Current BaT Auction Car Question

[tdgray]

There things that are meant for professional shops and professionals restorations. Don is correct. Top notch shops don’t take on work unless it bolsters their image or reputation.

The rest are left for us. I have a sentimental attachment to the model I have yes. God only knows where my old car is now… doesn’t matter.

There are some local people that I could have work on the car and those are the people that should work on it. But of course I will be doing a great deal of the work myself.

but perhaps that’s the avenue you should be exploring… the local guy who will do an adequate job for a good driver… no need for concourse it seems.

 

[BMW3.0CSi]

Another one: their page is down for maintenance for at least three days now. They have four cars on Classic Trader, all not finished yet. As a reference they point to a 3.0 CSi that went on BaT in February for a lot of money. @sfdon and others commented on the car. You cannot judge a car by pictures alone but if I did I would not find it all convincing.

There are always people on the forum to help or close by to look and see
I’ve been at their shop half a year ago to buy a NOS CSL ducktail spoiler from them. They are true BMW enthousiasts and made their profession of it. Very nice shop and to what I have seen professional work is been carried out. I have no further relation to them or what so ever.

 

[Ohmess]

One additional comment for Bajasur. Within the main functional areas it takes to restore a car (body and paint, upholstery, mechanical and electrical and assembly/sorting), two areas require very specific expertise. Because of the way these cars were built, body and paint work requires relatively specialized metal working expertise. Your run of the mill "insurance business" body shop will not have people on staff who can do this. Thus, you can't just find a shop with a good reputation; you need to find a shop that has the skill set you need. In general, these guys only exist in restoration shops, and because they are in high demand, they are expensive.

The other area where you need coupe specific expertise is in assembly/sorting. If you follow the commentary here on the cars that come up for sale, you will find a multitude of comments where we have spotted things that were done incorrectly. The only remedy for this is an experienced shop that has assembled multiple coupes well.

 

[x_atlas0]

One additional comment for Bajasur. Within the main functional areas it takes to restore a car (body and paint, upholstery, mechanical and electrical and assembly/sorting), two areas require very specific expertise. Because of the way these cars were built, body and paint work requires relatively specialized metal working expertise. Your run of the mill "insurance business" body shop will not have people on staff who can do this. Thus, you can't just find a shop with a good reputation; you need to find a shop that has the skill set you need. In general, these guys only exist in restoration shops, and because they are in high demand, they are expensive.

The other area where you need coupe specific expertise is in assembly/sorting. If you follow the commentary here on the cars that come up for sale, you will find a multitude of comments where we have spotted things that were done incorrectly. The only remedy for this is an experienced shop that has assembled multiple coupes well.

Big +1 to this, finding a body shop willing and capable of dealing with these cars is a challenge.

When I was getting my coupe ready for bodywork, I 'auditioned' around 20 body shops around Atlanta. Half of them flat out refused to do non-insurance work. 5 gave me quotes saying they didn't want to do the work. I ended up driving around 500 miles taking the car to 5 other body shops, letting them have it for a week, and coming up with a quote. The whole process took months. In the end though, that was the best way for both the shops and myself; that way we both knew what we were getting into. I eventually went with a motorcycle body shop and they used the car as 'shop filler' for about 9 months.