Moderator "Dackelone" has untimely passed away. RIP

[///M///]

This is really sad and heartbreaking. He was such a knowledgeable and helpful guy. I exchanged numerous pm’s with him when I was planning my European delivery back in 2015 and had it not been for him and Artemis, I would have never known about or discovered the amazing Dolomites in the Corvara/Colfosco region. Dackelone recommended I stay at the amazing Hotel Kolfushgerhof which ended up being the highlight of my trip and have returned to the same place 4 times now.

Great guy and a huge loss. May you Rest In Peace David. This has been a horrible year so far.

[bobowar135]

Dackelone was such a presence here on 1Addicts it's impossible not to be touched by his passing. In my short time here he was a treasure chest of information & good advice which has only enhanced my understanding and enjoyment of my beautiful car. May you rest in peace.

[Kingpin4]

RIP 🙏

[parameter416]

Very sad new news. I've mostly been a lurker on these forums but I've learned a lot over the last couple of years reading Dackelone's posts. So I feel like I knew him, and like so many others here feel compelled to write something to mark the passing of a friend. Rest in peace; we'll miss you.

[Bemo]

RIP. The Dolomites trip is on my bucket list thanks to Dackelone's posts. If fate allows it and I make it there, I'll be sure that the car roars extra loud in his honor.

[NorthernDancer]

Truly stunned to hear this news. Dack was one of a kind without a doubt. RIP my good friend. No speed limits up there.

[CH400EM]

RIP Dackelone. You made this place better with your kindness.

[bmw1racer]

What???

Sincere condolences to his friends and family.

[andrey_gta]

RIP Dakelone. Thank you for your efforts in organizing with the BMW community and the 1addicts and Bimmerpost moderating space, and guiding the DIY/ FAQ knowledge.

Deep condolences to the family and friends who knew him personally.
You will be missed by all.

[LeifW]

Truly sad. May he rest in peace.

Leif W.

[Doldonics]

I am going to post a new thread on Dave's life before Germany.... where he was known as Chuckles - Doldonics

[Doldonics]

This is a picture of Dave at summit point raceway with his Corrado

[Doldonics]

Not many of you know this, but Dave’s original German fascination was not with Munich’s finest. His interest started in Niedersachsen, with Volkswagens, back in the 1980s. Yes, you read that correctly: with Volkswagens! When we met him in 1986, he was driving a VW GTI MKII, the original 8-valve version.

Wolfsburg’s finest was our shared passion back in the day. We met and bonded at the local Washington, DC-area Volkswagen Club meetings. Held monthly in the basement of a library, we would meet and chat about the latest and greatest performance mods while teasing our older club members, all of whom invariably drove ancient air-cooled machinery. There were so many topics we touched on and argued about: expensive lubricants (Synthoil, anyone? Good for an extra 5% horsepower!), overly complicated and pricey oil filters (Mecca…add another 2%!), anti-roll bars, Bilstein cup kits, Euro exhausts, Weber throttle bodies, reworked cams, short-shift kits, metallic brake pads, rear disk conversions, nitrous injection, four-puck clutch discs, wheel upgrades, radio upgrades…you name it. As proof of this insanity, we’ve posted below of our brush with national fame in 1988 from European Car magazine’s coverage of Dave’s 2.0 Techtonics big-bore upgrade in George’s garage (attached pdf).

We argued endlessly, we bought parts continuously, we raced on the street recklessly (Who remembers the Vericom VC-200?), we got speeding tickets consistently - and we had a damn good time.

Dave at some point bought a Callaway GTI MKI. Yes, you read correctly, he went backwards in his chassis selection. But he had done his homework. Callaway was making a custom turbo kit for the original GTI, including intercooler and assorted goodies. It was probably the coolest and rarest Volkswagen this side of the Atlantic, and it was Dave’s. It was monochrome white, with a full Zender spoiler kit, if remembered correctly. The car was fast, fun, and unique – it ticked all the boxes.

Dave then moved forward with other upgrades: a GTI MKII 16v, a 1990 G-60 Corrado, a VR6 Corrado, and, his final US car before decamping to Germany, the beloved Porsche 944 Turbo. While technically not a Volkswagen, it indeed sprung from the same family tree. Dave remained on the tuner path the entire time: exhausts, smaller G-lader pulleys, and, coming into the age of electronics with the 944, custom ECU tunes.
My memories of this time were of a lot of talk, endless wrenching, as well as debates over the performance specifications for all the of parts, lubes, and tweaks that Dave had read about and could recall in excruciating detail. There was a *ton* of ribbing around missed shifts and brake points and turns at the track (Dave had started racing with a mechanic friend, and was an instructor at Summit Point Raceway), and we can remember the full chuckle Dave had when recounting how he had just squeezed someone off the right line or nosed past them on the straightaway. Dave’s first visit to Germany involved taking the VW rental car to the Nürburgring, where we managed to slide off the track. The rental was returned with a slightly bent rear suspension, not noticed by the rental company.

