Hello, I am Alex Kirsten. Welcome to a brand new series: “Life with my Classic”,
where I will be bringing you stories about classic Mercedes-Benz models!
They aren’t garage queens but daily driven, just the way it should be.
Today you join me somewhere in Berlin;
garage behind me with a couple of exceptional Mercedes-Benz models.
Shall we check them out?
The owner, Max, is German, so make sure you enable subtitles.
Let’s go meet Max!
Hello Max!
Hi Alex! Welcome to Berlin!
Thank you! I will be speaking in English, Max will be speaking in German.
For people who might not know you, tell everyone what you do.
With pleasure! Hi, my name is Maximilian, I am 26 years old,
I live here in beautiful Berlin and am a designer and influencer.
Perfect. Now I am very excited to discover this couple of beautiful cars behind me.
But first, tell everyone what you do on a day-to-day basis.
When I’m not washing cars, I design textiles and prepare fashion shows.
I do not have a classic daily routine,
but I love my work and what I do. That is the most important thing.
Indeed! Well, it is clear that you are very fashionable – as am I.
Naturally!
Thank you very much! Now let us check out your cars.
We will go over there. I am so excited. Shall we?
Sure, come on!
We are starting with Max’s beautiful Mercedes-Benz SL 500.
You have gone for the V8, big respect for that!
How long have you owned this car, what year is it?
And where is it from? That is a very interesting story.
The vehicle was built in 1997, almost as old as me.
So it’s still a youngtimer, not a classic car.
I have owned it for about two months.
The vehicle was built here in Germany but was used in Tokyo, Japan.
Wow! So you have imported it from Japan.
Were there any difficulties? Did you have to learn a new language?
No difficulties, but of course all the service documents and history are in Japanese.
I spent two days translating everything so that I could understand it all.
So, you are very fashionable and you also speak fluent Japanese.
Of course.
There you go! That was English but we will gloss over that.
What is it like to drive one of these cars in Berlin?
It feels incredible to drive.
It is so relaxing to drive, you cruise along, a wonderful driving experience.
It is not one of those cars that you want to drive quickly.
You just want to relax, take your time and look cool.
Speaking of looking cool, can I have a walk around?
Yes, of course! Feel free.
Oh, look at it! My favourite view of the car ...
Looks great, doesn’t it?
... is the rear.
It is beautiful, wide and oozes class.
Yes.
Before we check out the proper old-timer, why this car?
Look at it. That already answers the question.
It’s incredibly beautiful and drives incredibly well, like a Mercedes-Benz S-Class.
Amazing! It does have a lot of Mercedes-Benz S-Class technology.
Let us move on to the car that I am super excited about
and that you love more than anything in this world.
Let us check out the real old-timer!
Here we have Max’s R107 SL 450, also a V8.
As you can see, this has the soft top; that one over there has a hardtop currently.
For aesthetic reasons, because you are a man of fashion and this is a car of fashion:
Shall we put the roof down?
Naturally! The weather is good today.
Indeed! Max has told me that I need tools to actually open this roof.
So I have a couple of knives, here you go.
How long have you had this?
This also has a really interesting story because it is not from Germany, is it?
No, it comes from the USA.
It was also built in Germany but driven in New York.
I have had the vehicle for two years. We are restoring it bit by bit.
The car comes with a really interesting history and pictures, doesn’t it?
Yes, of course. I’ll show you. In the glove compartment
there are pictures in an envelope. Take them out.
Wow! This is like stepping into a time capsule. Miss New York, 1989!
Yes, this is the daughter of the previous owner, she was Miss New York in 1989.
This vehicle was used in parades in New York, beautifully decorated with US flags.
I only got the pictures a few weeks ago
and I recently received the original invoice as well, from 1980.
Look at it! We can see here the original price of $35,000.
A lot of money back then.
Yes, that was a lot of money back in the 80s.
To sum up: what does this car mean to you? It is the love of your life, isn’t it?
Naturally! I’ll grow old with this vehicle, I’ll never give it up again.
Shall we have a quick walk around
because there are differences between US and European models.
At the front and also at the rear,
there are these – sorry – quite ugly bumpers.
That makes the car more elegant.
The European version looks sportier, this looks more feminine. Which suits me.
Ok! You are a man of fashion, I am not really. So I have to take your word …
Why are you looking down? Don’t look at my shoes!
It is a very elegant car and the exterior is currently being restored, isn’t it?
Yes, we are already completely finished inside.
It was not easy because it’s a very rare colour, very few people ordered it.
So a lot was no longer available at all.
We had to have the paint made so that we could repaint parts.
We have started with the exterior but we are not finished yet.
So there is plenty more work to do. – Yes.
But what has been finished already is the business end: the motor.
Shall we have a quick look?
Of course, I’ll open the bonnet for you.
For all of you petrol heads, this is what a true old-school V8 motor looks like.
