[68Cuda]

OK... having just put my car through the modification / body / paint mill I want to make some remarks from a customer perspective.

Originally Posted by Munssey

1. Written Detailed Estimate of Work (to outline all the details discussed before hand). Not just 'build part x' but build it for this customer, using these materials and then amend with a start and estimated end date when possible after timing has been agreed on and the Estimate turns to a contract.

Oh, I wish... never found a shop that was willing to do this in three years of looking. I could not find ANYONE willing to give me an actual written quote. One shop I visited the owner told me not to visit unless I called in advance because he may not be open if he had something to do that day, had no idea how long it would take, and had a car that he stripped six months previously sitting off to the side without any primer on it. Best I found was "as long as you keep up with the bill we keep working on your car" and "just stop by occasionally so we can discuss the next step, otherwise I do what I think you want" combined with the fact that I visited the fabricator who was actually working on the car and took him out to lunch once to make sure he understood what I wanted because the boss would tell him something else. Either he sometimes got customers mixed up or the two of them had communication issues. The fabricator started texting me questions occasionally when something the boss told him did not sound right or did not sync with what I had told him. My final choice on this shop was made seeing some of the completed work, talking to a few prior customers, and observing the shops practices. I took the "personalities" of the owner and the tradesmen involved in to account also. Overall one of the better places I visited, was relatively close to home and work, and I had a good level of confidence I could get the car back in less than a year.

Originally Posted by Munssey

2. MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) I explain this as the 'rules to the game'.

See above comments...

Originally Posted by Munssey

3. Change orders - If something changes from the written detailed estimate that was signed, it must have a change order stating what changed in work, time and\ or price.

Once again...

Originally Posted by Kurt Penner

How detailed do you guys get on your invoices. Is time broken into segments? We do a list of stuff accomplished this week and a total # of hours.

One of the things I liked about the shop I chose, they had a folder for each car, written inside the folder was a daily number of hours billed. All receipts were kept in the folder. I paid about two weeks ahead on labor. I could come look at the folder anytime I wanted, and whenever my balance approached zero I would write another check. The last two weeks I let them run negative and I paid the balance on delivery day.

Originally Posted by ironworks

Customers cash flow - This has no relation to the the depth of the customers pockets. This has to do with the urgency of the customer to pay for the agreed bill during and at completion of the project.

I think about half the customers I saw during the 9 months my car was in the shop had this issue. The boss had to stop work on their cars or at least threaten to do so occasionally. I actually gave him permission to slow down on my car to get other small, paying jobs out as long as he did not come to a complete stop on my car. I knew mine was going to sit for periods of time after it got home so I was not in a big rush.

Originally Posted by ironworks

Project Creep - Customer wanting more and more from the initial project scope. And after the project was torn down or fit up work really begins, finding parts don't fit like they should. Or the car had more bondo then was expected.

I think this happened on a majority of the projects I saw... the extreme was the car that came in for a few minor touch ups and left with an LSA and a paint job.

Originally Posted by ironworks

Flaky vendors - Outside vendors with parts or services that that don't do what they say.

Yes - constantly, and you Chevy guys have it good! I pretty much expect any work, part or restoration detail work to take at least twice as long as quoted and then need to be significantly modified to fit the car. Even "off the shelf" cylinder heads from Edelbrock which I ordered in June and received in October were only supposed to take 3 weeks to get. I almost fell over in shock when a K-frame I sent to have modified and powder coated arrived sooner than expected and was done exactly as specified!