Everything is so colorful here ...
04/05/2024
After dreary winter days, everyone longs for the harbingers of spring and colorful diversity. Perhaps that's why the chronicler at this year's Techno-Classica felt rather unconsciously drawn to the MB/8 Club Deutschland e. V. stand. His first glance fell on a wall of painted hubcaps, which were common at Mercedes-Benzuntil the 1980s. They were all painted in different colors.
In front of it was a Mercedes-Benz "dash eight" built in 1971, the body of which was divided into 64 color fields (!) with the corresponding color code. And while the author was still comparing the colors and codes, Carsten Pätzold, a trained body and vehicle builder who acts as the DEUVET's advisory board for young talent, approached. He played a key role in the creation of the brightly painted car and can therefore give a first-hand account of its history. The Mercedes was first professionally prepared and then painted by trainees in a training workshop in Bremen as a project in 2023.
The 64 colors in the fields correspond to all colors ever available for the Mercedes-Benz W114/115 ("Stroke Eight") model from 1968 to 1976, i.e. all standard, special and metallic colors. The budding painters have mastered their task with joy and diligence and undoubtedly successfully.
In addition, all vehicle colors are displayed on the club stand using a timeline. Once again, it becomes clear how many colors the buyer once had to choose from - including the "wrong colors" that are particularly sought after today. The term "color palette" is therefore apt.
The short visit shows three things: Firstly, that it is always worth stopping by the club stands for a visit. Secondly, that the variety of colors of that time would also look good on today's cars and thirdly, how to successfully motivate the next generation of craftsmen and introduce them to the classic car hobby.
P.S. Techno Classica is still open until Sunday, April 7, 2024 and Zwischengas will of course be publishing a comprehensive review.
