Twelve Years and a Land Cruiser
Saeed opens with his own project: the 1983 FJ60 he bought at 26, the parts that took years to find, the money he refuses to add up, and why it is nearly done.
The W123 That Refuses to Die
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Show notes
The W123 That Refuses to Die
Thomas Varghese came to Dubai in 1994 and bought a used Mercedes W123 in his first year. He still drives it. This episode is recorded in his workshop in Al Quoz as he explains how a car with 640,000 kilometres on it stays on the road.
- Buying the car in 1994 for less than a month's wages
- Parts that still arrive from a cousin's shop in Kochi
- The engine rebuild done over eleven weekends
- Why he will never sell it and who gets it next
Saeed asks his three questions and Thomas gives the shortest answers in the series so far.
Transcript
Welcome back to Idle at the Lights. I am Saeed Al Mazrouei and today we are in Al Quoz in Dubai, in the workshop of Thomas Varghese, who came here from Kerala in 1994 and bought a used Mercedes W123 in his first year. He still drives it to work every morning. It has 640,000 kilometres on the clock and it sounds better than my Land Cruiser, which I find a little upsetting. Thomas is going to tell us how it has stayed alive for 30 years: the parts that still arrive from his cousin's shop in Kochi, the engine he rebuilt over eleven weekends, and the family conversation about who gets it next. He gives short answers, so I will try not to talk over him. You are listening on Witspeak Podcasts.
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