When Dave left our Washington orbit, we stayed in touch, but not as often as before. He was clearly in nirvana, being so close (at least for our American sensibilities) to his favorite manufactures and museums and tracks. The pictures and stories he shared always made us envious, and the times we could accompany him on some of the tours were *phenomenal*. He “graduated” from the VAG to the BMW family, finally buying a 135i to burn up the Autobahn. He also found his found his groove online, as you all know, sharing the technical knowledge and passion with everyone who spent the time to read, creating a family abroad that is shockingly large.
While geographically distant, he generosity never waned: care packages of specialty tools, souvenirs from his various road trips, toys and Kindereier for our kids, and model cars arrived on our doorsteps. We still chatted with him for hours around Bangle Butts, 135i tweaks, which Porsche was better (mid vs. rear-engine?), his trips to Stelvio and all the other famous mountain passes, and a ton of other car topics.

When he fell ill a few weeks ago, we were worried and frustrated, not being allowed to fly to be by his side due to the Corona restrictions, which is what we would have done under normal circumstances. We held out hope until the end and were devasted to get the news when he passed.
We are mulling over the best way to send him off into the great racetrack in the sky. While we cannot do anything in the near term due to all the complicated travel restrictions, we’re thinking about bringing him to one of his favorite places (Stelvio?) for a final celebration with friends and extended family, probably next year. We will post on this later if we can make it happen and his family approves.
RIP, dear friend.
George and Seth (2/3rds of the original VW Three Musketeers)

p.s. Apologies for starting a new thread.....

[Law]

Thank you for offering a glimpse into David's time before his 'graduation' to the BMW world.

No need for apologies for the new thread.
In fact, we thank you for sharing the memories and for keeping Dackel's spirit alive.

Indeed, we learn that not only has the BIMMERPOST & the BMW community lost a great friend of genuine passion, but the VAG community as well and I'd even fathom that the car enthusiast community as a whole has lost a great mind, an encyclopedia/library of knowledge as another moderator (Artemis) on this board put it.

It is with much regret that we wish him godspeed under these tragic & sudden circumstances but wish him godspeed we must.
And keeping his spirit & memory alive is a great way to do that.

Thank you for sharing!

[ayao]

This is awful news. 1addicts will not be the same without him.

[EINSER M]

Haven't been on forums since my 1M days but to hear Dack has passed is sad. He was indeed such a helpful and cheerful guy, helped me the tough all 3 of my ED trips. May you rest in peace friend.

[MDMA 135i]

Rest In Peace, Dackelone.

[Gangplank]

Very sad to hear this news. When I first joined 1addicts his posts were informative, to the point, helpful and polite. His contributions are countless.

He will be missed by the 1addicts & Bimmerpost community.

[Artemis]

Originally Posted by Doldonics

We are mulling over the best way to send him off into the great racetrack in the sky. While we cannot do anything in the near term due to all the complicated travel restrictions, we’re thinking about bringing him to one of his favorite places (Stelvio?) for a final celebration with friends and extended family, probably next year. We will post on this later if we can make it happen and his family approves.
RIP, dear friend.
George and Seth (2/3rds of the original VW Three Musketeers)

Thanks for the write-up, Doldonics. A link to your post has been added in the first post of this thread.

Time for a smile too: likely Dackelone told you about 'The Spaniard', a close encounter he (and others) had in 2012 with a Spaniard driving a red Volkswagen inside a narrow Stelvio Pass tunnel (the Western leg of the Stelvio Pass). It became a running gag on each mountain trip ever since: "Let's hope 'The Spaniard' is not around this time !".

From 01:30 to 03:35: Dackelone meets 'The Spaniard':

[champignon]

Very sad, but at the same time remarkable, as judged by the number of heartfelt comments in such a short period of time.

RIP Dakelone.

[Colinv6]

Very sad

RIP dackelone, thoughts with your friends and family.

[tranquility]

I don't frequent this forum as much but his name always stands out and reading these posts, he was an amazing and kind person. I offer my condolences to all his loved ones.