Retro Classics Essen

Essen has always been a serious city. Steel, coal, the Ruhrgebiet's backbone. That seriousness suits a classic car show. Retro Classics — the exhibition brand that built its reputation in Stuttgart and Nürnberg — arrives in the Ruhr for the first time in April 2026, and the ambition is immediate: eight halls, more than 80,000 square meters, roughly 2,500 vehicles across five days.

The inaugural edition is anchored by a cluster of BMW anniversaries that gives it shape. Ninety years of the 328. Sixty years of the 02 series. Fifty years of the E24 6 Series Coupé. And for many visitors the real draw: 40 years of the M3 E30. Volkswagen marks half a century of the Golf GTI and Scirocco GTI. Opel — a brand with deep Ruhr roots — celebrates the Rekord C and Omega A alongside a DTM racing display. Mercedes brings the W123 at 50 and the original SLK at 30.

Beyond the anniversary stands, the show floor has the texture of a proper classic world. The Citroën Straße gathers compact French metal from the 1970s through 1990s. A British Lane covers UK automotive icons. The TVR Car Club Deutschland returns with a 300-square-metre display — a rare concentration of the marque on German soil. Dealers including Gallery Aaldering, Eberlein Automobile, and Rosier Classic Sterne bring serious inventory, complemented by a parts market for the restorers.

For a debut, the raw material is considerable. Essen's central position in the Ruhrgebiet makes it one of the more accessible shows in the German calendar, well connected by rail from across the region and neighboring countries.