In early December, the final of this year’s HELLA SHOW & SHINE Awards, one of the most popular tuning awards in Germany, saw an Opel break the ongoing winning streak set by vehicles from the Volkswagen Group. Christian Theegarten took first place at the Essen Motor Show with his Corsa OPC.
Theegarten won over the audience, who traditionally decide the winner at the final of the popular tuning awards. A total of 3,923 visitors to the motor show used their ballots to cast their votes on site and a further 36,000 people voted online. The number of votes from the previous year was surpassed by over 50 percent. Previously, a jury of 11 experts deliberated for many hours before selecting ten finalists from 155 applicants in a preliminary round.
The final selection round kept the audience on tenterhooks. It went down to the wire as Christian Theegarten and his Corsa OPC ran a head-to-head race with second-place competitor Michael Will and his Ford Escort Express, who was slightly ahead after the online votes were tallied. In the end, the audience at the Essen Motor Show voted overwhelmingly in favor of the race car carrying the lightning bolt. Christian Theegarten was delighted to win the trophy and receive a check for €1,000 from VAU-MAX magazine. Second place went to Michael Will and Sarah Schüttler came in third with her Volkswagen up!