Author Archives: Dave Hord

Needle in a Haystack

DavesDadsCar

I consider myself lucky enough to have experienced the days of car buying before the internet. Circling newspaper ads, leaving notes on windshields and endless dead-end phone calls. Today, many of us start the day surfing Craigslist, Auto Trader, Bring a Trailer and more…looking for that next car, next project or hidden gem. When I decided on a 1971 Super Beetle for my last project it took me almost two months to find an acceptable starter. There are millions of beetles out there, but I wanted an example from just a single year. Imagine the challenge of finding not a single year, but a single VIN! A good friend of ours, Dave Koszegi, is doing just that.

Once Dave begins to tell the story, it’s not hard to figure out where his love of cars came from. Throughout his youth, Dave’s dad would always talk about his favourite car; a 1968 Mercedes Benz 300se. “My entire life I heard stories about that car,” Dave tells me. “Dad would talk about how fast it was.” The car was special ordered with the 3 litre, fuel injected six cylinder which I understand was similar to that used in the famous Gullwing. The car was also specified with an Automatic transmission, MBtex interior and a maroon paint. “The paint,” Dave begins, “Dad would always talk about the paint job. He really loved the colour.” Anytime the two of them passed a vehicle with a maroon paint job, Dave’s dad would start telling him stories about his beloved Mercedes. Purchased new from the dealer in 1968, Dave’s father owned the car for just four years. The arrival of Dave, brother to four other siblings, meant the 300se was traded in at the local Ford Dealership for an LTD woody wagon with more seating capacity. But the Mercedes was never forgotten.

Dave’s father passed away about five years ago, and Dave has been on the hunt for this specific Mercedes. He’s been able to trace the car from 1968, right to the year 2000…but then the trail goes cold. After it was traded into the Ford dealership the car was sold to private owner located in Edmonton Alberta. In the ’80’s she contacted the family to say the car was running great, and then later placed it up for sale in the 90’s. The car was sold to another Alberta owner, who kept it insured until 1999 or 2000…but that is where the trail goes cold. Dave has checked with Alberta registration, sea and rail shipping companies, and believes the car is still located somewhere in Canada…probably Alberta. Dave has tried getting help from Mercedes Classic in California, suggesting they pass his contact information onto anyone who’s purchased parts in the last 10 years. Unfortunately, to date he’s been unable to generate any assistance.

Classic Car Adventures would love to help Dave be reunited with his Dad’s old car, and has the VIN number for final identification. With the unique and special-order build, finding the specific car is certainly a more realistic proposition. Is it sitting in a barn waiting to be found? Perhaps it was parted out for it’s unique engine? Either way, we’d love to help Dave find his needle in a haystack.

Vehicle Details:
1968 Mercedes Benz 300SE (Four Door Sedan)
Engine: High Compression, 3 Litre Fuel Injected Six
Transmission: Automatic
Interior: Beige MBtex
Color: Maroon
VIN: Final digit is 7, full VIN to be used for identification purposes.

If you’ve got any information or leads, please contact us using mercedes@classiccaradventures.com, or use the comments section below.

Of Women…and Ferraris

This past week an email came through my box that I just had to share. After showing a few fellow car friends, I quickly realized I had stumbled upon a piece of writing that was likely to hit home with every car enthusiast. Whether male of female, if you cherish a vehicle in your collection you can probably relate. The personal, and open nature of the email is what sets it apart from so many. Not only can we relate, but truthfully we can all learn from this too.

The discussion originally started on another event’s email list. One of the members posted to say his Ferrari would be participating for the last time, and he was likely to sell it. A brief discussion on the Ferrari ensued, and then the real truth behind it’s ‘retirement’ came out. The Italian machine was heading to storage, as his wife wasn’t too pleased about the latest purchase…another Ferrari. It was then that Scott Fisher joined the conversation. Whether your garage hosts a collection of Ferrari’s, or simply dreams of a $500 project, you will probably relate to his words. Hopefully, we all learn from them too.

