Newsletter of the Wisconsin Section Mercedes-Benz Club of America

June/July 2017

wisconsin.mbca.org

In This Issue

Door County Fall Color Tour 2

President’s Message 3

Oktoberfest 4

Show & Glow by the Lake 4

Pabst Brewery - Best Place 4

Starry Nights 5

Prestige Auto Tech Session Review 6

Drive to Dine - Green Bay 7

Black Forest Tech Session Review 8

Drive to Dine - Boat Show 8

Tech Session at Prestige Auto Works

Upcoming Events

Drive to Dine - Green Bay June 10

Starry Nights July 14

Show & Glow by the Lake Aug 5

Oktoberfest Sept 9

Drive to Dine - Boat Show Sept 23

Fall Tech Session - Umansky TBD

Door County Fall Color Tour Oct 20-22

Pabst Brewery Nov 4

President Bruce Hamilton 608-754-6066 bruce@bhamiltoncpallc.com Secretary Dan Hellenberg 414-839-6995 spatlese44@yahoo.com Treasurer Frank Lubinski 414-352-2912 frank_lubinski@yahoo..com Director John Ledbury 262-422-7715 jaled80@yahoo.com Director Andy Stockhausen 262-782-2286 ajs45@wi.rr.com Director Bernd Kampe 262-492-4441 bkampe@wi.rr.com Director Dick Kusch 608-630-1458 kuschrichard@gmail.com Director Ghassan Majdalani 920-216-2931 mountaha@hotmail.com Director & Frank Geracie Newsletter Editor 262-825-7496 fgeracie@wi.rr.com Past President Nancy Pearson 262-782-7960 npearson@wi.rr.com Webmaster Jim Loseke 920-412-5822 jimloseke@charter.net Regional Director Jason Burton Midwest Region 312-224-1787 jasonburton@thejohnhancock.com

2017 Officers & Board Members

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Board Meetings

Board meetings are held on the second Thursday of every month. Most meetings are held on-line using Go-To-Meeting. Attendees call in using a mobile

phone, tablet or computer. We encourage participation from our members. If you should wish to participate, and receive a call in invitation for the meeting, please

contact Frank Geracie at fgeracie@wi.rr.com. Recommendations for new activities or comments on

prior events are always welcome.

Benefits of Membership

Your MBCA membership entitles you to:

Subscription to “The Star”, a bimonthly magazine published by Mercedes-Benz Club of America

$500 off the best negotiated price of a New Mercedes-Benz

Discounts on parts, service and accessories from participating Mercedes-Benz Dealerships

15% off parts from the Mercedes-Benz Classic Center

Expert technical advice to help you maintain, ser-vice, condition, restore and repair your Mercedes-Benz

And best of all, participation in the many events provided by your local Mercedes Club of America

Door County Fall Color Tour

The Door County Fall Color Tour will be held on Friday, Oct 20 thru Sunday Oct 22. Rooms are reserved for Friday and Saturday night at the Open Hearth Lodge in Sister Bay. At this point, the club has reserved a block of 10 rooms The tentative schedule is:

Friday, Oct 20, caravan to Door County, arrive at hotel, enjoy Friday Fish Fry as a group

Saturday, Oct 21, morning to yourself, color tour and rallye in the afternoon, dinner that evening

Sunday, Oct 22, Brunch as a group, then head home

If you are interested in attending the Tour and are in-terested in a hotel room, please contact Bruce Hamil-ton soon to reserve your room. Bruce Hamilton Tel: 608-754-6066 Email: bruce@bhamiltoncpallc.com

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As spring winds down and we head into summer, the Wisconsin Section’s events are at full throttle. We recently enjoyed two Tech Sessions, Black Forest on April 15 and new for this year, a Tech Session at Prestige Auto Works May 13. Read about both elsewhere in this newsletter. Thank you to Mike McKinney of Black Forest, and Keith Raskin and Chris Zdroik of Prestige for hosting these fine events.