So, reach into the star and here is the V8.
There we go! This has been completely restored?
For the most part. A lot has been done already but there is always more to do.
Amazing! Out of the factory, this had roughly 216 PS.
Roughly, yes.
Mated to a four-speed or five-speed automatic gearbox?
Three-speed. It’s a three-speed automatic transmission.
Three-speed, ooooh! So this will be a relaxed but also brisk ride.
Yes, a nice cruise. – It is! Yes, nice cruising.
Can we start it so I can hear it?
Of course! Should I leave the bonnet open?
Yes, leave it open.
I am going to turn on Max’s Mercedes-Benz!
The key is in it. – Cool!
Oh yes, this feels good!
Great, isn’t it?
Right ok.
Press the brake.
Yes.
Wow, that’s nice. That is really nice!
That’s a real motor.
That is a proper motor, isn’t it?
Shall we check out the inside? Because it is really lovely.
Max has done a lot of work on that, so if you join me inside, Max.
I will also switch off the engine because it is quite noisy.
That’s better, isn’t it?
Great, isn’t it?
I love these noises! Sounds like me.
Max, tell me about all the work
that has gone into making the interior look so amazing.
Thank you for the compliment!
We put a lot of work into it over the course of two years.
It is very important to me that this vehicle
looks as if it has come off the production line.
So we have used a lot of original parts.
This is also very important just for the technology, only genuine Mercedes-Benz parts.
As I said, this colour is super rare. That made it a little difficult for us.
But you can see the result.
Yes, absolutely, it does look incredible!
Touching on the point of original parts:
The Classic Center in Stuttgart do restorations, inspections,
and they have a whole stocklist of classic parts.
So if you have a classic Mercedes-Benz, like Max, then check the link in the description!
The interior is just so wonderful. It is so comfortable, I love the wood finish.
There are also lots of technical highlights. Tell me about these.
Yes, we have a lot of features in the car.
The US cars were always a little better equipped.
For example, we have cruise control here, central locking, automatic air conditioning,
electric windows, that was completely new at the time.
And also the first radio with electric station search.
And more highlights: up here, an electric antenna,
the rear window heating for the hardtop, the light.
It is great that everything in this vehicle actually works,
because we completely redid all the equipment inside.
True, you have done it to a really high standard.
It is super comfortable, I can just imagine:
Max and I cruising down on the motorway 120 km/h, just like that.
But Max, maybe you should be holding the steering wheel.
Yes, it is a wonderful cruiser car. Shall we go for a drive?
Of course, but which vehicle do you want to drive?
This one!
Great, then let’s go! – Let’s go!
This is actually my first time ever driving a Mercedes SL R107.
This is the SL 450 with a nice big V8 motor.
First impressions: It does feel like a bit of a boat.
Big steering input, it doesn’t really do a lot, does it?
But when you get in, you instantly smile.
And you think: wow this just feels so good!
Especially in a city like Berlin, you just want to relax, right?
Yes, it’s super. You drive through stressful city traffic and everyone is in a hurry,
but you are super relaxed and you just think: “Yes, just pass me!”
Exactly!
What is the classic car culture like in Berlin?
In Berlin, we are lucky that there are many places to go for classic cars.
And also various meetings, it is really beautiful and wonderful.
Max, this is a car from 1981, even older than me, would you believe?
I want to talk about reliability; has this car been reliable?
It has its little problems now and then, it’s an old lady, a diva.
But I drove the vehicle from Berlin to France and back again
without any problems, without any stops. That was amazing!
Oh, that is awesome!
Max, you are 26 years old, the car is nearly twice your age.
How did other classic car owners accept you into the classic car world?
I had my reservations at first because it is such a male domain.
But it was not like that at all, I was welcomed so warmly.
In the end, it’s all about one thing: the love for these cars.
Exactly. If you really love cars, it doesn’t matter where you are from,
your sexuality, or what you like or don’t like. Cars bring everyone together.
Yes, that is so beautiful and so great!
Especially with a car like this!
It is not only a car that you love, it is also a car you won’t lose money on.
This is an appreciated classic.
Yes, this vehicle is my old-age fund.
But still, I would never sell it.
This vehicle will grow old with me. I hope I live to see it reach 100 years of age.
Amazing! So how much do you want for it?
Priceless!
Good answer!
All right, then.
Maximilian, we have made it to your sanctuary, the great outdoors.
Tell me why this place is so important to you.
I live in the middle of the big city.
That’s why sometimes I just have to get out into nature, to come down and relax.
That sounds good. And doesn’t your car look amazing here?
Firstly, thank you very much for letting me drive your pride and joy!
Secondly, for showing me Berlin classic car culture – really eye-opening!
I am so happy that you came. A great honour, thank you!
Amazing! And thank you also for watching this episode!
Remember, this is only episode one of a multi-part series. So hit subscribe!
I will see you soon, bye-bye!