Re: [MBZ] The car I had before I bought a Mercedes diesel ...
I had a 69 Lotus Europa bought in 73. Had a problem with the Renault engine blowing head gaskets and my size 9.5 shoes meant I had to remove them and drive barefoot because the pedal box was tiny!. Anyway, that car only weighed around 1200# so the 85hp made that little car SCREAM. When it ran ;-) LarryT On 01/31/2019 2:59 PM, Craig via Mercedes wrote: https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1971-lotus-europa-7/ Mine was a 1969 in red. While I was in the USAF in the fall of 1971 and stationed at Lowry AFB, I drove it from Denver, Colorado, to Pasadena, California and back. It was a blast to drive. In driving through Nevada, which at the time had no speed limits, I averaged 103 mph border-to-border, including slowing down to go through Las Vegas. (This was the days when the Interstate did not go all the way through -- there was even a stretch of surface roads near a small town out in the middle of nowhere in Utah which had signs warning, "No gas stations for 129 miles, check your gas gauge!") In Pasadena, I found there was no thermostat in the housing, so I installed one. On the way back, it was quite cold one morning. After I had been driving a while, I noticed smoke out the exhaust. This got progressively worse to the point I had to check the gas and fill up the oil. Back in Colorado, I drove it a little, but mostly parked it. I eventually rebuilt the engine (my second rebuild job, the first on my 1959 Alfa Romeo Spyder Veloce when I was in college in Pasadena) in the Lowry AFB auto shop. When I opened it up, I found the skirt of one of the pistons had disintegrated and the pieces had fallen to the bottom of the pan. In addition, the oil scraper ring of that piston had broken into several pieces, one sizeable piece of which was stuck in the sludge right next to one of the timing chain sprockets. It was a wonder that the engine did not come apart leaving me stranded on cold, snowy roads. I am greatful it did not! I kept the Lotus Europa when I was transferred to Peterson Field east of Colorado Springs. There I located a source of proper parts for the car and did things like put the correct cooling fan on the (small) radiator, which was in the front, and get shop manuals. Upon reading the shop manuals, I found the statement, "If the pins holding the front suspension A-arms are bent, replacement of the chassis is strongly advised. If the pins are cracked, replacement of the chassis is mandatory." After a while working on the car and thinking about this, I decided it would be best if I sold the car. I looked at a 1954 Ford Station wagon, which is the car on which I learned to drive, but did not get it. One of the fellows with whom I worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory when I was in college had regaled me with stories of his father's Mercedes diesel and how reliable it was. At that point in my life, reliable was important, so I started considering Mercedes diesels. I looked at a Mercedes Diesel Ponton (180D, IIRC, though I do not recall the year), and was impressed by its ability to navigate drainage dips crossing the road, but did not purchase that one, either. I eventually wound up at Pikes Peak Mercedes talking with a salesman about a new 1972 220D/8. I offered my Lotus Europa in trade. I made several visits there over the next two weeks or so. He eventually came up with a deal I found acceptable. I went to the Ent AFB Credit Union and asked for a loan. That process took a while, but finally I went to talk directly to the fellow who was in charge. I had asked for a loan for something like $5600 of a purchase price of $7124.50. He was hesitant to make the loan, but asked what I wanted to purchase. When I told him a new Mercedes diesel, he said, "Oh, I didn't know you wanted to buy something of that value," and immediately wrote out the check. That was the start of my Mercedes infection ... Craig ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
Re: [MBZ] The car I had before I bought a Mercedes diesel ...
So how long did you have that car? What became of it? Sent from my iPhone > On Jan 31, 2019, at 10:16 PM, Craig via Mercedes > wrote: > > On Thu, 31 Jan 2019 17:35:35 -0600 "Kaleb C. Striplin via Mercedes" > wrote: > >> So you bought a new one? Wow that is great. I always wish I could have >> bought a brand new 115 or 123, or maybe even 126 diesel. > > Yes, I did. I was a single lieutenant in the Air Force and that was in > 1971 before the prices started to go up (which was around 1974). > > >> Really have no desire for anything brand new MB now > > That I understand. > > > Craig > > ___ > http://www.okiebenz.com > > To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
Re: [MBZ] The car I had before I bought a Mercedes diesel ...