Speaking of the Prestige tech session, check out the photo of the 190 on the cover of this issue. That car was painted by Prestige 20 years ago, and it still looks like new!

On May 20th, our Drive to Dine to Road America and their Spring Vintage weekend will have occurred when you read this, and I want to take this opportunity to thank John Ledbury for organizing that event.

Looking ahead, join us June 10th as we Drive to Dine in Green Bay at The 1919 Kitchen & Tap in the Lambeau Field Atrium. Not only will you enjoy driving your be-loved Benz to Lambeau Field and the friendship and camaraderie with your fellow members, you’ll also get a chance to win one of four (4) $50.00 gift certificates to the Green Bay Packers Gift Shop. No purchase required, just be there! After lunch, visit the Packers Hall of Fame, take a Champion’s Tour of Lambeau, or both.

Starry Nights will be July 14th, and Show & Glow August 5th. We will celebrate Oktoberfest September 9

th and a tech session with Umansky Motor Cars on Oct 12 as

well.

More information on Starry Nights, Show & Glow and Oktoberfest can be found else-where in this newsletter, and check the Upcoming Events Calendar for all future events. Some have seating limitations and/or reservation deadlines, so I encourage you to put all these events on your calendar NOW and join us for as many upcoming events as you can. You will have a good time, meet new members, renew old friend-ships, and take maximum advantage of your membership.

Got any ideas for an event? It can be as simple as a Drive to Dine, a Benz & Break-fast, or a trip to a sporting event or other venue. If you have any ideas or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to get them to myself or one of our board members.

Finally, please join me in welcoming our newest members as of May 18th:

Matt Basile Tema & Harry Goetz

Barbara Lafollette Sean Lewis

Douglas & Joanna Salminen James Thompson

I hope to meet all of you at an upcoming event.

Thank you to all of our members. You are the ones that make this organization successful.

Bruce Hamilton

President’s Message

Bruce Hamilton

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Celebrate Oktoberfest on Saturday, Sept 9 from 4:00 - 10:00 pm at the Old Heidelberg Park at the Bavarian Bierhaus Brewpub. Address is 700 W. Lexington Blvd, Glendale WI. We will be dining on picnic tables inside their sheltered outdoor facility. German beers and food will be served while Oktoberfest music is performed by local German-American brass bands and other performers. www.thebavarianbierhaus.com You can register for this event by contacting Bernd Kampe, event coordinator at bkampe@wi.rr.com or 262-534-5644 home/262-492-4441 cell. Please provide Bernd with attendee names and a contact email address and phone number. Host: Bernd Kampe

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Show & Glow by the Lake is sponsored by The Masterpiece Ltd and it will be held at Veterans Park on Milwaukee’s lakefront, situated between the Milwaukee Yacht Club and Milwaukee Art Mu-seum. Our club will be showing at the event like in previ-ous years. Registration to attend the event and show your car is available on-line. Advance regis-tration on or before July 24 is only $15. Late and day of event registration is $25. Registration pro-vides two, 2-day admission tickets (includes ad-mission to Milwaukee Concours d’Elegance), a $60 value and a program guide. Register for this event at www.milwaukeeconcours.com. Host: Frank Geracie 262-825-7496/fgeracie@wi.rr.com

Show & Glow by the Lake

Saturday August 5

Join your MB Club on Saturday, Nov 4 for an 11:00 am Milwaukee beer history tour at Best Place at the Historic Pabst Brewery, 901 W. Juneau Ave in Milwaukee. The cost of the tour is $8 and includes a glass of beer. You may be able to obtain up to 50% discount tickets using the Groupon website. Best Place website: www.bestplacemilwaukee.com There will be an interesting presentation about the history of Pabst/Best beer brewing in Milwaukee in the historic Pabst visitors center and human resources office. They also have an extensive gift shop available of original and replica brewery memorabilia. After the tour we will have lunch at 1:00 pm in the adjacent former church bldg which was renovated this year into the new home of the Pabst Milwaukee micro Brewery and Restaurant. A grand opening celebration was held there on May 13. Host: Bernd Kampe

