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BMCU List,
I am sure you have seen all of these emails in the past couple of days about
restoration shops. My queston is: Is there is list of reputable, or those
to avoid, auto restoration experts for this area? I will need a lot of help
in the paint and body department while I can handle much of the final
assembly and interior myself.
I've got a great car, but it will need to undergo a complete re-make this
winter. Any input from the club members will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Bill
Bill B
'58 TR-3A TS/30766 L
"A bad day in your TR just gives you license to go shopping on-line again!"
-----Original Message-----
From: british-cars-bounces+wbeech=flash.net@autox.team.net
[mailto:british-cars-bounces+wbeech=flash.net@autox.team.net] On Behalf Of
Charlie & Ressie O'Connors
Sent: Friday, August 24, 2007 9:02 AM
To: british-cars@autox.team.net
Subject: [British-cars] Restoration Experts
I learned the hard way that you have to be very careful who you trust with
the restoration of your car. Just because they do body work, doesn't mean
they can restore one of our British cars. Here are a couple of lessons I've
learned. I'm sure others can add to it:
* Do a thorough search of shops that specialize in (1)
restorations and (2) restorations of British cars. There are not that many
shops out there that have had an older British car to work on.
Most shops today depend on insurance repairs. I can appreciate this.
It's a business and a good business owner is going to take in work that
assures the best return on labor. The honest ones will tell you that they
don't have the time or the proper facilities to do restoration services.
There are many shops in my area that I would take my Jeep to for repairs,
but I wouldn't take my Austin Healey to them for restoration work.
* If you find a restoration expert, verify the quality of their
work. Ask for references, go look at work they've done on other cars, look
at work they are currently doing and talk with individuals who work in their
shop.
* Use the many resources we have available to us to find a
restoration expert - this list being one of them. Talk with members of your
club as well as members of other clubs in your geographical area.
You may find that in order to find the best restoration expert you may
have to haul your car a few hundred miles from home. But if it assures
that your car will be completed to your satisfaction, that is a small price
to pay.
My first experience at hiring someone to restore a car was a nightmare that
I hope to never repeat. I contacted the Better Business Bureau and Chamber
of Commerce and was told that my only recourse was to file a civil claim
against the individual to recoup my money. They also told me that even if
the civil court decided in my favor, it would be my responsibility to
collect the money. Bottom line, I lost a lot of money.
When it came time to have my Austin Healey 3000 restored, I sought out
someone who specializes in restorations of Austin Healeys. Once I came to a
conclusion as to who I thought would be the best shop to take my Healey to,
I visited his garage (prior to even asking him if he could restore the car),
viewed other cars he was working on during my visit, and talked with others
in his garage. He was very up front with me about the time it would take to
do the job right, how much it would cost, volunteered references, and showed
me cars they were currently working on as well as complete photo sets of
cars they had completed.
He even suggested I visit a client who lived nearby who had their car
restored by his shop. Of course, the restoration isn't going as fast as I
would like it to go, but I still have confidence that it's being done right.
I'd be interested in hearing from others on how to find the right person to
restore our cars. We spend a lot money to restore these cars and it would
be great if we could prevent others from experiencing the frustrations
others of us have had to go through.
Charlie
_______________________________________________
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British-cars mailing list
British-cars@autox.team.net
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