My name is Boris and i am located in Athens, Greece. I am the happy owner of a pear white 1966 Export model (with overriders on the bumpers and completely red tail lights).
I bought the car in 1999 at an auction. I was intrigued by the '66 model for quite some time (after owning a '69, an 1303 in weltmeister-blue, a 1303 US model and some non-related cars) just because it has the sought-after "old"
look, but already the new chassis (ball joint front axle).
To keep a long story short, when i got the car it was "modernized". Which is to say that the previous owner had replaced the front fenders with newer model spec (thankfully the apron was still original, just the holes for the overrider tubes were welded shut), and the rear wings were with "elephant foot" tail lights.
After a complete rebuild (with the original 1300 cc engine) i enjoyed the car for approx 3 weeks. At that point a not to attentive driver overlooked a stop sign. I avoided him, but hit a tree dead on. It was my luck though that apart from the front bumper and hood, the damage was limited to some hammering and fresh paint.
Then, for a couple of years the car was used as a daily driver and did a great job. We even took it for our holidays (about 600 km drive). Apart from a fried set of contacts, no problem at all.
I even got married in this car. What a sight
At some point i'll try to post a pic.At some point we wanted some additional power. Thus i built a 1600cc engine with higher compression rate etc. This of course (does it ever stop?) was a bit too much for the standard brakes. So we decided to upgrade to discs on the front. And since we went to 4-lug, i put some 311 drums on the back for good measure.
All in all a pleasant car to drive. And quick enough to get us anywhere.
In 2004 disaster struck. A lady ignored a Stop sign (again) and i hit her at about 60 km/h. Not a good thing to do. After a long strugle with her insurance company, i decided not to accept their offer (700 Euro for the whole car) and started rebuilding the car. This was in 2007. Anyone with children (i got 2 by now) knows that hobbies like that are a loooooong and winding road once the little ones take up most of the time (along with a lot of funds, he he).
Well, it's almost done. Even though i am implementing a lot of changes (i hope not to offend anyone here), since i already had the car once on original spec, i decided to go wild this time.
I am a busy guy, but if there is interrest, i will try to keep posting as the car proceeds.
Best greetings from sunny Athens,
Boris
