Pagoda SL Group
W113 Pagoda SL Group => General Discussion => Topic started by: neelyrc on February 12, 2019, 13:45:47
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Fifty years ago today my Pagoda was delivered at the Sindelfingen plant. My bride of six months and I had arrived from Genova, Italy the evening before in my 1965, Volvo Amazon. After delivery of the new car, the Volvo was turned over to a shipping agent adjacent to the plant for return to the USA and after a bit of shopping we headed south in the new car. Before dark, in light snow, we drove the car onto a rail car at Göschenen, Switzerland, at the north end of the original St. Gotthard rail tunnel. A short time later we arrived in Airolo, in Ticino in light rain and drove on to Lugano were we spent the night. The next morning we had the car washed and drove to Arenzano, Italy where I was working at the time.
Over the next three months we enjoyed weekend driving trips in Northern Italy, Southern France and Switzerland. On transfer to London for work in June we drove across France via Paris and crossed to Dover on a car ferry. After a year in London my temporary import permit expired and the car was shipped to the States via the Port of New Orleans. Since import in 1970, the car has been at home in Alabama and Illinois depending on where I was working or where I departed from for other overseas work assignments.
To celebrate 50 years of ownership, my wife Flora and I drove the Pagoda to Pensacola, Florida last weekend to participate in the 14th annual Pensacola to Atmore Road Rally open to all Marks and sponsored by the Panhandle Cruisers Car Club and the Pensacola Austin-Healey Club. The 56 mile morning run meanders thru the scenic Florida/Alabama countryside crossing the state line three times and ending up with lunch at David’s Catfish House in Atmore, Alabama, an establishment well known locally for the delicacy.
With the run back to Birmingham after lunch we completed a delightful 550 mile drive over two days. The Pagoda odometer turned over 52,000 miles during the rally. As I typed above, 50 year and counting……
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Let me be the first to welcome you and your car to the “50 year club”. Congratulations to you and your car on achieving this wonderful milestone.
John
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Great story!
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Congratulations!
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Hi Ralph,
Congratulations my friend! Quite a story thanks for sharing. Wisching you many more years of sunny road trips in your fine automobile.
Best,
Dieter
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Sounds like a lovely weekend trip around L.A. and the Panhandle. Congratulations to you, Flora and the Pagoda!
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Ralph,
Congratulations.
So doing simple math you put about 1040 miles per year! Nah. I bet you put 40,000 miles in the first 5 years and 12,000 miles in the next 45 years.
I saw your car in Virginia - amazing original condition. Could not believe how nice the interior has held up.
Fantastic.
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Congratulations Ralph!
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Great 50 years of ownership Ralph.
Well done..
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And if you have not already read it, be sure to check out Ralph's story in Pagoda World 19.
Let me add my congratulations also - great stuff, great story, great guy!
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Congratulations!
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Thast's an awesome story - thanks for sharing
Congratulations
(btw, Ticino is still lovely!)
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Wonderful story and great memories.
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Yes congratulations all around to you, your wife and of course your car
Regards Neil
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Great story and congratulations on your first 50 years. ;)
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Always enjoy a wonderful story Congratulations.
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Congratulations Ralph !
Thanks for the story and all of your contributions.
Mark
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Sincere thanks to all of you for the congratulations, compliments and well wishes expressed.
I have been a member of the forum for three years now and it has been a source of great satisfaction to me in addition to being a continuous learning experience.
In this short time I have enjoyed participating in the European events in Italy and France and in PUB Virginia at Tom Sargeant’s Ramsay Farm and I have met and made friends with many of our diverse and enthusiastic members from around the world. I look forward to seeing many of you at PagodaFest in San Diego in October. I’m not sure yet whether it will be with or without my Pagoda as I am still wrestling with this.
Thanks again!
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I've been lucky enough to see and work on a couple of original cars and I can tell you that the fit and finish is very high indeed. Not that many original cars still held by original owners so let me add my praise to the ongoing conservation efforts you've truly employed for the past 50 years.
Good work young man!
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Thanks Benz Dr.,
Having reached this point, continued conservation is an imperative. This has to be balanced of course against the need to enjoy driving it whenever and as much as possible!