Garage gold

TRUCKSTOP

First restored, then forgotten: MAN 735 L 1 K

Centrally located in the old town of Frankfurt, a treasure trove of MAN classics was waiting for the employees of the “Veteranenhalle” in Selters. A rare MAN square-bonnet truck from the 50s, which was still completely unknown to even classic car expert Timo Pistorius at the time of discovery. Read the exciting story about a special discovery written by author Florian Dasenbrock for the magazine “Historischer Kraftverkehr”.

It seemed like a normal working day in the “Veteranenhalle” in Selters. As always, a brief meeting in the office to kick off the event, to discuss what is planned for the Tuesday that has just begun. But the phone put an end to the relaxed briefing with an obligatory cup of coffee in hand. At the other end of the line, a young woman offered an old truck for sale. In principle, this is not unusual, as the Veteranenhalle has been trading in classic commercial vehicles for many years. But this offer could actually only be a joke or a big misunderstanding.

According to the caller, a restored MAN 735 L1 K tipper truck stood in the middle of Frankfurt, hindering the conversion of a residential building and is therefore to be sold. Following the request for informative images, the owner of the Veteranenhalle Timo Pistorius and I spent our time waiting for the informative e-mail to arrive making speculations. What exactly were they offering us? Was it really a rare MAN square-bonnet truck from the 1950s, or did the salesperson misunderstand the type designation and refer to “just” a much younger sibling? Luckily, the news didn’t leave us waiting too long – and made Timo and me very excited: The pictures clearly showed a restored MAN of an older design, which had apparently been waiting to meet its future fate in a narrow garage for many years! We were completely unfamiliar with this vehicle, although we have both been involved in the old truck scene for years and are said to have a particularly high affinity with the brand! That very same day, we made an appointment with the salesperson and headed off to Frankfurt.

We suspected that a great deal more than just a classic truck was waiting at the address given! In the centre of Frankfurt’s old town, we came across an old brick building with a façade that was still reminiscent of the “Kohl-Meuer” fuel store with light-up advertising and a large analogue clock. The MAN 735 L1 K offered was the first larger coal transport vehicle of the emerging company. The immaculately preserved vehicle title of the tipper dates its first registration to 7 February 1957 and at the same time provides information that the MAN has been in the company’s possession for all these years – a first-hand vehicle!

At the beginning of the 1990s, the bonnet truck was then restored by a MAN subsidiary in the Rhein/Main region of Germany on behalf of its owner and was now used as a traditional vehicle. However, after the death of the senior director of the company Meuer, the MAN was forgotten and its existence put on hold in a narrow old coal shed in the backyard of the company’s Frankfurt headquarters.

This backyard continued to shrink in the following years: First, the former truck parking spaces were populated with multi-storey residential buildings, then all the other buildings and sheds were gradually demolished, to create parking spaces for the residents., with the exception of the MAN shed. Apart from the advertising on the façade of the house, at some point nothing was left to remind us of the once respectable fuel trade. The friendly salesperson led us to a small and inconspicuous shed. Yes – and in the middle between the workbench, lawn mower and leaf blower, it actually stood before us: the MAN 735 L1 K with beautiful Meiller coal tipper body, which was new to Meuer in 1957 and has barely left its parking space since its restoration almost 30 years ago. We quickly agreed with the salesperson that this MAN vehicle would have its new home in the Westerwald in the future – the recovery could be planned.

Just a few days later, we set off towards Frankfurt with a low loader trailer and a mobile workshop vehicle truck. After a set of fresh batteries, a filter check and a look into the injection pump, we got the thumbs up. Thanks to the good old diesel fuel in the tipper’s tank, which had no added biodiesel or water, the inside of the pump looked as good as new! So let’s go: press the start button and vroom! As if it had only been switched off three days beforehand, the straight six-cylinder engine with the designation D 1246 M3 ran nice and smoothly after just a short time. The combustion process of the M engines was the reason why it made its best effort in the courtyard. That’s why those who love their engine running smoothly should not be annoyed by the clouds of smoke…

Einblick in die Veteranenhalle

After a few strenuous manoeuvres and a short run around the block, the green-red tipper was already on the low loader trailer heading towards Westerwald. Once everything had been lashed, the salesperson waited with a kind gesture for us. She gave us some old signs from the company and a handful of framed black and white images, including photos of our newcomer. Another highlight was found in the company’s former office: a wooden sample display case in which, in addition to egg coals and briquettes, all the other coal types available at the time could also be viewed behind glass – the customer then completed their coal purchase and received their black gold delivered free of charge with our MAN! Since all this was too much luck for a single day, fate still came to us once we returned to the Veteranenhalle: the engine of the MAN vehicle lost coolant! Unfortunately, this was not only caused by a rusted-through water pipe, but also by almost completely rusted-up water ducts in the entire engine block. Apparently, no anti-freeze and anti-corrosion agent had been added after the restoration, so all water channels in the block were heavily degraded. Fortunately, a new reconditioned engine was still available in the Veteranenhalle’s pool, which has now taken its place under the square bonnet of the 735 L1 K. Apart from another major inspection and a set of new tyres, nothing stood in the way of the photo tour for this report.