In these columns you will read stories from fans, owners, and manufacturers about their Unimogs. This week you can read about Chris from Australia. Chris is an electrician, entrepeneur and proud owner of 5 Unimogs. He currently owns a U1000, a U1700, a U1300, a U4000 and a U2150 + 2450L 6×6. In this article you can read all about how he started as a Unimog fanatic and his future plans.
“Six years ago, I bought my first Unimog, the U1000 built in 1979. My father-in-law always talked about Unimogs and how strong they were. He used to use them when he was in the military.”
Chris was always interested in cars and vehicles, mainly in the sports-genre, he told us. All that changed after he bought his first Mog. Now, he spends every weekend in his garage, working on his Unimogs.
Toys for boys
“We bought our first Mog around Easter in 2016. In Australia, we have a holiday on the 25th of April as well. We had to wait three days before we could go to the bank to get the money to buy the Unimog. I was absolute torture! We felt like kids on Christmas morning when we finally bought our first Mog!”
In six months, Chris bought a whopping 4 Unimogs. It’s safe to say the Unimog-virus got to him! September that same year he started with his fist restoration project on the U4000. After working on it for almost 12 months, the project was finally finished. After this, he started on the U1300.
Fun times don’t last that long
This Mog was drivable for just a week. After a meeting with other owners, Chris took the U1300 to one of his mates. “I took the U1300 to one of my mates, he challenged me to drive through the river. Of course, I didn’t hold back, but I underestimated the depth of the river. We had to change the portal hubs in the river, working with the tides. After eight long hours and a lot of winching we finally got the Mog back on the shore. At the moment it’s still broken.”
Need for speed
After the U1300, Chris started working on his 2001 U2150 vehicle. This Mog can easily reach speeds up to 110 km/h. “Theoretically this Mog can go up to 160 km/h, but you must be absolutely crazy to drive that fast!” However, Chris does have fun driving his Mog on the highways: “Usually I have to drive my Mog on the left lane, and everybody is passing you (Australia is a right-driving country), but with this Unimog I can easily fly past everybody!”
Last March, Chris bought a 6×6 2450L in Dubai. This vehicle was constructed in 2001 and is still an unfinished project. Due to the condition, it takes a lot of time and money to restore. For instance, all three axles had to be replaced, which is a time-consuming project. Chris plans to add a DOKA to the vehicle, which makes it a unique Mog.
“I think, with the DOKA, this vehicle will be one of about ten in the world. My intention is to sell it after the project is finished.”
Chris is a very busy guy, which makes it hard to take long trips with his Mogs. “I’m still a young guy. As a business owner, it’s not possible to take the Mogs out for weeks. I can only take weekend-trips or maybe four-day trips, that is why I’m more interested in building bad-ass trucks instead of campers.”
Wishlist
In the future, Chris still has quite some plans. He wants to buy a rear steered U1400, and his wife would love to own a 411 Westfalia. Recently, he wanted to buy a group of 404’s. “The 404 is high on my list, which is why I wanted to buy a set of 4 recently. At the last minute I decided not to, I want to finish my current projects first.”
Jackpot!
The best purchase Chris made was a Unimog 2010 he bought at an auction. “The vehicle was registered as non-functional, so we were on the verge of not buying it. Our very last bid was the winner, so we still got it. My buddy Marcus, who is also an electrician, started working on it immediately. After less than 20 minutes he got it working!” According to Chris, there was a malfunction in the emergency stopping system. With a little rewiring Marcus got the Mog working, which set the value to about 40k higher than what they paid for it.
Chris, thanks for your story! We enjoyed it!
Did you like this article and are you a proud owner too? Let us know, we are curious to hear your story!
