

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