A different breed of cat.

They drove down from Canada to buy this thing, dump the rental, and drive the Unimog back, didn't get two blocks and blew a hydraulic brake line. So they come to the truck shop. Well my guys work on air brakes, that things got juice brakes, no parts.

When I got off work I went out of my way to help them. Took the line off, shortened it an inch, used a double flaring tool, and when I finished you couldn't tell from stock. The line failed INSIDE the line nut, as if it had been overtightened. The line itself was stronger than death, so I didn't feel bad about re-flaring it. There were no lines available at the parts department anyway, and these were metric to boot!

Afterwards they taught me how to drive the beast. A little bit of a work to drive this unit, and pretty close to zero on comfort. A lever for reverse/forward, another for gear selection, and third for pto engagement, and some sort of handle for air operated four wheel drive and differential lock in. They were to drive from St. Louis, Mo. to Canada, I wouldn't have looked forward to that trip.

They wanted to pay me, but I refused and told them they were gonna need fuel. During our conversations (two and half hours of them) I said my wife was at home and we were going to watch a movie, they said take money, she might be mad if you don't. My reply was I'll tell her I was helping 'international relations' for our countries, got a good laugh. They refused to take no for an answer, even though I declined their money four or five times. I finally gave in and pocketed their offering.

We our goodluck and goodbyes. Later, I came to find out that the $20 I though they gave me was actually 5 twenty dollar bills! (US $$) I was shocked. I didn't do it for money at all, and they didn't mind giving it up. I was just being helpful and they truly appreciated it, not just in the money, but in their gratitude, which to me was more important.

Just wanted to share a story, sorry it got a little long.

Back to the UNIMOG, I first ran across these rare little buggies right after the winter Olympics at Lake Placid NY back around 1980. They were then a Mercedes product. I thought Mercedes truck had become part of Freightliner. But who can keep up with these changes. I lived in Nova Scotia at that time and two German guys hired my my flatbed trailer to pick up two of these in Ottawa. They had been leased out to the Olympics when held at Lake Placid, put up for tender, and a Mercedes dealer in Ottawa had bid and was sucessful bidder, on a group of them. 72 speeds foreward and 36 in reverse, 540 pto and 3 point hitch at both ends. Mercedes Benz deisel. There is a truck as well as a tractor version. Truck would be cab over, tractor uses same chassis, but with cab in middle. I don't know what they cost today, but in 1980 they were pushing $100,000. The two I pulled from Ottawa, one was truck and the other a tractor. Delivered the first one and German guy unloaded it. Got to second guys place, he wasn't home and it took his hired hand and I, 2 hours to find reverse. I think in the end he pulled it off trailer with 966 Farmall. That was my unimog driving lesson.

I think there is a UNIMOG model with air brakes, much heavier, more in line with the Hummer or new IH truck. The truck version I hauled to Nova Scotia, they equiped with flotation tires and had an air fertilizer spreader and a sprayer for it. I think they still use it for that.

One time a guy and his son pushed a sparkling TR6 past our house, just out of the garage from a complete restoration. They were on their way home to New Brunswick with it, and it wouldn't start. I called my Scottish mechanic. In fifteen minutes he was at the car; in 30 seconds he had it going. All of the current runs through the dashboard on those cars, and they corrode at the ammeter. Nothing to it if you know British cars.

We had a grand old conversation. The guy's a prof at University of New Brunswick. We didn't take any money so he sent us his latest book.

You hear so many stories about how selfish people are, it"s sure good to hear about someone going out of their way to help.

I guess that"s what this board runs off of, even if a few guys lock horns now and again.

I remembered to more points of interest. After my driving lesson, I found out I had driven the unimog farther and faster than it"s new owners had, even though he was riding shotgun, I"d like to think that says "I trust you". At the end of the lesson I turned the key off and the thing kept running. I said, "what"s the deal with that"? The canadian said in order to shut it off, put it in fifth gear and let the clutch out. Sort of violent, but it worked.

I asked the man, "What does a person wishing to buy the most unusual vehicle on the road spend, this was a "82 model, and it went for $18,000. just thought you might like the price. Chris.