Jaguar Mechanics in the North Shropshire Area

[Pablo1965]

Does anyone know where i can get reliable mechanics in this region?  I have a '66 registered S Type, live in Ellesmere near Shrewsbury and I am struggling to find the right people to work on it.
Paul

[Carole Simpson-Hadley]

Hi Paul

A lot depends on your budget, but for a S-type such as yours, the original version, it may be worth a look at CMC (Classic Motor Cars) located at Bridgnorth,

They are true classic Jaguar specialists and very efficient and knowledgeable.

We are firm believers in the old adage "you get what you pay for";  we believe CMC currently charge around £80 per hour, which is, nevertheless, considerably cheaper than main dealer price.

An added advantage is that parts supplier/remanufacturer SNG Barratt is only about a mile away from them.

Although it is much further (located at Ryton, near Coventry) JLR Classic are expert in your car's era.  Mind you, they price out at around £100 per hour.

Horses for courses and so on, but you could do worse than investigate CMC.

Good luck

[Pablo1965]

Thanks Carole

I agree with the adage up to a point, but if I could afford £80 or £100 an hour, I would be driving a concourse Coopercraft Mk2 not an S Type!  Seriously though, I think its all got a bit silly.  thirty or so years ago you could have taken one of these Jags to most garages where there would have been someone who knew enough about them to fix it for you.  Admittedly, there was a lot of questionable work done, mechanically and Bodywork (which I've found to my cost).  Now the high-end garages and workshops are running the show and they're setting the pricing standards for everyone.  Unfortunately, instead of wheedling out the bad practitioners, its had the opposite affect, that even they are now charging these prices.  

I tried CMC in 2015.  They were charging £54 an hour at the time. They said I was looking at about £20,000 for paint, so I told them to concentrate instead, on getting it roadworthy; at which point they seemed to lose interest.  They had my car for about 4 or 5 months before, after much prompting, they managed to put it on a rolling road, and gave me a crudely scrawled report for which they charged me £495 without carrying out any work on it.

After this, I took the car to a local restorers (again with an excellent reputation) who was only interested in if CMC had quoted for paint, and how much.  I didnt tell him. 

Obviously everyone's experience is different. 

Cheers, Paul

[Carole Simpson-Hadley]

8 hours ago, Paul Haskey said:

Obviously everyone's experience is different. 

Yes, you are quite right there, Paul.  MOH (my other half) concurs heartily.

Apologies for what you might have considered a "bum-steer" and your comments are quite alarming.   There are, indeed, many pitfalls....one of the frequent ones is that some places make a start on your vehicle, then it gets shunted off into a corner with problems (real or imagined) and you are left in limbo.   Our XJS is in for some fettling at the moment, and we are keeping a very close eye on progress, to guard against this potential issue.    Touch wood, our XK X150 and late model S-type don't need any fettling, outside of copious applications of Carnauba etc. Whilst looking around at Mk2s a while ago, we came across some deplorable "resto" work.

Obvious good taste - a Coopercraft Mk2. We should also be happy with a Vicarage Mk2.   Slobber, dream!

Exactly what work are you looking at for your early S-type?  This may have a bearing.

Reference the £20K quote for paint, wow. There are, of course, two main ways of looking at a repaint: one, mask up and paint what can be seen without stripping and, two, full strip, repaint, and re-assemble.  We wouldn't entertain the former. so there is always going to be money to be spent, but crikey, was that for 22ct gold sparkle?!

Again, exactly what work are you looking for?

Carole & SO (significant other)

 

 

[Pablo1965]

Thanks Carole

Fact is, workshops take on too much and then assume that you're prepared to wait, literally years in some cases, for them to get round to it.  As for paint, apparently £20,000 is not unheard of for a bare-metal respray.  I had to fork out £11,763 for mine where the engine and transmission stayed in, the roof wasn't repainted and I stripped it all out (and put it all back) and took all the paint off! 

At the mo I have an overheating problem (no, not me -the car) which my local garage has agreed to take on, provided I can get parts- although they don't really do old cars.  That said, they're an excellent garage and very trustworthy.

Cheers, Paul