…So a whole slew of years ago, I rode along with a buddy looking at a car he wanted to buy.  His girlfriend was riding along with us, I was in the back seat and we were talking about the car all the way to the seller’s house; she was silent — not exactly an icy silence, at least not until viewed in retrospect.

Well, it was a smoking deal — won’t go into the details (and of course, names changed to protect the guilty and all that) — and he bought it.

And I was then forced to witness the most humiliating chewing-of-a-new-orifice that I had EVER, and have ever SINCE, beheld a woman giving to the man she was supposedly in love with.  It was embarrassing, not only because of the specific and minuscule nature of the demands she made (“and would it KILL you if ONCE in a while you wore a shirt with BUTTONS?”), but because it was being performed in front of a third party.

We rode back to their place, I got in my MGB and headed back home.  On the way I stopped at the local Safeway and picked up a bottle of chilled champagne, my wife’s favorite beverage.  I walked in; she was sitting at the table doing some art or craft, and smiled at me as I approached her.  When I held out the champagne, she beamed.

“For me?” she asked.  “What’s the occasion?”

“Because you’re not Sue,” I said (not her actual name).  I explained the evening, and she just shook her head sadly.

Kim (my wife’s actual name) got many a bottle of champagne over the next 20 years.  Whenever a guy said he couldn’t buy a car because his wife would kill him, I’d be there.  Whenever a woman handed a guy a list of things to do before he could leave the house, I’d be there.  Whenever I’d read a Craigslist ad where a guy was selling his Jensen-Healey to buy a Honda Odyssey because they were expecting their first child, I’d be there.  I’d be all around them in the dark.

Kim passed away suddenly last June, a few days before our 31st anniversary.  Our own daughter even gave me grief for the car I purchased as Kim’s memorial — not coincidentally, a Ferrari, which is what prompted this outpouring.

So goodbye, Kim. I miss you like meat misses salt, and I owe you a posthumous bottle of champagne because our daughter isn’t YOU.

And neither is anyone else.

But it leaves me in a position that is enviable in at least one way.  I’ve faced the worst thing in my life and survived.  So If I ever lapse into a relationship with a woman again, and she gives me the least bit of grief for ANYTHING car related, I’ll have the strength to quietly start putting her shoes in a bag and never speak to her again.

Because if what my friends have had to endure is any indication, there appears to be a never-ending parade of controlling, joy-killing women in the world, but there’s only a finite number of Ferraris.

I’m just saying.

–Scott Fisher

Scott's 1966 Ferrari 330 GT 2+2

Fall Freeze…Frozen for 2010

The much anticipated Fall Freeze is, regrettably, frozen for 2010. While the Classic Car Adventure’s offices have been a-buzz with planning, route ideas and excitement…it’s just not feasible for the 2010 season. Why, you might ask? Well, unfortunately Dave Hord is undergoing the surgeon’s knife about 4 months sooner then expected. “It’s true,” says Dave, “a four-year old mountain bike injury has managed to cancel the Fall Freeze for 2010. It’s an old shoulder injury, one I’ve mostly ignored, but I’m at the point where even changing an oil filter hurts…so it’s time to visit the repair shop!”

There is good news, however. Two new events in B.C. are happening this fall, and both should be of interest to classic car enthusiasts. September 18th is the Rally du Chilliwack, and October 1st-3rd brings the Jellybean Autocrafter’s Fall Colors Tour. If you were waiting to hear about the Fall Freeze, you should definitely consider either of these two events! We’re really excited to see more events starting up that are designed for drivers. Additional chances to get out and use our classics can only be a good thing 🙂

Despite the surgery speed-bump, we won’t be resting here at the Classic Car Adventures’ office. Dave’s not allowed to wrench on his Volkswagen during the recovery, but he’s been given full clearance for planning the Spring Thaw. 2010 was a great year, but with six months recovery we’re pretty sure 2011 is going to be even better!