FuoriConcorso 2026 brought German engineering to Lake Como, tracing a century of performance, precision and experimentation through Porsche, Audi, BRABUS and beyond.

Ihave never thought of engineering as something beautiful in itself. Not in the way a racing line can be beautiful, or a photograph taken at exactly the right moment. Engineering was always what happened underneath, the structure behind the object. Standing at Villa del Grumello, with Lake Como below and a Porsche 962C only a few metres behind me, that distinction suddenly felt less obvious.

FuoriConcorso returned in 2026 under the title KraftMeister. The word is difficult to translate precisely. Kraft means force, power or strength. Meister can mean master or craftsman. Together, they describe something close to the mastery of force. It proved an appropriate theme for an exhibition centred on German automotive culture.

FuoriConcorso has always occupied an unusual position among automotive events. The cars matter, of course, but so does the setting around them. At Lake Como they are presented more as objects of design, engineering and culture. Not products. This year, that approach placed some of Germany’s most important machines into an environment almost completely removed from the places for which they were created. And somehow, they looked entirely at home.

Porsche and the pursuit of purpose

At Villa del Grumello, Porsche’s competition history formed one of the strongest parts of the exhibition. The story stretched from the lightweight 550 Spyder to some of Stuttgart’s most significant endurance racing machinery. On the lawn sat the 917 LH, alongside the 908 LH and the 962. Seen together, their lineage becomes immediately apparent.

These cars came from different periods and different regulations, yet all followed a remarkably consistent idea: solve the problem as efficiently as possible, then remove everything that does not contribute to the solution. The result is engineering that carries its own aesthetic. The shapes were created by necessity. Aerodynamics, weight, speed and durability determined the proportions long before appearance became part of the conversation. Yet decades later, the cars remain visually extraordinary.

Nearby, the BRABUS BODO represented a very different interpretation of German performance. Limited to 77 examples and built with the character of a coachbuilt grand tourer, it showed how the language of German engineering has expanded far beyond motorsport. One is defined by competition and function, the other by craftsmanship, exclusivity and excess. Both still belong under the same title: KraftMeister.

Audi across disciplines

At Villa Sucota, Audi approached the theme through range rather than chronology. The collection moved between rallying, endurance racing, electric competition and contemporary motorsport. The RS Q e tron stood alongside machines including the Quattro, IMSA GTO, Formula E car and R18, together with Audi’s latest Formula 1 project.

What connected them was not a single period or technology, but a willingness to apply engineering in very different environments. The Quattro transformed Audi’s presence in rallying through four wheel drive. Decades later, the R18 represented another technological shift in endurance racing. The disciplines changed, and so did the solutions. The mentality remained remarkably consistent.

Casa Audi made that progression visible without needing to explain it too heavily. Place the cars next to one another and the relationship becomes clear. Audi has repeatedly entered unfamiliar territory with technology at the centre of the approach. The next chapter is already beginning.

Through Newton’s lens

Automotive culture at FuoriConcorso extended beyond the cars themselves. At Villa Olmo, an exhibition curated by Riocam presented automobiles through the work of Helmut Newton. His images introduced another interpretation of the same theme.

Newton’s photography was never simply about documenting an object. Cars became part of larger compositions involving people, movement, tension and atmosphere. Walking through the exhibition with a camera over my shoulder, the relationship felt particularly relevant. Photography and the automobile share an unusual connection. One creates motion and presence. The other decides how that presence will be remembered.

For an event built around automotive culture rather than the conventional motor show format, the exhibition felt entirely appropriate.

Germany meets Lake Como

And then there was the setting. Lake Como remained almost impossibly calm while racing cars, prototypes and grand tourers occupied the villas along its shoreline. That contrast may have been the most interesting part of KraftMeister.

German engineering is often associated with precision, discipline and technical purpose. Como offers almost the opposite experience: architecture, landscape and a sense of elegance that appears effortless. For one weekend, the two existed together. Not in competition, but in contrast.

That is ultimately what FuoriConcorso does particularly well. It gives important cars enough space to exist outside their normal context, without racetracks, without showrooms and without the usual noise surrounding them. Just the object, the story behind it and the environment around it.

Standing there with a camera in hand, that was enough of a reminder of why these cars remain interesting long after their original purpose has disappeared. Some things are worth returning to.