Nov 13, 2025
Driving Design: An Audi Enthusiast Finds His Place in the Watch Community
Joey is a pianist, watch collector, and Volkswagen/Audi enthusiast. Joey and I met as many watch enthusiasts do; overhearing a wrist check conversation and nudging our individual ways into it at the same time. Of course, this conversation was also at a car show, which served as the catalyst for this eventual article, and over the course of six months, a real friendship forged through timepieces and an Audi TT RS. A San Francisco native with an eye for custom style, Joey naturally started his car journey with custom Volkswagens. “From the specific years you bought, how you lowered it, interior to the color scheme you could tell you were from San Francisco,” he says, motioning to a VW Kharmann Ghia across the sea of car enthusiasts that we stand distanced from on a warm and clear Sunday morning in September. Family and friends modified air-cooled V-Dubs, introducing him to the art of modifying cars-a topic that remains contentious among enthusiasts, some of whom prefer to keep their classic machines stock, in stark opposition to the hot rodders and lowriders of the scene. A fleeting glance of a late-model Volkswagen Scirocco 16V in Brilliant Black kickstarted Joey’s personal pursuit of vehicular perfection, but his first automotive love was that car’s little brother. “I ended up going to the local dealer and bought a Mk2 big bumper Jetta GLI with the 2.0L bubble-block 16V instead”, Joey admits, showing a hint of his present self’s penchant for practical...
Fratello
