Essen Motor Show 2000

NO LIMITS

The Essen Motor Show 2000, as ever held at the famous Gruga Park, was Germany`s greatest car exhibition of the year. All kind of vehicles, as road cars, tuned cars, racing and sportscars as well as oldtimers, were presented to the crowds. With 17 halls the exhibition, once founded by Austrian Grand Prix World Champion Jochen Rindt, brought everything connected with cars the real fans dreams of. Also accessories, literature, videos and other merchandise was sold, a lot of Formula One drivers like Jörg Müller, Christian Danner and Nick Heidfeld appeared for being interviewed and to sign autographs.

The show started on Friday, 1st December 2000, with an opening ceremony present by Kai Ebel, normally being the pit lane reporter of Germany`s leading TV company, RTL Television from nearby Cologne. But nothing could be seen of former triple world champion Niki Lauda from Austrian capital Vienna, who had been invited to open the show. Some days before Lauda had been forced to retire both from the positions of the chairman and chief pilot of Lauda Air, the company he had himself founded some 20 years ago, by his associated airline AUA (Austrian Airlines). And so he preferred to stay away from Essen to avoid the burning questions of the world`s press. Instead of Lauda with Benetton principal Flavio Briatore another charismatic V.I.P. appeared to open the exhibition together with Rindt`s widow Nina, who is an advisor to the show for many years.

No limits was the motto of 2000 version of the show and no doubt, that became reality. With new facilities available it was greater than ever before in it`s 30 years of history. The center of the 2000 edition was the special presentatition 50 Years of Formula One. 30 cars of former world champions were shown in a seperated hall lying in the middle of the exhibition area (see extra story). The Essen Motor Show 2000 closed it`s doors on Sunday, 10th December, with an estimated crowd of 350.000 having attended it.

Matchbox cars. Unbelievable, but true: These 1:1 scale Silver Arrows are built out of millions of matches.

The Jochen Rindt Bistro was named after the exhibition`s founder and installed in the show centre.

A tyre change competition for the spectators of the exhibition was held on a big stage by the Red Bull Sauber Petronas team from Switzerland.

Making the wheel go round. Sauber truck in the show centre.

Guest star at the opening ceremony was Williams BMW driver Ralf Schumacher.

Nina Rindt

Text: J H / Photos: Klaus Ewald

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