On Thu, 31 Jan 2019 17:35:35 -0600 "Kaleb C. Striplin via Mercedes" wrote: > So you bought a new one? Wow that is great. I always wish I could have > bought a brand new 115 or 123, or maybe even 126 diesel. Yes, I did. I was a single lieutenant in the Air Force and that was in 1971 before the prices started to go up (which was around 1974). > Really have no desire for anything brand new MB now That I understand. Craig ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
Re: [MBZ] The car I had before I bought a Mercedes diesel ...
On Thu, 31 Jan 2019 17:49:48 -0500 Jaime Kopchinski via Mercedes wrote: > That is a great story! Thank you, Jaime! > The seller of the yellow car is a friend of mine... shame it didn't meet > reserve, he's a real straight guy who has a deep love for cars, > especially unrestored ones. I saw this lotus several times and was > always impressed with its honest condition. Hopefully he can close a > deal outside of the auction. I wish him success! > Difficult time to sell a car, especially when the auction ends on the > coldest day of the year! But it's about the same temperature as usual inside where the bidders are ... Craig ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
Re: [MBZ] The car I had before I bought a Mercedes diesel ...
I saw a G550 grocery getter at the store today that looked pretty good --FT Sent from iPhone > On Jan 31, 2019, at 6:35 PM, Kaleb C. Striplin via Mercedes > wrote: > > Really have no desire for anything brand new MB now ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
Re: [MBZ] The car I had before I bought a Mercedes diesel ...
So you bought a new one? Wow that is great. I always wish I could have bought a brand new 115 or 123, or maybe even 126 diesel. Really have no desire for anything brand new MB now Sent from my iPhone > On Jan 31, 2019, at 1:59 PM, Craig via Mercedes wrote: > > https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1971-lotus-europa-7/ > > Mine was a 1969 in red. > > While I was in the USAF in the fall of 1971 and stationed at Lowry AFB, I > drove it from Denver, Colorado, to Pasadena, California and back. It was > a blast to drive. > > In driving through Nevada, which at the time had no speed limits, I > averaged 103 mph border-to-border, including slowing down to go through > Las Vegas. (This was the days when the Interstate did not go all the way > through -- there was even a stretch of surface roads near a small town > out in the middle of nowhere in Utah which had signs warning, "No gas > stations for 129 miles, check your gas gauge!") > > In Pasadena, I found there was no thermostat in the housing, so I > installed one. > > On the way back, it was quite cold one morning. After I had been driving > a while, I noticed smoke out the exhaust. This got progressively worse to > the point I had to check the gas and fill up the oil. > > Back in Colorado, I drove it a little, but mostly parked it. I eventually > rebuilt the engine (my second rebuild job, the first on my 1959 Alfa Romeo > Spyder Veloce when I was in college in Pasadena) in the Lowry AFB auto > shop. > > When I opened it up, I found the skirt of one of the pistons had > disintegrated and the pieces had fallen to the bottom of the pan. In > addition, the oil scraper ring of that piston had broken into several > pieces, one sizeable piece of which was stuck in the sludge right next to > one of the timing chain sprockets. It was a wonder that the engine did not > come apart leaving me stranded on cold, snowy roads. I am greatful it did > not! > > I kept the Lotus Europa when I was transferred to Peterson Field east of > Colorado Springs. There I located a source of proper parts for the car > and did things like put the correct cooling fan on the (small) radiator, > which was in the front, and get shop manuals. > > Upon reading the shop manuals, I found the statement, "If the pins > holding the front suspension A-arms are bent, replacement of the chassis > is strongly advised. If the pins are cracked, replacement of the chassis > is mandatory." > > After a while working on the car and thinking about this, I decided it > would be best if I sold the car. I looked at a 1954 Ford Station wagon, > which is the car on which I learned to drive, but did not get it. > > One of the fellows with whom I worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory > when I was in college had regaled me with stories of his father's > Mercedes diesel and how reliable it was. At that point in my life, > reliable was important, so I started considering Mercedes diesels. > > I looked at a Mercedes Diesel Ponton (180D, IIRC, though I do not recall > the year), and was impressed by its ability to navigate