Detailing Packages

Has Spring sprung, can we look forward to our cars staying clean a little longer than just 1 trip out? Lets hope so! With this in mind we are trying to streamline our detailing services for you. With prices starting from just £60, there is something for every budget.

Maintenance –  A “freshen up wash” if you will. Designed to maintain the condition of your car. Taking the car out for a run? No problem we’ll get the bug splats and road grime off for you. This is also included in our Care Pack.

Enhancement – “Day in the bay sir”? Our first and most popular level of correction. Minor imperfections in your paint or interior, ceramic coating application, or an area that need that little bit more attention? Then this is the one for you.

Paint Correction – “Showtime” After that mirror finish? We cast our forensic eye over your pride and joy leaving no stone unturned in getting your car to that show standard. Nothing is too much trouble in our most thorough detailing process.

Whatever your after, just drop us an email, or give us a call and we can answer any questions you might have.

Some before and after paint correction shots

Inspiration from where?

One quiet evening I found myself looking over the variety of cars that you have all chosen to store with us. I found myself thinking about the journey that makes us car enthusiasts finally settle on the car we want. I’m not talking about the specific car we end up buying, but more the model we want that we then hunt down to find the best example we can afford. Whether it’s brand loyalty, the enjoyment of an oddity, or a familial tie - it certainly gives us something different to look at every day.

I don’t really think it’s any secret both I and Richard have a bit of a thing for BMW. Being the age that I am, growing up I was at about the peak age for the E39 M5. This sleek V8 bruiser with “400hp”, that also happened to have a pretty good marketing strategy. Remember the BMW film “Star” (Clive Owen chauffeuring Madonna in an M5), being of the Playstation generation I always played the M5 in Need for Speed Hot Pursuit 2, or when Youtube was in its infancy a video of some German woman absolutely driving the wheels off an M5 Ring Taxi – R.I.P. Sabine.

Well it all worked on me. I was set that the E39 was my dream car and my fate was sealed. For others though (as recently highlighted by Top Gear) our Dad’s cars often have a huge impact on us and our passion. We store some family heirlooms for owners, these are the cars that at a glance aren’t exclusive, expensive, or unattainable, but they mean more to the individual than words can describe.

Or aspiring to a brand that you never thought would be attainable. You’ve saved, scrimped, had a bit of luck come your way and the stars align for you. Whatever it may be is now in reach and you go for it. I’m writing this and thinking it’s not only the cars themselves, but the wraps, parts, paint we lavish them with. We really are an odd bunch us petrol heads.

Whatever yours are, we all have our reasons. The pull to these lumps of metal that only serve as a method of getting from A to B is undeniable. We’ve all been bitten by the bug and whatever you journey has been, we’re very privileged that you’ve trusted us with your journey.

Garage Project

We hate saying good bye to cars and customers, but life changes and people’s circumstances change. Chris has stored his cars with us for some time, recently he has decided to overhaul his garage space at home and create his own space fit for his “Garage Queens”. This has been a long process that we have assisted with – it is still his project, but we have taken some of the heavier lifting jobs and managed the project for him when life has got in the way. The results are outstanding we’re both chuffed with the results, safe to say I think there’s space for another one now Chris?

Thinking of moving on, want to make better use of the space you already have? Get in touch and we’d love to work with you on your next phase of ownership.

Here is a sample of our next plan we’re looking to make a reality (wink wink)

The Industry

I suppose the biggest news to hit the automotive scene this month is the fact that Mitsubishi are withdrawing from the UK market – stating that the only service it will provide to the UK is “aftersales” for their existing customers. The car maker already confirmed that they were leaving continental Europe last year so it really does sound like this is the end. Their reasons are a lack of profitability, and wishing to concentrate more on their own domestic market and SE Asia.

Obviously as a car enthusiast our initial reaction is to think of the Evo, the GTO, the FTO, and all the great names and history that are associated with the brand. But the reality is that most of us would struggle to name a model they currently sell – beyond the PHev Outlander, and L200. They have been on a bit of a steady decline turning out bland hatchbacks, and crossovers in recent years and those golden days of the Evo VI were a long time ago. Longer than most of us would care to remember.

I can double this as the auction insight as well, as all of the Heritage Fleet is up for sale here. The highlights being a Tommi Makinen edition EVO VI with some 10k miles on it , an extremely low miles EVO IX FQ-360, or (at time of writing) something with a slightly nicer price a 1988 Starion, or a vast array of cherished plates ending “MMC”.

