• Ultrace is a unique, two-day automotive event that gathers over a thousand carefully selected cars from all over Europe in Wrocław, Poland.
• Similar to Grid Icons, Ultrace has reset the standard for what European enthusiasts expect out of a car show and how far they’re willing to go to see one.
• CSF erected a purposefully grand display to mark its intent to become the cooling solutions leader in Europe, bar none.
• The display included the iconic CSF 911 and the Pit+Paddock x Bilstein E91 GTS Tribute amongst other standouts.

Most would’ve considered building a $500,000+ air-cooled Porsche enough. But Ravi Dolwani of CSF isn’t a normal person and, in accordance with the price tag, neither is the car. The aptly named CSF 911 is one-in-a-million, an amalgamation of Dolwani’s personal style and imagination, a deep-rooted understanding of the Porsche marque, the full power of the automotive aftermarket, and a full showcase of his brand’s parts. The effort was titanic, but Dolwani’s attention to detail guaranteed that the juice was worth the squeeze; every nut, bolt, and finish was considered to perfection.

The result beckoned Dolwani to strive beyond his established measuring sticks. It was no longer enough to get the approving nod from his usual critics. Just as much as he bravely set CSF on a path to pursue opportunities in the vintage Porsche arena, he too sought grander stages for himself and the car. That’s really how the Euro Trip started to come to fruition. Now more than a month in, his biggest trial was on the horizon: Ultrace.

ULTRA RACE

My American ignorance showed—I admit to mistakenly referring to it as “Ultrarace” at first—but for a few years now, the Poland-based car show has been deservedly added to most of the industry’s bucket lists. What once was a car show that showed off Poland’s best has quickly expanded to a full European showcase, and now, a worldwide endeavor. To that effect, “ultra race” may not be too far off from what you’re able to see here; it’s a wonderful mix of style, show, and drifting which reminds us that dreamers—in equal measure to engineers—have pushed our industry forward. Ultrace also touts some of the best automotive branding and merch that exists right now.

SHOWED UP BIG

Dolwani isn’t one to show up to an event without putting his best foot forward. Knowing the caliber of cars and displays ahead, he pulled out all the stops for this year’s showcase. The CSF 911 and Pit+Paddock x Bilstein E91 GTS Tribute were fitting flagships for CSF’s six-car array, which flanked a high-end boutique full of the brand’s accouterments.

It was an opportunity for Dolwani to mesh a lot of the things that he’s been proud of throughout his years in the industry: a proud catalog of the aftermarket’s best cooling solutions, a generous library of visual art that showcased his company’s previous projects, a community of accomplished enthusiasts, and a touch of luxury that aligned it all with the Ultrace vibe.

A bit of Pit+Paddock’s energy helped, too. Visitors to CSF’s lounge were treated to coffee served in my new favorite co-branded, ceramic espresso cups and a respite from the heat.

For as much as Dolwani brought to Ultrace, the buzz around the CSF 911 proved that the show had something to give him in return. To his surprise, he took home a much-deserved Top 16 award, a handsome companion to the Top 10 honors he won at Players Classic.

INTERVIEW WITH CSF

The win compelled us to sit down with Dolwani after the show to recap the craziness of Ultrace, collect his thoughts about the Euro Trip so far, and see how the whole experience has affected what Dolwani plans to do next.

I know we spoke at the start of Euro Trip—how has it been so far? Has it met or exceeded your expectations?
Things have gone better than any of us could have ever imagined. The 911 and the Pit+Paddock x Bilstein E91 GTS Tribute have been getting an amazing response wherever the cards have been placed. The latter got a lot of attention and coverage at the Evolve Park Lane event and then was parked in central London at the Venga pop-up meet where it crowds were around it all night. Some good driving and YouTube content has been made on the car with Imran from Evolve Automotive and some others already as well. At both Players and Ultrace it was also a smash with crowds around the cars throughout the day.

In regards to my Porsche, winning a Top 10 award at Players as well as a Top 16 award (made to the Top 8) at Ultrace has blown my expectations away, and I’m truly humbled by the response the car has gotten from the international crowd. The two cars have sparked so many great conversations with so many cool enthusiasts who want to learn more about the cars and the CSF brand (which was the whole point of shipping the car out). So the plan is working and it’s working well!

You mentioned that Ultrace was a new destination that you were looking forward to this year. Did it turn out to be the “go-to show in Europe” you were hoping it’d be?
This is the best car show that I’ve ever been to—the scale, the production value, the displays, the quality of the merchandise, the media—everything these guys do is top-notch and we’ll be coming back with an even bigger presence next year. Everyone that visited this show for the first time (which was many of us from the USA, UK, and other parts of Europe), was all very impressed by the turnout and quality of the event.

