DeutscheMarques 2016 In Review

Hundreds of German cars and thousands of visitors descended upon the Gilmore Car Museum in Hickory Corners, Michigan for the Fifth Annual DeutscheMarques car show on July 9, 2016. The weather was beautiful and in spite of an additional 3,000 people arriving to run in a crazy 5K inflatable run, the GCM staff moved the cars smoothly onto the field.

As always, there were some spectacular vehicles in the field. A 1970 Porsche 911 factory-built rally car was presented by Tom Ripley. Said to be the winningest European rally car, it has won the Austrian Alps Rally, RAC Rally in England, the Monte Carlo Rally, the Tour de France Rally (yes, the one with CARS), and has been raced by every significant LeMans race car driver, including Jurgen Barth.

Darren Draves displayed his beautiful 2005 Porsche Carrera GT. On his registration, Darren noted the car is "bone stock." After looking it over, it's hard to imagine how it might be improved.

A 1957 BMW Isetta drew a lot of attention from the admiring crowd and received a special Judge's Award. Owner Ron Lindoo of Ann Arbor noted that the car is "small...really small."

Chief DeutscheMarques judge Marv Berkowitz took home the "Cleanest Concours Car" award for his absolutely immaculate 2011 E 550W. His meticulous attention to detail was shared with the judges before they made their rounds.

Our growing Audi contingent was well-represented. Nathan Lantzy snagged two awards for his red 2010 Audi S5, garnering both "Best of the 2010s" and "Cleanest Concours Car" for that exciting marque.

A complete list of the 2016 winners follows.

The most coveted "Best in Show" crystal trophy was awarded to one car in each marque. The proud winners were:

"Best in Show" winners from left:  Klaus Jones from Troy, Michigan with his 1967 Mercedes-Benz 250SE, David Chapple of Marshall, Michigan with his 1958 Volkswagen Beetle, Kathy Hartman of Portage, Michigan and her 1956 Porsche 356C, Mary Short from Kalamazoo, Michigan and her winning 2013 BMW Alpina B7, James Kloska of Buchanan, Michigan and his 2007 Audi S8. [Photo by John Lacko]

Presented by 

Exclusive Marque Sponsor 

Sharpe BMW:

Best in Show BMW:                  Mary Short, Kalamazoo, MI          2013 Alpina B7

Presented by 

Exclusive Marques Sponsor 

Orrin B. Hayes Mercedes-Benz:

Best in Show Mercedes-Benz:  Klaus Jones, Troy, MI                     1967 250SE

Presented by 

Exclusive Marque Sponsor 

Porsche Grand Rapids:

Best in Show Porsche:               Kathy Hartman, Portage, MI         1956 356C

Best in Show Audi:                   James Kloska, Buchanan, MI          2007 S8

Best in Show Volkswagen:       David Chapple, Marshall, MI          1958 Beetle