The “medals” that Mercedes gives to loyal drivers and the incredible record of the Greek

Prepared by: Giorgos Pallikaris

It is not unusual for a car manufacturer to pay those who keep the same car for many years or for many kilometers. It goes without saying since companies want people to buy new products all the time, so that new money circulates.

Mercedes is an exception, offering retro badges to high-speed car owners and those who have owned the car for a long time. It is even worth mentioning that this payment program in the brand has been in existence since 1960 and Mercedes Japan has already started accepting applications from parties.

What do you have to do to earn your retro badge?
The process is very simple. Each interested owner contacts the nearest authorized representative of the company, and then the car will be checked by an expert. If it meets the conditions, then the owner of the car will be given a retro mark – a medal, a certificate of authenticity and a letter of thanks.

There are different star designs, depending on how many kilometers the car has traveled and depending on how long the owner has owned it. In Japan, the milestones at which an owner is eligible for the emblem are reached at 100,000, 200,000, 300,000, 500,000 and 1 million kilometers or if the car has been owned for 10, 20 or 30 years. In the United States, the milestones are 155,000, 310,000, 466,000, 621,000 and 1 million kilometers. 1 million.

The Greek record with 4.6 million kilometers of Grigorios Sachinides

The mileage record is held by Greek taxi driver Grigorios Sachinides, who had a 1976 W115 240D with more than 4.6 million kilometers. He bought the sedan in 1981, when it had already covered 220,000 km and reportedly changed the engine two or three times before the car was retired to a Mercedes museum in 2004. As a token of appreciation for his dedication, Sachinides was given the keys to car. The new C-Class C200 CDI.