As they’ve done every summer for the past 17 years, Volkswagen enthusiasts descended on Englishtown, New Jersey for Waterfest, North America’s largest VW and Audi car show. The event, which took place July 16th and 17th, drew more than 21,000 attendees who were anxious to show off their tricked-out rides.
Over the course of the warm and sunny weekend, enthusiasts from as far south as Florida and as far north as Nova Scotia pulled up in the customary customized Golfs and Jettas. But this year, there was also a strong contingency of Volkswagen CCs, which appears to be an up-and-coming model for gearheads to modify. The MKVI GTI is another success story, having gained roughly the same import tuner market saturation in just two years that the MKV GTI gained in five years.
Volkswagen of American made an appearance, too, showing off the 2011 Golf R and 2012 Beetle to throngs of adoring fans. The new Beetle drew praise for its turbo wheels, while the Golf R was a big hit thanks to its all-wheel drive feature. VWoA gave out hundreds of customized dog tags and thousands of one-off “Waterfest 2011” posters.
Of course, certain attendees were hoping to take home more than just some cool swag. There were a variety of judged events, including autocross, drag racing and a variety of show car contests, as well as 64 classes of judging for all years, makes and models of Volkswagens.
Even after 17 years, Waterfest shows no sign of slowing down. We look forward to seeing you at Waterfest 18 in 2012!
RELATED LINKS
Viva Das Auto. Letting it Ride in Vegas UPDATED
Volkswagen’s top Spring Break Destination: 2011 Southern Wörthersee recap
Going Abroad: Catching up with 2010 Jetta TDI Cup™ Champ JD Mobley