[speaker001:] okay what I was gonna to tell you about is that my fiance and I have just finished as a matter of fact today restoring a seventy three Mercedes
[speaker002:] you don't mean it
[speaker001:] I I we've done a little bit of it ourselves but mostly we were lucky enough to find a a guy that works for a Mercedes dealership and he restores cars on his on his uh you know off time
[speaker002:] um-hum how'd you find this one
[speaker001:] well it was uh a gentleman that works with my fiance and he had bought it for his daughter and she wasn't taking care of it and boy was that obvious when they pulled up in it it had been really um
[speaker002:] um-hum pretty shabby shape huh
[speaker001:] it was in a mess it was just in a terrible mess uh
[speaker002:] um-hum um-hum so what's the last thing you ever had done to it
[speaker001:] well the last thing we did to it was today they had uh replaced the gear shift
[speaker002:] my goodness
[speaker001:] um it's uh it wasn't we had to order the part from the dealership and the guys put it in today when you shifted it down you didn't know if you were in park drive reverse whatever
[speaker002:] oh I hear you
[speaker001:] so that was the very last thing that we had to uh had to have done uh basically the whole car's been redone they put in new um
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] they used new sheet metal and stuff to to repair the body I mean there were you know these rusted dents
[speaker002:] um-hum um-hum
[speaker001:] a new paint job they uh redid all of the trim we had the seats reupholstered we put in a new dash it's been recarpeted it's just it was you know just completely
[speaker002:] um-hum my goodness um-hum um-hum my gosh y'all put a lot of money in this
[speaker001:] yeah it was completely overhauled and uh for what
[speaker002:] um-hum is it a Diesel
[speaker001:] it's a diesel um-hum it sure is
[speaker002:] um-hum um-hum I guess it's what four speed on the column
[speaker001:] yeah you're right um-hum
[speaker002:] um-hum I seem to recall the old Mercedes had four speeds on the column
[speaker001:] yeah yeah and it's it's just been lovingly restored that's one good thing about about having somebody to do it your you're you're there because they worked on it here at our home
[speaker002:] um-hum um-hum  um-hum so how many miles does it have on it
[speaker001:] I have no idea I I doubt that anybody will ever really know
[speaker002:] why is the speedometer was disconnected or something
[speaker001:] well I I I can't really remember what it shows on there but I remember when we discussed it we said that we were pretty sure that that was like times maybe or add an additional one hundred added on to that a hundred thousand
[speaker002:] um-hum um-hum um I hear you
[speaker001:] yeah because it's uh it had definitely been through the mill but uh
[speaker002:] um well I got a little car that uh has a certain history to it too
[speaker001:] uh-huh
[speaker002:] it's an old seventy one Maverick and I'm not trying to redo the body or anything
[speaker001:] oh yeah
[speaker002:] but I've had it to drive back and forth to work now for some I guess nineteen years or so
[speaker001:] um-hum um-hum oh my gosh you've had it
[speaker002:] and it's got two hundred and one thousand miles on it
[speaker001:] oh my word
[speaker002:] and it's an automatic transmission and it's just a regular old everyday go back and forth to work car
[speaker001:] uh-huh um-hum
[speaker002:] and uh I uh I guess the interesting history about this is about the only work I do on it myself an the last time I did do some work was I did a brake job on it and that cost me fourteen dollars
[speaker001:] um-hum oh my word
[speaker002:] by buying the parts at one of the local discount parts houses you know and
[speaker001:] uh-huh uh-huh uh-huh
[speaker002:] and luckily this time didn't need to have drums turned or anything
[speaker001:] replaced yeah
[speaker002:] then I was able to do a brake job on there at fairly I think inexpensive price by doing it myself of course
[speaker001:] yeah oh definitely
[speaker002:] but another interesting aspect of this car like yours is uh it's only had the oil changed about six times since uh seventy five thousand miles
[speaker001:] oh gosh uh-huh uh-huh
[speaker002:] because I only change the oil every twenty five thousand miles
[speaker001:] right right
[speaker002:] I do change oil filters every twelve thousand five hundred though
[speaker001:] uh-huh uh-huh
[speaker002:] but uh other than that it only has the oil changed every twenty five thousand miles and that is a a true statement I just wrote Mobil Oil Corporation a letter as a matter of fact
[speaker001:] yeah
[speaker002:] two weeks ago thanking them for the uh good durability that Mobil One oil which is what I use in it provides
[speaker001:] uh-huh
