Automotive Services

Most classic car owners cover relatively few miles in their cars both because they are owned as hobby cars but also because they are generally covered by limited mileage insurance policies. Mileage could be anywhere from a few hundred to about 3,000 miles per year. If a problem starts to manifest itself, the owner normally gets plenty of notice and has plenty of time to fix the problem. And unless they have a specific classic run or rally planned then there is no urgency.

Renting out a fleet of classic cars brings us a set of different problems. Firstly the mileage is much higher. Some of our cars will cover 10,000 miles per year and 6,000 to 8,000 is quite normal. This means that problems that may creep up on the average classic car owner fairly slowly appear a bit quicker on our fleet of classic cars. Add to that the fact that by the nature of our business, we have cars hired out on definite dates, we have developed a culture aimed at avoiding problems rather than waiting for them to happen and then fixing them.

When we add a new car to our fleet we give it a thorough service including replacing all hoses, whether they need it or not, replacing the flexible brakes hoses with Aeroquip ones which don’t degrade, and fitting electronic ignition to avoid the slow degradation that happens with good old contact breaker points.

We also drive our own hire cars regularly as our customers won’t always report anything unusual as they tend not to know how the cars drive normally. In this way we can usually pick up symptoms as they start to develop and have them fixed before they become a problem to either us or the customers.

This is illustrated by a piece of work that we are currently having carried out on our 1970 Jaguar E-Type Roadster. As well as hiring this out, we use it quite a lot ourselves and drove it across Europe to the Czech Republic and back in September 2010. The MSA Euroclassic isn’t a normal road run and is set to take in the most scenic routes possible, including in this instance crossing the Alps via the famous Stelvio and St Gothard passes.

The Stelvio has been featured on the BBC Top gear programme as one of the best drives in the world and having completed it twice we can verify this accolade. This year on a few of the 49 hairpin bends, when turning in tightly under load, there was a slight knock, knock coming from the right rear. We have a team of mobile mechanics with us on the Euroclassic so I asked them to have a look and they said it was a small amount of play in one of the four universal joints on the rear drive shafts. They pumped in a load of fresh grease, to the offending UJ and the other three for good measure, and the problem disappeared.

The E-Type has now gone in for it is annual pre hire-season service and I asked our garage to check it out. They confirmed the mobile mechanic’s diagnosis that there is a small amount of play in just one of the four UJs. If this was a normal classic car their prognosis is that the UJ would be fine for anywhere from five to ten thousand miles which for most classic car owners could be anywhere from 3 to 10 years motoring.

However for The Open Road this could be done in a single year. There aren’t any tight, Stelvio type, hairpin bends for many miles and it is unlikely that a customer would hear so much as a slight clunk during the coming year. However I don’t want a customer to be either concerned if they were to hear such a noise or, worse still, to be inconvenienced if it were to fail.

I gave the garage instructions to replace the offending UJ. Based on the assumption that the other three UJs in the drive shafts are of the same age, and have been subject to the same driving stresses it is reasonable to assume that they might be starting to deteriorate. I therefore instructed them to replace the other three UJs at the same time to remove any risk of premature failure.

About once a year, a customer will say that charging over £300 for a day’s hire for an E-Type seems a bit expensive. This is one of the reasons why. I would rather spend money in advance on preventive maintenance that a normal classic car owner would not think was strictly necessary.

At the end of the service our E-Type will be setup and ready for what I am expecting to be a very busy year. The E-type was launched in 1961 so this year celebrates its 50th birthday. It has already been featured in a number of the classic car magazines and I expect it to receive huge amounts of coverage through the coming year which should generate loads of requests to hire this icon of the British automotive art.

There is a big difference between restoring, refurbishing, and repairing a car as opposed to cleaning, and detailing one. The same thing applies in the marine industry. Not long ago, an acquaintance asked me what equipment they would need to upgrade their business to service and restore sailboats, yachts, and boats out at the marina. Let me explain to you, what I suggested to him.

If you are planning on running your boat cleaning and detailing business, perhaps doing a little restoration, color sanding, and deck coating and treating then you are going to need heavier duty equipment. Industrial strength equipment, such as a full-on steam cleaner (hot water pressure washer) blasting 3500 PSI at 5-6 GPM (gallons per minute) and industrial level buffers, perhaps even air-driven, meaning you will also need a strong air-compressor. You will, not be able to get by with merely an orbital buffer run off a small generator. Indeed, you should also consider a hand held belt sander as well.

It would be wise to have plastic wrap reels, quality masking tape dispensers, and proper breathing ventilation safety gear and goggles. You will also need a place to lock up such expensive equipment and tools, somewhere secure and safe – trust no one when it comes to these kinds of tools for the trade. May I suggest that you buy a work van, with a solid alarm system + LowJack to secure your equipment, and bolt it in place? If you choose to go this route, you need to choose the best van, so let’s discuss that for a moment because the right work van can make all the difference.

Remember a van has many other benefits besides just being a safe way to protect your equipment, as it is also a great platform for good signage to get additional business. A really cool shrink wrap sign can do wonders for your local business branding and image. The fewer windows the better for signage and a larger van can hold more gear and equipment too.

Now then, there are a lot of advantages in having a smaller van with better turning radius, as long as it can hold the weight. Of course, hopefully there will be a water supply to run your hot-water pressure washer and electricity to run your power tools. But realize you will need 220 volts to run an industrial grade air compressor. Indeed, I hope you will please consider all this, and in case you have any concerns, questions, or comments please email me, let’s talk.

With the amount of driving we do in America it is only but wise to ensure safety on the road. It is best to be prepared prepared for a road emergency at all times. Having the right tools and supplies can make all the difference in getting through the ordeal safely and with the minimum of hassle.

1) The best way to prepare for car emergencies is to first reduce the likelihood of emergencies occurring in the first place. You can help the cause greatly by making sure all your car basics have been attended to like checking the oil levels, radiator fluid, coolant, washer fluid, making sure the tire pressure is at the proper level, and making sure there is ample amount of tread on the tires.

2) Ensure that you have a spare tire and that it is properly inflated. Along with a working spare tire be sure that you also have a working jack, tire iron, a short galvanized pipe to use as leverage for the time iron. A can of “instant sealant” can be a good addition to your emergency kit.

3) A strong flashlight and road flares can help to keep other drivers alert of your situation.

4) It is also a good idea to keep some provisions such as freeze-dried food and water as well as cold-weather gear such as blankets and parkas.

5) A first aid kit consisting of gauze, antiseptic spray, bandages, tape, scissors.

6) A car tool kit with the basic tools such as flat head and Phillips screwdrivers, pliers, adjustable wrench, wire cutter, spare batteries, work gloves, spare fuses, vice grips, duct tape, box cutter or utility knife, electrical tape and scissors. Also be sure to have jumper cables.

Keep your emergency kit items in a plastic waterproof box or heavy duty nylon bag. This will help to keep all the items organized and easy to find.