First registered on the 26th June 1973, Chassis #1428 was ordered new as an M472 Touring model, with the following factory specification:
Country (116) – West Germany
Colour Code (222512) – Grand Prix White w. Red
Conversion – M472 (Touring)
Option (102) – Heated Rear Window, Two-Stage Tinted
Option (409) – Sports Seats Left & Right
Option (419) – Retractable Rear Belts Left & Right
Option (458) – Round Iodine Fog Lights, White, Below Bumper)
The car’s first registered owner is recorded in the original log book (which is still with the car today) as “Sitzmann und Heinlein” – a German plastics manufacturer based in Zirndorf.
Interestingly, this company still exists today, but is now called Heinlein Plastik-Technik.
We don’t know for sure which member of the Heinlein family the car was ordered for, but whoever it was, it’s clear that they intended to properly use it! Just look at the original service book stamps:
Date Service Centre Mileage (km)
10/07/1973 Autohaus Herbst, Nümberg 359 km
06/03/1974 Autohaus Herbst, Nümberg 9,428 km
06/08/1974 Autohaus Herbst, Nümberg 19,715 km
17/04/1975 Autohaus Herbst, Nümberg 30,700 km
24/11/1975 Autohaus Herbst, Nümberg 39,000 km
27/04/1977 Autohaus Herbst, Nümberg 51,733 km
02/02/1978 Autohaus Herbst, Nümberg 60,653 km
21/09/1978 Autohaus Herbst, Nümberg 70,350 km
14/04/1980 V.A.G GeorgBreitschwerto, Ansbach 79,405 km
23/06/81 V.A.G GeorgBreitschwerto, Ansbach 91,062 km
It’s interesting to note that the change in Service Centres from Nümberg to Ansbach in 1978 perfectly coincides with the Sitzmann und Heinlein company relocation in that same year. The factory was moved from Zirndorf (just outside Nümberg) to Ansbach – it seems the car went with it!
Having clocked up the best part of 100,000km in what must be the best company car ever, the Heinlein family sold #1428 to a fellow Ansbach resident, Mr Uwe Ott in June 1984.
Mr Ott commissioned a full engine rebuild the following year at none other than Manfred Krämer Porsche in Bad Wurzach, Germany.
After enjoying his newly rebuilt engine for a few more years, Ott sold #1428 to Mr Wolfgang Liedtke of Speyer, Germany in December 1988, who would go on to register the car in the UK the following month.
Wearing it’s new UK registration, UMC 209L, the car was imported to the UK via Howard Wise in early 1989, shortly before being sold to its fourth owner, Mrs Glenda Hydleman of Earls Court, London.
Having covered only around 10,000km since it’s engine rebuild at Krämer in 1985, Mrs Hydleman wasted no time in commissioning further restoration works at Camtune in Surrey and Streber in Devon, including:
Brake system overhaul
Bare metal respray
Engine strip down, clean and reassembly
With the car now looking and driving brilliantly, Mrs Hydleman would enjoy #1428 for the next year and a half, before selling it to Christopher Banks in Bristol.
Banks would keep the car for the next 6 years, clocking up less than 5,000km in that time.
The next chapter of the car’s life would begin in 1996, when it was purchased by a German baron via Autofarm in Oxfordshire.
Included in the purchase negotiation was a whole list of recommissioning and restoration works, as well as a conversion from ‘Touring’ to ‘Lightweight’ specification, including:
Fibreglass front & rear bumpers
Period correct lightweight seats
Lightweight carpets and trim
Lightweight door cards
Lightweight spare wheel
Momo steering wheel
Saftey harnesses
Red to Blue ‘Carrera’ decals
Following the restoration works at Autofarm, the car was registered with the FIA and then taken back to Germany, where it also received a Deuvet vehicle passport.
The first major event the car took part in was the 1997 Tour Auto, driven by the owner and his wife:
Over the next 7 years, the owner would continue to enjoy the car back in Germany, taking it on regular tours and events with his friends and family.
Then in 2004, in preparation for yet another Tour Auto (#1428’s second entry, and the owner’s seventh!), the car was entrusted to Hans Hellmick, Wuppertal, for a full and extensive engine rebuild.
The list of works carried out is comprehensive, but some notable items were a new crankcase, new pistons and cylinders and an increase in compression ratio from 8.5:1 to 9.0:1.
The car again performed beautifully, and was even driven around Spa by none other than Derek Bell!
Over the next 15 years, the car remained in Germany as part of the owner’s larger collection, being regularly used and properly maintained.
It was then acquired by it’s current owner in 2019 with around 45,000km on the clock (~20,000km since ’04 engine rebuild).
Again, the car has been regularly used and well maintained since then, now sjowing just over 50,000km on the odometer.
WHAT WE THINK
This is the perfect car for someone who actually wants use it. This is not a garage queen.
It drives superbly, and the twin pipe exhaust sounds absolutely phenomenal. The steering feel is unparalleled, and the performance is genuinely impressive.