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Date Event Host Telephone Email

June 10 Drive-to-Dine Dick Kusch 608-630-1458 kuschrichard@gmail.com (Green Bay) July 14 Starry Nights JoAnne Peterson 262-784-6088 jojo2525@yahoo.com Aug 5 Show & Glow Frank Geracie 262-825-7496 fgeracie@wi.rr.com Sept 9 Oktoberfest Bernd Kampe 262-491-4441 bkampe@wi.rr.com Sept 23 Drive-to-Dine Bernd Kampe 262-491-4441 bkampe@wi.rr.com Fontana Boat Show Oct (to be Fall Tech Session Frank Lubinski 414-352-2912 frank_lubinski@yahoo.com announced) (tentatively at Umansky Motor Cars) Oct 20 - 22 Door County Fall Tour Bruce Hamilton 608-754-6066 bruce@bhamiltoncpallc.com (see page 2 for info) Nov 4 Drive-to-Dine Bernd Kampe 262-491-4441 bkampe@wi.rr.com Pabst Brewery Dec 9 Christmas Party Bruce Hamilton 608-754-6066 bruce@bhamiltoncpallc.com Wisconsin Club

Upcoming Events

Starry Nights’ Classic Vehicle Night

Sharon Lynne Wilson Center

19805 W. Capitol Drive, Brookfield

Supper: 5:30 - 6:30 Concert 6:30

Join us for a wonderful night of music and dining under the stars. Please bring a Sal-

ad or hearty Hors d’ oeuvre to share. Also, bring your own lawn chairs and beverag-

es (alcohol is permitted). Dessert, paper plates, napkins, etc. will be provided. Please

contact JoAnne Peterson by July 10 (jojo2525@yahoo.com) to register for this fun

event!

Hot rods, classic, custom, sports cars & motorcycles on display

Bring your car for show, show entry is 4:00 pm, entry limited to first 300 cars

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Prestige Auto Works (PAW) presented a very nice tech session to our club members on May 13. The day started out with a nice complement of danishes and coffee offered by Prestige Auto Works. Keith Raskin, owner began the session by reviewing their position in the mar-ketplace and the history of PAW. Keith men-tioned that PAW had started in 1982 and they have become the largest independent collision repair facility in SE Wisconsin. Many of their repairs on recent model cars can be $20k to $30k in cost to the car owners. This is due to the recent influx of parking aids, collision avoid-ance and other high tech features built in to bumpers, head lights, mirrors and other areas of the car. After the introduction, PAW provided our mem-bers with demonstrations of (7) areas of car repair expertise. These demonstrations cov-ered the following:

Sheet metal dent removal

Repairing windshield damage from stone impact

Repairing (reforming) sheet metal damage

Repairing urethane bumpers

Straightening car structures

Cosmetic Pin striping

Painting and color matching Each session was performed by an expert of that repair ser-vice. The knowledge and experience they employed in their craft was evident by the information they provided to our group, and in their use of specialized tools while demonstrating their trade. In most instances, Prestige’s technicians/artisans have been with Prestige Auto Works for more than 20 years. We had an enjoyable time at Prestige Auto Works and we val-ue their support as an advertiser of this newsletter. Frank Geracie

Keith Raskin introduces us to PAW

Session on body straightening

Session on color matching Tools of the trade for sheet metal work

Tech Session at Prestige Auto Works

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Drive to Dine - Green Bay

Please confirm attendance and number of attendees with

Dick Kusch no later than Monday, June 5. Confirmation can

be made via call, text or email.

Before or after lunch, section members can choose to partake in a regularly

scheduled Lambeau Field Tour, a visit to the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame or

show your fan spirit by visiting the Pro Shop.

