On Saturday, October 4th, 2025, the American Tobacco Campus hosted a celebration of automotive design and engineering with the 11th Luftgekühlt event. German for “air-cooled”, Luftgekühlt is an annual meetup of Porsche owners, drivers, and enthusiasts founded by legendary racer Patrick Long and creative director Howie Idelson. Luft showcases air-cooled cars from Porsche’s history, spanning a period from the company’s founding in 1948 through 1998.
Luft 11 featured approximately 400 cars and included a special 30th anniversary celebration of the 993-generation Porsche 911 racer. Special guests included racing driver and motorsport executive Bobby Rahal and Motorsports Hall of Famer Tommy Kendall.
The historic American Tobacco Campus provided an ideal backdrop, with cars located throughout renovated tobacco factory, including inside the Fowler, Washington, and Power Plant buildings, along the Old Bull River, and under the iconic Lucky Strike smokestack and water tower.
Luftgekühlt 11 is the largest event ever hosted by the American Tobacco Campus and featured over 9,200 attendees during the seven-hour showcase. Luft 11 is the first Luftgekühlt held on the U.S. East Coast.
Bringing Luft to Durham has been a long time in the making. Luft 7 was originally planned to be held in Durham at the American Tobacco Campus in Fall 2020, but was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Luft 7 later took place on September 10th, 2021 at the Bottleworks District in Indianapolis, Indiana.
For more on this iconic event, check out Porche’s newsroom article here: https://newsroom.porsche.com/en/2025/scene-passion/porsche-luftgekuehlt-11-north-carolina-2025-40733.html