drainage dips > crossing the road, but did not purchase that one, either. > > I eventually wound up at Pikes Peak Mercedes talking with a salesman > about a new 1972 220D/8. I offered my Lotus Europa in trade. I made > several visits there over the next two weeks or so. He eventually came up > with a deal I found acceptable. I went to the Ent AFB Credit Union and > asked for a loan. That process took a while, but finally I went to talk > directly to the fellow who was in charge. I had asked for a loan for > something like $5600 of a purchase price of $7124.50. He was hesitant to > make the loan, but asked what I wanted to purchase. When I told him a new > Mercedes diesel, he said, "Oh, I didn't know you wanted to buy something > of that value," and immediately wrote out the check. > > That was the start of my Mercedes infection ... > > > Craig > > ___ > http://www.okiebenz.com > > To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
Re: [MBZ] The car I had before I bought a Mercedes diesel ...
That is a great story! The seller of the yellow car is a friend of mine... shame it didn't meet reserve, he's a real straight guy who has a deep love for cars, especially unrestored ones. I saw this lotus several times and was always impressed with its honest condition. Hopefully he can close a deal outside of the auction. Difficult time to sell a car, especially when the auction ends on the coldest day of the year! Jaime On Thu, Jan 31, 2019 at 3:00 PM Craig via Mercedes wrote: > https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1971-lotus-europa-7/ > > Mine was a 1969 in red. > > While I was in the USAF in the fall of 1971 and stationed at Lowry AFB, I > drove it from Denver, Colorado, to Pasadena, California and back. It was > a blast to drive. > > In driving through Nevada, which at the time had no speed limits, I > averaged 103 mph border-to-border, including slowing down to go through > Las Vegas. (This was the days when the Interstate did not go all the way > through -- there was even a stretch of surface roads near a small town > out in the middle of nowhere in Utah which had signs warning, "No gas > stations for 129 miles, check your gas gauge!") > > In Pasadena, I found there was no thermostat in the housing, so I > installed one. > > On the way back, it was quite cold one morning. After I had been driving > a while, I noticed smoke out the exhaust. This got progressively worse to > the point I had to check the gas and fill up the oil. > > Back in Colorado, I drove it a little, but mostly parked it. I eventually > rebuilt the engine (my second rebuild job, the first on my 1959 Alfa Romeo > Spyder Veloce when I was in college in Pasadena) in the Lowry AFB auto > shop. > > When I opened it up, I found the skirt of one of the pistons had > disintegrated and the pieces had fallen to the bottom of the pan. In > addition, the oil scraper ring of that piston had broken into several > pieces, one sizeable piece of which was stuck in the sludge right next to > one of the timing chain sprockets. It was a wonder that the engine did not > come apart leaving me stranded on cold, snowy roads. I am greatful it did > not! > > I kept the Lotus Europa when I was transferred to Peterson Field east of > Colorado Springs. There I located a source of proper parts for the car > and did things like put the correct cooling fan on the (small) radiator, > which was in the front, and get shop manuals. > > Upon reading the shop manuals, I found the statement, "If the pins > holding the front suspension A-arms are bent, replacement of the chassis > is strongly advised. If the pins are cracked, replacement of the chassis > is mandatory." > > After a while working on the car and thinking about this, I decided it > would be best if I sold the car. I looked at a 1954 Ford Station wagon, > which is the car on which I learned to drive, but did not get it. > > One of the fellows with whom I worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory > when I was in college had regaled me with stories of his father's > Mercedes diesel and how reliable it was. At that point in my life, > reliable was important, so I started considering Mercedes diesels. > > I looked at a Mercedes Diesel Ponton (180D, IIRC, though I do not recall > the year), and was impressed by its ability to navigate drainage dips > crossing the road, but did not purchase that one, either. > > I eventually wound up at Pikes Peak Mercedes talking with a salesman > about a new 1972 220D/8. I offered my Lotus Europa in trade. I made > several visits there over the next two weeks or so. He eventually came up > with a deal I found acceptable. I went to the Ent AFB Credit Union and > asked for a loan. That process took a while, but finally I went to talk > directly to the fellow who was in charge. I had asked for a loan for > something like $5600 of a purchase price of $7124.50. He was hesitant to > make the loan, but asked what I wanted to purchase. When I told him a new > Mercedes diesel, he said, "Oh, I didn't know you wanted to buy something > of that value," and immediately wrote out the check. > > That was the start of my Mercedes infection ... > > > Craig > > ___ > http://www.okiebenz.com > > To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > > -- Jaime Kopchinski http://www.jaimekop.com/ ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