Hall of Fame Hours & Pricing

Hours 9:00 am - 6:00 pm

Adults (18-61) $15

Seniors (62+) $12

Military (with valid military ID) $12

Youth (12-17) $12

Student (with college student ID) $12

Combination pricing is available for a Hall of

Fame admission and Stadium Tour

Champion's Tour Pricing

Adults (18-61) $21

Seniors (62+) $20

Military (with valid military ID) $20

Youth (12-17) $20

Student (with college student ID) $20

Children (6-11) $15

Children (5 and under) Free

Champion's Tour Information

The information on tour times is by date and they usually include types and times for about 2 weeks in the

future when you visit the website at www.packers.com. Purchase Tour tickets and Hall of Fame Admission

online at www.packers.com. Champion's Tour includes

Meet your docent in the Atrium (this may vary due to Atrium events)

Go to see upper level concourse

Go to field level and walk thru the players tunnel

Lambeau Field South End Zone - See some of the stadium premium levels and best views of Lambeau

Field **This tour is approx. 90 minutes and a mile walking.

The 1919 Kitchen & Tap Lambeau Field Atrium

Saturday, June 10, 2017 - 12:00 pm

Hosted by: Dick & Nancy Kusch

608-630-1458

kuschrichard@gmail.com

Address: 1265 Lombardi Ave., Green Bay WI

www.1919kitchenandtap.com

There will be a

drawing at 1919

Kitchen & Tap of

for (4) Green Bay

Packer Gift Shop

$50 gift certifi-

cates.

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The Spring Tech Session at Black Forest covered something new and something old. The session began with Spencer Mar-quardt from Umansky displaying a new 2017 Dark Blue on Black G Wagon. Spencer gave a rendition of some of the unique aspects of the G Wagon which include:

G Wagons take 40 hours to build

All G Wagons receive a final inspection by the same person and this person has been doing it for 30 years!

Have 40,000 stitch welds and employ a 1/2 mile of stitches

They utilize (3) locking differentials allowing them to handle extreme grades of up to 57 degrees.

Base price of the G550 is $122k with 416 hp and 500 ft-lb of torque.

Most G Wagons are custom ordered and Bucks players fancy this car

After the G Wagon session, Black Forest served a delicious lunch with many selections to choose. Numerous door prizes were provided to the attendees after lunch. The event had over 40 at-tendees. In the afternoon session, Black Forest’s Keith Powers talked about a 280 SL Pagoda that Black Forest currently has under res-toration. This car was on a rack for all to view. Keith mentioned that Black Forest had replaced all the seals and refurbished the suspension, brakes, engine parts, suspension and exterior parts. Keith said this type of car has been appreciating up to 10% per year for the last few years. Black Forest’s Technician Nick Rehbein wrapped up the day by performing a transmission oil change on a late model CL. Nick entertained questions from the attendees as he performed the oil change. Frank Geracie

Spencer Marquardt from Umansky answers questions on the G Wagon

Club Director Bernd Kampe reviewing this year’s schedule of events

Tech Session at Black Forest

Our MB Club will be enjoying a luncheon starting at noon, Saturday, Sept 23 at Harpoon Willies, a nautical-themed restaurant overlooking Williams Bay on Geneva Lake. Website: www.harpoonwillies.com After lunch, you can enjoy driving the short distance on scenic roads to the Abbey Resort and Marina in Fontana for their awesome annual Geneva Lakes Classic and Wooden Boat Show. Website: www.genevalakesboatshow.com You can also book a variety of boat tours on Lake Geneva Cruise Lines which depart from the docks near downtown Lake Geneva. Website: www.cruiselakegeneva.com Please notify Bernd Kampe at 262-534-5644 or email: bkampe@wi.rr.com if you will be joining us for lunch so we can give an accurate count for reserva-tions at Harpoon Willies.

You can enjoy participating on your own in the other optional events or take a driving tour in your MB vehicles on the scenic shoreline roads around Geneva Lake. Host: Bernd Kampe

Drive to Dine - Abbey Resort & Marina Sept 23

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