Big wheels, fast wheels, and everything in between. Pistons & Pretzels Munich delivered.
Pistons & Pretzels returned to Munich on September 13, bringing the Automotive Design community together at a rather different home than usual: the MAN Truck Forum. And what a backdrop it was.
With the usual Pistons & Pretzels lineup of cars sharing the space with some seriously big pieces of machinery, this edition offered a different perspective on Mobility Design.
As this edition’s main partner, MAN Truck & Bus SE brought a lineup that was a little outside the usual Pistons & Pretzels scale. Guests could get up close to trucks spanning more than a century of development, from historic MAN vehicles dating back to the early 1900s to modern-day trucks.
But there was more to discover than what was parked out in the open. During two exclusive tours, the MAN team took guests behind the scenes of the Truck Forum, sharing first-hand insights into everything from the oldtimer trucks and their stories to the Future Mobility exhibition, where new approaches to innovation are already being explored. The tour even took guests into the Customer Center, giving a glimpse into what happens before these vehicles make it onto the road.
One of the things we wanted to do differently this time was move beyond simply looking at Design. And NOVUS made that possible.
Just a few months after its reveal, the NOVUS One Lightbike came to Pistons & Pretzels, giving guests the chance to experience the unique combination of e-bike, scooter and motorcycle for themselves during guided test rides with the NOVUS founder and designer.
A rare chance to sit in the driver’s seat rather than simply hearing about the power and fun this ride brings.
Speaking of experiencing Design, UE | STUDIOS brought SUE to Munich.
The autonomous people mover rethinks public transport, shifting the focus from simply getting passengers from A to B towards making the journey itself worth the while. Guests could hop inside and get hands-on with the technologies and materials used throughout the concept.
And while the exterior of SUE in itself left quite the impression, the interior made a pretty convincing argument of its own. Once you had settled into one of its seats, getting back out again was not necessarily the first thing on your mind.
While we love having conversations about the future of Mobility Design at Pistons & Pretzels, we also like to bring that future to the event. Sometimes in the form of new concepts, sometimes in the form of young talent, and sometimes, like this time, in the form of both.
So this year, Pforzheim University brought three of its graduates to our meetup, each with a very different take on where Mobility could go next:
Having the Designers themselves on site was a good reminder that fresh perspectives on Mobility Design do not only come from new technologies, but also from a new generation looking at familiar questions from a different angle.
And of course, let’s not forget about how the community once again brought plenty of its own four-wheeled highlights. A lineup that made choosing the winners of our latest Lines of Legends Design Contest anything but easy.
But after a lot of deliberation, these cars took home the titles:
To everyone who joined us, thank you for a Sunday well spent with lots of standout Design and people!
This Munich edition could be considered a fantastic closing to our 2026 Pistons & Pretzels tour.
BUT, we have one more stop on the map: Japan Mobility Design community, see you on October 3. 🇯🇵
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