Re: [MBZ] The car I had before I bought a Mercedes diesel ...
Great story, Craig. On Jan 31, 2019 3:00 PM, "Craig via Mercedes" wrote: > https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1971-lotus-europa-7/ > > Mine was a 1969 in red. > > While I was in the USAF in the fall of 1971 and stationed at Lowry AFB, I > drove it from Denver, Colorado, to Pasadena, California and back. It was > a blast to drive. > > In driving through Nevada, which at the time had no speed limits, I > averaged 103 mph border-to-border, including slowing down to go through > Las Vegas. (This was the days when the Interstate did not go all the way > through -- there was even a stretch of surface roads near a small town > out in the middle of nowhere in Utah which had signs warning, "No gas > stations for 129 miles, check your gas gauge!") > > In Pasadena, I found there was no thermostat in the housing, so I > installed one. > > On the way back, it was quite cold one morning. After I had been driving > a while, I noticed smoke out the exhaust. This got progressively worse to > the point I had to check the gas and fill up the oil. > > Back in Colorado, I drove it a little, but mostly parked it. I eventually > rebuilt the engine (my second rebuild job, the first on my 1959 Alfa Romeo > Spyder Veloce when I was in college in Pasadena) in the Lowry AFB auto > shop. > > When I opened it up, I found the skirt of one of the pistons had > disintegrated and the pieces had fallen to the bottom of the pan. In > addition, the oil scraper ring of that piston had broken into several > pieces, one sizeable piece of which was stuck in the sludge right next to > one of the timing chain sprockets. It was a wonder that the engine did not > come apart leaving me stranded on cold, snowy roads. I am greatful it did > not! > > I kept the Lotus Europa when I was transferred to Peterson Field east of > Colorado Springs. There I located a source of proper parts for the car > and did things like put the correct cooling fan on the (small) radiator, > which was in the front, and get shop manuals. > > Upon reading the shop manuals, I found the statement, "If the pins > holding the front suspension A-arms are bent, replacement of the chassis > is strongly advised. If the pins are cracked, replacement of the chassis > is mandatory." > > After a while working on the car and thinking about this, I decided it > would be best if I sold the car. I looked at a 1954 Ford Station wagon, > which is the car on which I learned to drive, but did not get it. > > One of the fellows with whom I worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory > when I was in college had regaled me with stories of his father's > Mercedes diesel and how reliable it was. At that point in my life, > reliable was important, so I started considering Mercedes diesels. > > I looked at a Mercedes Diesel Ponton (180D, IIRC, though I do not recall > the year), and was impressed by its ability to navigate drainage dips > crossing the road, but did not purchase that one, either. > > I eventually wound up at Pikes Peak Mercedes talking with a salesman > about a new 1972 220D/8. I offered my Lotus Europa in trade. I made > several visits there over the next two weeks or so. He eventually came up > with a deal I found acceptable. I went to the Ent AFB Credit Union and > asked for a loan. That process took a while, but finally I went to talk > directly to the fellow who was in charge. I had asked for a loan for > something like $5600 of a purchase price of $7124.50. He was hesitant to > make the loan, but asked what I wanted to purchase. When I told him a new > Mercedes diesel, he said, "Oh, I didn't know you wanted to buy something > of that value," and immediately wrote out the check. > > That was the start of my Mercedes infection ... > > > Craig > > ___ > http://www.okiebenz.com > > To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > > ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
[MBZ] The car I had before I bought a Mercedes diesel ...
