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how do you protect yourself when leaving your Mustang for restoration?

stang32

stang32

Member
ok so I am looking to bring one of my progects to a shop for restoration, the shops are about 1-1.5hrs away each so I cant be on top of them every day.
my big concern is how do i protect my car & self from a shop closing up shop & disappearing w/my car?
 
Re: how do you protect yourself when leaving your car for restoration?

Closing shop.....very hard to protect from that based on it would be the owners decision. Might ask where they do business for paint and supplies and ask that location about them. Same with the local pars houses....see what they say about their business ethics.

As for your car....document everything.....down to the last bolt. Video everything...including the owner and employees if you can do that kind of innocently while taking pics of the car...have them put all info on receipts and signed by the shop manager/owner. Be sure to document what parts are original vs replacement plus the quality of the replacement parts.

Also, just drop in on the shop without calling first. Might cost a trip if they were closed for some reason but it also lets them know you are actively monitoring them.

It is a shame this has to happen but in todays world.....
 
Re: how do you protect yourself when leaving your car for restoration?

Grundy offers project insurance, I'm sure the other classic insurance companies offer something similar.
 
Re: how do you protect yourself when leaving your car for restoration?

About the best way to protect yourself would be to do your research and pick reputable shops that have a long business history and check references.

The second thing you could try would be to have a contract for services that spells out the steps to immediate return of your car or liquidated damages in the event of any filling of bankruptcy or any steps towards the closure of the business to include non payment of business licenses, corporation fees, and taxes. In the end, you need to watch the shops carefully for any warning signs, and if you have any warnings or "gut" feelings about the shop, move on ASAP, it's not worth the chance.

And finally, pick a reputable shop, oh and if that seems to hard, do it yourself, or pick a reputable shop.
 
Re: how do you protect yourself when leaving your car for restoration?

"Fast68back" said:
Grundy offers project insurance, I'm sure the other classic insurance companies offer something similar.
Click to expand...
Other than using a reputable shop, the first thing I did and recommend is insure the car. Even if it's a reputable shop, if it burns down often the shop only covers the shop not customer projects. As others have said, find a reputable shop with a well known reputation that's been around a while. Word of mouth is good. It will be worth the extra cost (if there is any). I also laid out how I would pay the shop. I gave them a down payment, then we agreed on various stages of completion up front. When I could come in and check off that they met the target, they got more money. This kept them motivated to finish and if they stopped work, I wasn't out the total amount.
It's a scary thing so I highly recommend doing your homework on the shop you choose, ask for references and talk to them personally (not at the shop).
Good Luck
 
Protecting yourself with pictures and insurance. On another note: Does anyone know anything about Select Motors in Ball Louisiana, quality, price etc :hide
 
Re: how do you protect yourself when leaving your car for restoration?

"ZFORCE" said:
About the best way to protect yourself would be to do your research and pick reputable shops that have a long business history and check references.

The second thing you could try would be to have a contract for services that spells out the steps to immediate return of your car or liquidated damages in the event of any filling of bankruptcy or any steps towards the closure of the business to include non payment of business licenses, corporation fees, and taxes. In the end, you need to watch the shops carefully for any warning signs, and if you have any warnings or "gut" feelings about the shop, move on ASAP, it's not worth the chance.

And finally, pick a reputable shop, oh and if that seems to hard, do it yourself, or pick a reputable shop.
Click to expand...

This is very good advise. I have suffered at the hands of a shop that went bust and it nearly broke my heart.

Get everything in writing. Be very clear about what you expect from the shop in return for your money. Visit the shop weekly and for whatever reason if you sense something going wrong and they do not have a logical explanation for you, then get a trailer and get your car out of there.
 
After seeing what Johnny went through, you have to visit the shop. All the other advise is good but you have to be seen. Johnny was one step away from not getting his car. Other weren't so lucky. A few "customers" with that guy lost close to 100 grand.
 
I'd hit up the local cruise nights and car shows and talk to some of the locals there. Chances are there is a go-to shop that everybody knows and uses. Plus you'll more than likely get to see the shops work up close. Then just drop in on the shop unannounced like Pete said. Most times the reputable shop will be more than willing to give you a tour of said shop. Like everyone else said, Get everything in writing. From bodywork,sheetmetal,bondo,primer,and finally paint. I watched an old neighbor who had a Maverick Grabber get all twisted out of shape because the body work was done over the stripes and they popped out after the paint was applied. He was told by the lawyer he sought out that all that was stipulated in the contract was "Paint and Bodywork". No mention of removing any tape stripes or anything else. Above all else,Read any contract thats dropped in front of you. Reading Comprehension will be your friend.
 
Asking around and finding someone that's been in business for a while is a good start.

Also, if you are the only project they have in house right now that's not a good sign of a viable ongoing business. My local buddy that runs a restoration shop always has multiple projects going on and any good shop would have a similar work load. Those types of business tend to grow via word of mouth and if you run a good shop and do good work you'll stay busy. I know the biggest challenge John faces in his shop is how to juggle / schedule work to keep multiple projects moving along. He's stayed as busy as he wants to be even in the slower economy of the last few years.

+1 on the insurance idea.

Personally, I use the local shop because I can stop in and keep tabs on them even though I trust them. Heck, I stop by when I have time anyway even if I don't have a car there at the time and sometimes when I get a day off I go over and help out to learn. They don't mind having an extra set of hands for block sanding, etc :)
 
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