[speaker002:] because it does have two hundred and one thousand honest miles
[speaker001:] gosh that's unbelievable
[speaker002:] and it's only had the oil changed those few times and uh it uh performs very nicely it's shifting the uh transmission of course I get overhauled on it not overhauled but
[speaker001:] hum uh-huh
[speaker002:] all the uh fluid drained out and new screen and and filters and everything put them in every fifty thousand miles religiously
[speaker001:] right right um-hum um-hum
[speaker002:] so it still shifts just a crisp today as it did when it was brand new
[speaker001:] that's amazing that is amazing
[speaker002:] and the engine still runs just as strong today as it did when it was brand new
[speaker001:] is it the same engine that's been in it all the time
[speaker002:] oh yeah the the engine's never had any work done on it all except at ninety five thousand miles I think it was uh we rebuilt the carburetor and a hundred thirty five thousand miles we put a new uh water pump on it no internal work has ever been done on the engine
[speaker001:] um-hum um-hum um-hum
[speaker002:] it's had uh three starters uh one fuel pump about six eight ten batteries I guess been put in the car and um uh one uh uh um voltage regulator during all this time
[speaker001:] wow uh-huh  yeah yeah
[speaker002:] and that's it nothing else been ever done to it except you know the usual filters and this that and the other that you have to put on a
[speaker001:] that's amazing yeah
[speaker002:] and doing that it and the uh radiator on it has been rebuilt twice
[speaker001:] yeah so the car was how old when you when you bought it
[speaker002:] well I bought it from a fellow that I knew uh that worked up here it had sixty nine thousand miles on it at that time
[speaker001:] um-hum um-hum
[speaker002:] he always took good care of it and he bought it just to pull a boat with and when it when it got to be old and uh or older I bought it in seventy seven from him it was about six years old
[speaker001:] yeah oh I see um-hum um-hum uh-huh
[speaker002:] and uh it had sixty nine thousand miles on it and I had written about synthetic I had read about synthetic oil s in Popular Science so I decided hey this is a good car to experiment on it I don't have much money in it you know I only bought it for a thousand dollars
[speaker001:] yeah exactly yeah uh-huh uh-huh
[speaker002:] so I changed it over to uh Mobil One at seventy five thousand miles and I proceeded from then on to never change the oil but every twenty five thousand miles as they say on the can
[speaker001:] uh-huh
[speaker002:] and uh but I
[speaker001:] yeah oh is it does say that on the can
[speaker002:] but the oil gets yeah it says that on the can Mobil One cans if you read them says uh uh it it it says as as the automobile manufacturer recommends or twenty five thousand miles what they used to say anyway
[speaker001:] I didn't realize that uh-huh um-hum um-hum
[speaker002:] so I decided this would do as a good experiment and I had read about this these kinds of synthetic oils in um as I said Popular Science
[speaker001:] yeah um-hum right
[speaker002:] but the oil gets so black that uh at every twelve thousand five hundred miles I do pull the oil filter and change out the oil filter and when you do that you have to add a quart
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] but this car uses no oil at all between oil changes I mean not a drop
[speaker001:] oh I see yeah that's amazing yeah and this is a Maverick you said
[speaker002:] it's a seventy one Maverick
[speaker001:] Maverick well I had uh I had owned a Cougar up until oh just several months ago that I had had since uh um I think it was an eighty two or something
[speaker002:] uh-huh
[speaker001:] and I had that car only uh about two years and the engine blew in it
[speaker002:] oh
[speaker001:] and so I had to put in a new engine that was that's an experience when you have a two year old car you know and it wasn't in warranty then I mean it must have like the day after the warranty was expired it must have exploded
[speaker002:] uh my goodness what kind of engine was it
[speaker001:] I have no idea uh V is it V eight I don't I don't know a lot of
[speaker002:] well they have V eights they have V sixes and they have
[speaker001:] what's the biggest one is a V eight bigger
[speaker002:] I guess the V eight
[speaker001:] yeah that's what it had in it
[speaker002:] well that's interesting
[speaker001:] and yeah so it it uh that's my latest experience with something major
[speaker002:] I guess that's uh uh you uh you must undoubtedly get all kinds of different uh uh engine types or whatever in terms of their durability depending on how they got made but this one here has just lasted and lasted and lasted
