Lo & behold, I'm going through my Dads' plier collection when I find these- (see below). One set looks exactly like 914-4 pliers, as in "dead on", & the other is labeled "Crown Cut Germany" in a circular fashion. The Crown Cut one has a straight edge screwdriver for one handle end & a pointed handle on the other. I'm thinking 63 VW Beetle on the Crown Cut & the other set obviously came w/ the LE- where else could these have come from? Yes, Pop bought both cars in his lifetime & they were the only German cars he ever owned, sort of. He once also owned a 67 Volvo 144-S & a 71 Mercury Capri. The Volvo is'nt German but might have had German tools in its tool kit & Capris' were built in Germany. Thoughts?

Other side shot:

Al, JB, at al.,

A Capri isn't a German car?

I have a couple of these similar looking pliers & not certain where the came from, though I've owned almost nothing that wasn't German, except the hotrod Mopars when I was a kid - & they sure didn't come from those! Have to check.

My grandfather was totally German & they may have come from him. Dad was totally American - not from him. I inherited so many tools, screws, bolts etc. Pretty sure I have something like you're showing, but my German grandfather was a mortician & can't image (or don't want to) what he would use those for. I'll do some searching though.
Pat

I still have the pliers from my 60's vintage bug I had in college. They look like the top pair (no screw driver handle).

No pliers in my original LE tool kit...They were probably picked up at a swap meet.

Sorry Pat, it is. Built by Ford Germany & exported to the US for sale here. All the old Capri's were built in Germany. For the time, they were tiny cars compared to the rest of the Mercurys available & could not be built on the "tank", "cow" or "land yacht" assembly lines of the time . From the Ford Media page: "1971 Mercury Capri: The German-built Mercury Capri made its debut in 1970 as a 1971 model. Named the 1971 "Import of the Year," the Capri was an affordable, sexy little sports car. Given numerous options, consumers could custom-build their Capri and still enjoy an affordable price."
link- http://media.ford.com/newsroom/feature_dis...m?release=15319

I know for a fact that my LE tool kit did not come w/ a hubcap puller. First time I saw one I remember asking what the hell it was. It did come w/ a black reversable screwdriver, which is now cracked, one 13/10mm wrench, marked DIN 895 & no Hazet on the other side, lug socket & bar & apparantly a set of 914 pliers. Attached photo shows my kit, including tow eye & Hirscheman key. Bag & rubber band have long since returned to the elements & I'm working on a replacement from AA.

All I can think of is either factory inconsistancies or dealer meddling. I've seen the Crown Cut pliers all over eBay, they are antique & very common for Ferrari, Simca, Renault, BMW, Mercedes, etc... Actually saw a pair listed for $149.00! I may have seen them as well included in some older 356 tool kits. The 914 pliers are common in older VWs as Nola914 mentioned above, but if they came w/ the 63 Beetle where did the Crown Cut pliers come from? I've been surfing on line trying to get info on 144S tool kits & have no idea if Capris came w/ a tool kit & have seen & found very little. For now, the pliers are staying in the LE w/ everything else.




PS- I'm Polish/Spanish/Italian, no German heritage . If I had Irish in me I'd be a "super catholic" !

Jeff- the old man never went to a swap meet in his life. When I was old enough he sent me out & I did all the junkyard shopping we needed. I never picked up those pliers. I found a BMW tool kit out of an old Alpina once, held on to it for 20+ years & sold it on eBay 2 years ago for $300.00+ .

Hi Johny,

In one of your posts you say your screwdriver (black) handle is cracked. Send me your address & I'll send you a replacement from my spares.

Tom

PM sent & Thank You!!

I believe I have an answer & the answer is no, LEs' did not come w/ pliers. Today I found a Hazet 13/10. The one I thought came w/ the LE, marked DIN895 & no Hazet on the back must be, along w/ the pliers, from my Pops' 63 Beetle. So off they go into my makeshift toolkit for the six, which came w/ none .

Johnny:

I hate to show my ignorance... but what is a "Hirscheman key"? And what does it do?

I've been fooling around with 14's for 10 years, and I've never heard that name. I guess there is always something new to learn.

Hirscheman is the name of the company that provided radio antennas for Porsches. If your car had a radio put in @ the dealer then they also installed a Hirscheman antenna & w/ every antenna comes a key. I guess it's a safety or don't fuch w/ me feature, in that the antenna is pushed down all the way to the closed position & screwed shut. You have to use a little screwdriver to unscrew the antenna in order to pop it back up- the key is a little screwdriver.

In the photo below are 2 Hirscheman antenna keys. The one on the left in the plastic bag is a modern key you'd get today if you bought a Hirscheman antenna. The one on the right is also a Hirscheman key, but it's from the 60s' & early 70's.

As for ignorance I show mine all the time- it's how you learn. Someone here has in their signature "if ignorance is bliss them I'm a blister" Hope that helps.

Hey... thanks. Like I said, I learn something new every day. I hadn't even thought about the antenna.