This has to be the ultimate bucket list for any “tuning” or modified enthusiast out there. I believe the word is getting out and I predict that this show will just keep getting better and better with more of an international presence and attendance.

As someone (and well, a majority of us) who’s never been there, talk us through what made Ultrace special. Why should anyone consider going next year?
Aside from everything I mentioned above, the curation of the displays and the quality of the cars is next level. Ultrace has put a tremendous amount of resources into staging all of its high-profile builds from around the world. It’s truly an international show. There were two cars from the USA in the top 16 (mine and a custom hot-rod Mustang), South Korea (Peaches), and Japan (Liberty Walk). The drifting all weekend was also next level; anyone could take their car out and drift. Many of the drift cars were super nice. I saw a 7-Series with chrome wheels and four people inside just sliding away, lol.

I know you also mentioned that CSF was going to have a really nice display at the event. Now that it’s over, can you talk about what you did in detail? How’d it help put CSF on the map with the European audience you’ve been trying to reach?
CSF and Pit+Paddock put on a very unique six car display for the event. We set up a coffee lounge and art gallery showcasing notable CSF photography from around the world by some of the most talented photographers around the world (Mark Ricconi, Darrien Craven, Larry Chen, etc.)

The idea was to show people some of the high-profile cars that we’ve worked on throughout the years of the company. We had products on display, some custom Ultrace x CSF x Pit+Paddock ceramic espresso cups, and limited edition Leen Custom pins of the CSF 911 (which aren’t being sold, and have only been given away at the shows in Europe).

Also, it was HOT all weekend and our display area was truly COOLED by CSF with A/C pumping. A lot of people came to chill out with CSF and our crew. Outside, we had not only the 911 and E91 on display but brought some heavy hitters from around Europe through our network of partners. Absolute Motors / GP Products from the Netherlands brought its wild G87 M2 GT build and its C8 RS6 – RS2 tribute build to the show. Our good friends from R44 Performance (in the UK) brought it single turbo, bagged G81 M3 wagon, and our new distributor and host, PG Performance from Wroclaw Poland, brought out a widebody Novitec Urus that we displayed with the bumper off so you could see the upgraded CSF intercoolers.

It was a great way to introduce the brand to an audience in Eastern Europe who may have not heard or known much about CSF.

From all the social media coverage, there was some HEAT at the event. Talk to us about some of the other standout cars, especially ones with CSF products.

There were so many cars. The best way I can describe it is that I saw a lot, but I saw nothing; it’s sensory overload, like SEMA, but it’s all honestly top-level cars. I was really digging the VIP Benz scene. It doesn’t have a strong presence in the USA but there were probably 50+ of these cars that I would want to take home and drive on a Sunday cruise. Also, some very cool VW MK1s were on display and curated together nicely. Hard to not mention the air-cooled Porsches from OEM+ to full-blown widebody RWB kits. The FA Turbo race car, the Rennevelen Jager collection, and some of the Hoffmiester cars were all great to look at, especially since they were put together in a collection.

How did it feel to take home an Ultrace award, especially considering the caliber of cars from all over Europe who were vying for the same honor? Do you feel like you were able to make the bigger statement about American car culture that you wanted?
I knew there was a contest, but I didn’t think much of it. In my mind, honestly, I was just there to represent CSF and have a good time with our partners. On Saturday night, someone had to show me the Ultrace Instagram to inform me that I had made the top 16. I was blown away. I think winning this award just continues to elevate the presence of the car on a global stage and continues to add credibility to both CSF as well as myself as a car builder. There were three Porsches in the Top 16, and I was the only one that made it to the Top 8. I lost to the LB Countach 3-2 in the Top 8 battle, but he was a judge as well, so I’ll leave that there 😉

But just to be on stage with the other Top 16 winners, it truly felt like an all-star show.

How about the statement you were trying to make to all the European cooling brands?
I think people and the European car community are realizing that CSF is a premier brand that is run by genuine enthusiasts.  We’re here to stay and we’re going to continue to grow in Europe.

How has the trip affected your direction or vision for what CSF develops next?
We’ll be coming back to Ultrace next year and hopefully, it’ll become an annual event if it’s possible to coordinate. Poland is a great country; everyone was super nice and the vibe could not be beat. We have a full development calendar in the works, but we’re paying more attention to the makes and models that may be holes in our range that are needed and are being requested by the European market. A lot to continue to do and grow!

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