[speaker001:] yeah yeah well see that's what I was thinking I thought maybe it has something because that turned me off from American cars I mean you know something and and I'm sure I shouldn't I shouldn't feel that way that's why I was surprised to hear you talk about this car it sounds very resilient
[speaker002:] oh really um
[speaker001:] whatever they have in that engine whatever a kind of engine it is in that car
[speaker002:] it's just a V eight same as what was in your Cougar probably
[speaker001:] yeah yeah yeah maybe it has something to do but I I know I took good care of it I changed the oil quite often I didn't even do that myself I I could never do any of this myself
[speaker002:] you did yeah
[speaker001:] you know I'm just not uh I'm not uh
[speaker002:] and it still blew up you're sure nobody ever sugared your gas tank or anything that got mad at you about something
[speaker001:] yeah and it still blew up well now that yeah not that I know of
[speaker002:] because I had a van that uh somebody sugared my gas tank and it it tore that engine up and I had to replace it but if it hadn't been for that then uh
[speaker001:] oh really
[speaker002:] I would've never had any problems
[speaker001:] you would never have a problem well you know that's possible I never had thought about it but that's my I'm I have a
[speaker002:] all it takes is a cup full of sugar dumped down your gas tank and it will ruin the engine
[speaker001:] what what does that do
[speaker002:] it uh freezes up the rings and everything inside so they can't lubricate sugar does it turns to like a a syrupy like crud
[speaker001:] uh-huh oh okay just like just like sugar would it turns syrupy
[speaker002:] yeah and uh it it freezes everything up it scalds it scalds the bearings in an engine it essentially just freezes it up
[speaker001:] um-hum um-hum yeah
[speaker002:] and the only thing to do is take it apart and completely rebuild it from bottom out
[speaker001:] yeah
[speaker002:] and generally it ruins the engine to the point where you have to replace it
[speaker001:] yeah ugh well that maybe that's what happened to it because it had been it had been fine but the odd thing about it was is after I had that engine replaced that car ran hot every summer I mean even though yes Texas is notorious I mean we it's true we have a hundred and eight degree days but you know it uh I had I had trouble with that car after that I don't know if it was just a lemon
[speaker002:] um um um-hum um
[speaker001:] even though it was a brand new engine you know so uh
[speaker002:] that's amazing might not have been rebuilt properly or they might have put too high a degree thermostat in it
[speaker001:] yeah course it was a brand new engine supposedly now that's what the dealership told me you know
[speaker002:] yeah well even if it was if they put the wrong size thermostat in it for the climate you're in it could could make it run hotter
[speaker001:] yeah yeah that's what I I know my I had uh had my dad to finally took it down there because I would take it back and forth and the dealership would not it was I still had the problem it just continued and continued and they would charge me you know two hundred dollars every time they looked at it
[speaker002:] um-hum um-hum
[speaker001:] and um he kept saying the same thing he said it seems like it was your thermostat but at any rate it was really never rectified and I told the people that when I sold it to them I said you know you you might need to watch out but they didn't seem to mind
[speaker002:] um um-hum
[speaker001:] they wanted the car so
[speaker002:] hum
[speaker001:] you know as far as my ability to do anything on it I can check the oil I know that's about as far as it goes it's been amazing to watch these guys work on this car I mean you know just from
[speaker002:] um-hum how did y'all come to uh to uh make the seventy three your your collector's item you might say
[speaker001:] well it just this this gentleman had this car and uh you know he had he had told my fiance that he was going to sell it I mean he just I mean he sold it to us for like three hundred bucks you know and
[speaker002:] um
[speaker001:] and we took before we said we'd buy it we uh took it to a Mercedes dealership and they looked at the engine and uh the engine had been rebuilt about uh I think the guy had told us two hundred miles previously or something and
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] they said it you know the engine alone was worth you know much more than that so we didn't feel like there was any problem
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] and uh it's it's definitely been amazing to to see the transformation we took we took after pictures it's a shame that we didn't take before pictures because yeah it was just uh as I said rusted dents and the color was that dark dark green that's almost
[speaker002:] no you should've