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1971-lotus-europa-7/ Mine was a 1969 in red. While I was in the USAF in the fall of 1971 and stationed at Lowry AFB, I drove it from Denver, Colorado, to Pasadena, California and back. It was a blast to drive. In driving through Nevada, which at the time had no speed limits, I averaged 103 mph border-to-border, including slowing down to go through Las Vegas. (This was the days when the Interstate did not go all the way through -- there was even a stretch of surface roads near a small town out in the middle of nowhere in Utah which had signs warning, "No gas stations for 129 miles, check your gas gauge!") In Pasadena, I found there was no thermostat in the housing, so I installed one. On the way back, it was quite cold one morning. After I had been driving a while, I noticed smoke out the exhaust. This got progressively worse to the point I had to check the gas and fill up the oil. Back in Colorado, I drove it a little, but mostly parked it. I eventually rebuilt the engine (my second rebuild job, the first on my 1959 Alfa Romeo Spyder Veloce when I was in college in Pasadena) in the Lowry AFB auto shop. When I opened it up, I found the skirt of one of the pistons had disintegrated and the pieces had fallen to the bottom of the pan. In addition, the oil scraper ring of that piston had broken into several pieces, one sizeable piece of which was stuck in the sludge right next to one of the timing chain sprockets. It was a wonder that the engine did not come apart leaving me stranded on cold, snowy roads. I am greatful it did not! I kept the Lotus Europa when I was transferred to Peterson Field east of Colorado Springs. There I located a source of proper parts for the car and did things like put the correct cooling fan on the (small) radiator, which was in the front, and get shop manuals. Upon reading the shop manuals, I found the statement, "If the pins holding the front suspension A-arms are bent, replacement of the chassis is strongly advised. If the pins are cracked, replacement of the chassis is mandatory." After a while working on the car and thinking about this, I decided it would be best if I sold the car. I looked at a 1954 Ford Station wagon, which is the car on which I learned to drive, but did not get it. One of the fellows with whom I worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory when I was in college had regaled me with stories of his father's Mercedes diesel and how reliable it was. At that point in my life, reliable was important, so I started considering Mercedes diesels. I looked at a Mercedes Diesel Ponton (180D, IIRC, though I do not recall the year), and was impressed by its ability to navigate drainage dips crossing the road, but did not purchase that one, either. I eventually wound up at Pikes Peak Mercedes talking with a salesman about a new 1972 220D/8. I offered my Lotus Europa in trade. I made several visits there over the next two weeks or so. He eventually came up with a deal I found acceptable. I went to the Ent AFB Credit Union and asked for a loan. That process took a while, but finally I went to talk directly to the fellow who was in charge. I had asked for a loan for something like $5600 of a purchase price of $7124.50. He was hesitant to make the loan, but asked what I wanted to purchase. When I told him a new Mercedes diesel, he said, "Oh, I didn't know you wanted to buy something of that value," and immediately wrote out the check. That was the start of my Mercedes infection ... Craig ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
