In a small, private garage in northern Germany, father and son are resurrecting a special car. We looked over their shoulders and discovered KNIPEX.
Gran Turismo without ifs and buts
When Janosch turned 18, he got a guitar. That's okay, but it wasn't the highlight of his wish list. When he was 20, he wanted his own car, and not just any cheap beginner's car - but a racy classic. Dad Thommy (born in 1966, tool connoisseur) remembered his own wild times, his first car was a light blue Alfa Romeo GT (also built in 1966, first registered in 1967). Would that be something for his son? If you build and maintain it together and of course use professional tools?
One Way Ticket to Bonn
A radiologist in Bonn offered a beige GT. Basic restoration work had already been completed, some sheet metal work, the shock absorbers and springs and most parts of the chassis had already been overhauled. But it would run badly. Nevertheless, Janosch and Thommy optimistically bought a one-way train ticket to Bonn and inspected the Italian everyday sports car. They don't shy away from tinkering, and with the right tools, even an Italian engine that doesn't run smoothly can be made to sound great again.
The world belongs to the brave
In fact, a lot of the car has been done well, but the engine is a little petulant. Father and son offer a reasonable price for the car, and even if the radiologist could get more for it - he likes the expert family team and gives them the car. They confidently drive it 550 km from Bonn to Gettorf in Schleswig-Holstein in the very north of Germany on their own wheels, never travelling faster than 100 km/h. Nevertheless, at least the cylinder head gasket is at the end of its life on arrival, and the plan is to work together to rebuild the engine.
Clean work with the right pliers
The small workshop in the city centre is equipped with everything an experienced mechanic needs. In addition to the lifting platform, Thommy also stores a welding machine, a compressor with pneumatic accessories, a lathe, a floor drill and lots of high-quality tools. On the wall, neatly organised, hang the characteristic KNIPEX pliers for all the work that needs to be done. There are also classic red pliers in the drawers. So the project won't fail due to a lack of professional materials. Nor does Janosch's motivation. Because his dad has made a clear statement: if you want to drive a classic car, you have to be able to work on it yourself.
Operation on the heart with KNIPEX
The rough, labour-intensive work is easy to do. Whether it's loosening hose connections from the cooling water circuit, countering large stud bolts on the intake manifold and the exhaust manifold or fixing belt pulleys - the water pump pliers from KNIPEX provide a good grip and are not called that for nothing. Equipped with a new cylinder head, new gaskets and hoses, the four-cylinder engine with its wonderfully throaty sound is experiencing its "second spring" and is now good for another few hundred thousand kilometres.
Fine details in the cockpit
While Thommy welds a new floor assembly into the Alfa Romeo, Janosch takes care of restoring the beautiful fittings. Here too, somewhat more delicate KNIPEX pliers do a great job. He can neatly dismantle fine brass screw connections, wafer-thin pointers and fragile dials with small flat-nose pliers and, if necessary, hold them under the lamp to repair them. After a new coat of paint, the rare car is given a leather interior after our photo session. And now what?
Like father, like son
Just like Thommy at the age of 18, his son Janosch now drives the beige 1967 Alfa Romeo GT as his first car. The joint work has paid off. Thanks to his own work with professional tools, Janosch now knows all the pitfalls and screws of the vehicle and "feels" when he needs to intervene somewhere. But there will be no more parallels after the joint project - Janosch is now experiencing his own stories with the GT, and perhaps he will pass on his knowledge and love of old sheet metal to his own children one day. And a few of the pliers too, as they will practically last forever...
