Klaus in Klausenburg

Klaus

When I bought my 1993 BMW 520i back in 2008, I named him Klaus.  There was no special reason, though the name may have been in my mind because years before I had met two of Herr Schmid's Fellbach friends, one named Klaus and one named Claus.  But the reason became clear when I learned that Cluj-Napoca, Romania has a German name: Klausenburg.  Clearly, a non-coincidence.

Twenty year-old engine compartment?

Since that September, Klaus has done faithful service for Shirley and me on our visits to Europe, and occasionally for the Schmid family while staying with them in Fellbach between our trips.  He has starred already in this blog, when he had a missing gas cap cover up in Ocna Sugatag.  But now he has also had a little body work done to remove incipient rust damage, and has fresh oil and a new oil filter, and he is altogether handsome, and feeling fine.

On Friday morning, just two days from now, Klaus and I will again be heading west, back to Fellbach via Timișoara, and Covasinț, Romania, Tatabanya, Hungary, and Krems, Austria.  Klaus has only 119,000 Km on the odometer, roughly one-quarter of the 284,000 miles that Fritz, his older cousin in America, has on him.  I hope to own Klaus for years to come, either here in Europe, or perhaps he will one day emigrate to America!