New Shop Truck, Pt. 2

New Shop Truck.

This 1964 Model 1113 Mercedes fire truck came home to the shop today.

After sitting for over a year, it took just 2 fresh batts and a pull of the big starter button to run and drive. Not far - only around the field and onto to our trailer. But everything's really tight. 6-cyl turbocharged diesel. Four-wheel drive. Seats for six. Working lights. Lots of storage lockers, a big working pump in back and a 2,400 liter water tank. 16,000 kilometers on the odometer.

Weeping Radish Brewery owner Uli owned this truck for 11 years, using it for brewery ops and local parades. We promised Uli we'd take good care of it-not to 'murder it out' with primer black everywhere, black wheels and nothing shiny anywhere. That was just a little road trip joke, Uli.

It was a full day, leaving from Richmond at 7am. Home by 6pm.

Here is a virtually identical truck, apparently awaiting service as a beer cannon. More tech description in the post.

And now what...? Shop truck, crash truck, car shows. Clean it, tune it and translate all the labels on the dashboard. And maybe a return trip across the pond one day...

This is "Snowflake."

This is "Snowflake," a C model that's bound for Alpinerallye glory. I'll let Robert complete the post with details of this car's provenance. The plan is to kit it out in mid-1960s rally gear.

On vintage restoration with a goal: Kitzbuhel Alpine Rally

Are we crazy? Yes. And, no. The current fantasy: prepare a 1965 365C Porsche for a classic car rally halfway around the world. Kitzbuhel, Austria, to be exact. Date undetermined, but we're shooting to make this happen in the next 5 years.

This is our first blog post. Thought it right to make it a big one. We've never been to Austria, and we can't even read the official rally site. But we've got the beginnings of a car and a start on a chase vehicle.

Watch this space for build pics and progress reports and various exclamations in bungled, mangled German. We're excited.

Here goes...Prosit!