It makes you a bit sad looking through the listings. These are some great cars, by a great manufacturer  - I suppose it’s a rather defiant way of them telling us that the EVO is definitely not coming back!

Further reading here

Latest Arrivals

Our monthly welcome and look over the latest arrivals

The Fascinating Nightmare

Auto engineers have always been accused of needlessly overcomplicating things, and offering solutions to problems that don’t exist. Well, could this be the pinnacle - the VW W8 engine fitted in the 2002/2005 Passat.

An everyday car, with a mini Veyron engine. This video is part autopsy, part case study in overcomplication. It’s geeky, but I thought you might enjoy…

The Queen of the Ring and our hearts.

The queen is dead; long live the ‘queen of the ring’ in our hearts and for those lucky enough to have met her; in our experiences. The period of her reign is immortalised on Youtube; in her racing, from the cockpit, by those who followed the ring taxi to film her in action and her appearances on Top Gear.

Born 14th May 1969, Sabine Schmitz passed away on 21st March 2021, following a three year battle with cancer, this unique force of nature whose life was illuminated by her sunny, friendly, down to earth disposition and indomitable way, left us at the impossibly young age of 51 leaving behind a legacy that can not be matched – never more aptly stated; “only the good die young”.

With a love of speed whether on roller skates, her beloved horses or indeed the helipcopter that she flew, she was first acquainted with the ‘Green Hell’ in the back of her fathers purple ford Granada aged just 5 or 6, “it was the scariest moment of my life”! she said “I felt more secure when I was in control”. 

At the age of 17 (still too young to drive in Germany), she secretly took her mothers BMW to the ring declaring that she was 18, and so her journey begun in becoming ‘the queen of the ring’ it is said that she has completed 30,000 laps…

In 2006 & 2007 she won the 24hour race in an BMW E36 M3, the first only woman to have won this race and in 2008 she won the VLN challenge.

She would say on a BMW video “I like my job driving all day on the Nordschleife in the ring taxi, it’s really fun to scare people Ha Ha”. With her disarming, cute and Doris Day girl-next-door looks, Sabine it was said, had to be one of the scariest people alive, with her ability to provide the fare payers with her complete and extensive knowledge in all weathers and at racing speeds on this altogether challenging circuit, and incidentally ‘the most technical’ in the world, it was a very special and unique experience indeed. 

She was born in Adenau, just 300 metres from the track at her parents hotel and went on the run her own bar close to the BMW test centre at the Nurburgring and before fame inevitably came her way in the Top Gear programme it would not be unusual to have her serving evening guests at the famous Pistenklaus hotel/restaurant owned by her family and without the guests in the early days knowing who she was!

It was this down to earth nature that was so disarming. Her modesty and infectious humour screened this at heart quite shy person, but it was the heart of this lioness that actually piloted ‘the quickly silenced’ in the famous BMW ring taxis.

There is a famous public viewing area at the ‘ring called ‘Brunchen’ and I can still picture Sabine playing with some testosterone fuelled driver in his wailing yellow Ferrari as would a cat with a mouse, the Ferrari driver intent on overtaking but just at the moment the driver sensed an opportunity to pass Sabine would gently bring out the back of the ring taxi effectively reducing the width of the track and denying the overtake. Rest in Peace Sabine you brought much joy to many lives….  

On the Ramp

This month we’ve had plenty of little projects on the ramp. Most interesting is this 1977 Austin Allegro, not the obvious choice we know. The Allegro is one of those cars where eyebrow raising seems to follow, usually from people that have no first-hand experience with them. This particular example has recently been bought at auction showing just 10,000 miles. The owner just couldn’t say ‘no’ when she crossed the auction block and with nostalgia filling his bidding finger she was his!

Wanting to know what he’d bought, and what jobs needed addressing a slot at our ramp for an underside inspection was booked. Along with Richard and I the three of us went through the underside of the car and wrote up a list. The car is remarkably original condition and would appear the 10,000 miles is correct, and thankfully not too many “monsters” were found lurking underneath. Congratulations on the purchase and enjoy the next phase of your journey.

The SLK has also had a bit of a springtime refresh having had an underside clean, some small items replaced or restored, some dents removed, and then a full underside seal. We’re pleased with how it’s come out. 

The M3? Well, let’s say that’s a bit of a long termer - we’re currently trying to get it ready for it’s NASCAR debut!