Top 8 tips for choosing a classic car restoration professional

12 May, 2015

Handy tips and hints for those planning on having their car professionally restored

Although many classic car enthusiasts prefer a hands-on approach to restoring their cars, this is not always possible. A lack of spare time or simply a lack of skills may prevent a home restoration. If this is the case, then the only way forward may be a professional restoration.

Although not the cheapest option, having your car fully restored from top to toe by professionals does have benefits and, of course, a reputable workshop will always guarantee their work. If you do choose to follow this path, a single company might be assigned to restore the entire car or, alternatively, separate companies could undertake individual tasks — such as panel and paint or interior and mechanical.

Assuming you have already found a suitable project car, here are a few handy tips for picking a suitable professional:

1. Inspection

When selecting a professional restorer it pays to inspect some of their previous work. Most restoration shops will have extensive photographs of projects that they have completed and, while it’s useful to see these photos, it’s even more useful if you can actually see the cars themselves — that way you can also talk to the owners and gather useful information on the restoration company.

2. Check locally

There are advantages to picking a local restoration company — it’ll be easy to visit them to check up on progress. However, having said that, sometimes it pays to pick the best possible workshop, regardless of location, especially if they have specialist knowledge that applies to your car. Reputable restoration companies can provide photographic reports, so it is possible to monitor progress.

3. Check before you buy

Once you have chosen a professional company, the first step will always be a thorough evaluation of your car — in many ways, it can be to your advantage to select a workshop prior to finally buying a project car; in that way the restoration company can check before you buy. Manage your project in that manner and you may save yourself money later on.

4. Professional inspection

Having said that, evaluating a suitable project car is not always a straightforward procedure. We’ve seen many classic cars, which look great but, on further inspection, are full of rot and rust. A professional inspection will reveal this type of damage. However, don’t expect a proper inspection to be free — it could involve partially dismantling some areas of the car. If you proceed with the restoration, any inspection costs will be covered but if you decide not to proceed expect to pay for this inspection. In some cases the damage will be very noticeable, although, of course, restoration costs could be higher for such a vehicle.

5. Talk to the owners

If you want to get personally involved with the restoration, talk to the owners of prospective workshops. Some will allow owners to work on their own cars — usually on non-skilled tasks. Anyone can scrape off underseal or, with a little tuition, handle menial tasks such as sanding. This can save you money as these types of restoration tasks are very labour-intensive. However, getting involved doesn’t mean simply hanging around the workshop and getting in the way of tradesmen.

6. Budget talks

Paying for a professional restoration is rather like funding a new home — once you’ve signed on the dotted line you’ll be expected to front up with an initial deposit, followed by regular progress payments, with the final payment due when the car is completed to your satisfaction.

Discuss budgets beforehand and make sure everything is affordable — don’t be tempted into viewing the workshop as a storage facility while you find the cash for a progress payment. The economics of operating a restoration business does not allow for non-paying residents taking up space that could be used for a paying project.

7. Visit often

When your project is eventually under way, make periodic visits to view the work in progress and keep yourself involved with the project.

8. Do your homework

Finally, New Zealand is lucky enough to have some exceptional restoration companies, and many have enviable international reputations for the quality of their work. But check any potential choices out carefully before you hand over your hard-earned cash. As with picking a car in the first instance, selecting an appropriate and reputable classic car restoration company comes down to you undertaking a spot of homework.

What companies have you worked with and recommend? Let us know in the comments below.

Grand Routier — in the french tradition

10 July, 2025

Sitting in Paddy and Patsy Williams’ Dunedin garage is a stunning example of one of these rare French grand routier sedans. It is a 1949 four-door Lago-Record Factory Berline sedan, to give its full name. Daughter Cath let us know how proud she was of her dad, who had been tinkering away in his garage on this car for so many years.
Without exaggeration, it has been a mammoth task. I first saw this Talbot-Lago in mid 2019. The long-nosed, sweeping, curved four-door saloon, clothed in its misty green metallic paint, was quite breathtaking. There’s more than a little English influence in it, too, harking back to company owner Tony Lago’s involvement in the Clement-Talbot-Darracq era. The long front wings and bonnet, usually multi-louvred, highlighted with artful touches of chrome bling, are typical of the era, but these were indeed luxury length. Interiors provided leather-clad, armchair-style seating and ample legroom, with touches of wood and surprising details such as dainty childproof interior locks — a far cry from today’s lozenge boxes.
Paddy, a retired civil and structural engineer, knows his way around a lathe. He has a well-equipped garage-workshop to assist in any machining tasks along with his other passion for restoring classic motorcycles.

The Great River Road

4 July, 2025

A few years ago my family, knowing my fondness for driving, gave me the book Unforgettable Road Trips: Thirty-Six Drives of a Lifetime by Martin Derrick. Most of the road trips listed take less than a day in places like Scotland, Monaco, and Australia, plus one in New Zealand. Most of these places were too far to go just for a short drive but four of them would take several days. My interest was piqued, and those four drives were added to the bucket list. To date, I have done three of them: ‘Route 66’ (USA 21 days), ‘State Highway 6’ (NZ 10 days) and ‘The Great River Road’ (USA 22 days). You can drive all of them in less time, but you could also fly over them. We wanted a decent immersion in their charms.
The great river referred to is the Mississippi. While the name conjures the deep south, the river actually starts at the bottom of the great lakes, before emptying into the Gulf of Mexico about 3800km later. The great road is more of a concept than a specific strip of tarmac, as you can drive down either side of the river on various routes. Regardless of which side you drive, time should be kept aside for detours to places such as Nashville, which is famous for something or other.