Good morning!

[ForcedFirebird]

My second home. Will be signing the 12th lease after the new year.

[82eye]

nice. that's a lotta work. great to see.

[MrBurgundy]

Do you do the tuning at the shop too?

[ForcedFirebird]

Do you do the tuning at the shop too?

Obviously, don't have a dyno here, but my buddy does at STP Motorsports in Davey - so, yes. I have remote tuned several members' cars here as well, both street and dyno. Just told the story in another thread about the guy in Denver. He did the first run, I made some adjustments after looking at the log, and I only saw like low 80's kpa. Was like WTF? Then realized, "oh, he's a mile in the atmosphere" lol. He still ended up making like 209whp on a 2.9l m20. I tuned all the cars here except the Honda swap. I "could" but since he is already working with someone else, I won't touch it. The ECU's I have used are MS1,2,3PRO, AEM, Haltech, GM OBD1, BMW OBD1 (some BMW and GM OBD2), Wolf, EMU, and Maxx. Really, it's all the same anymore - as long as I can hook my Toughbook to a car, I can figure it out.

Can't see the machining area in the pics, but there's a valve facing, and seat grinding machines, tool room lathe, Bridgeport, rigid hone, Gorton vertical/horizontal knee mill, 2 cold saws, TIG/MIG welders, toolmaker, surface grinder, flow bench, band saw, tire changer, tire balancer, vapor hone, chem tank, sand blaster, Quincy 2 stage compressor, along with all the normal small hand tool stuff. The Snap-On tool box is pretty full.

Often times I forget that that my job is actually pretty fn' awesome. Long hours, some stress, but ultimately, it's mine. The only payments I have is shop rent and $30/wk with Snappy. I generally spend 67+hr a week here (M-F 7-7, S 8-3), and usually am able to bill anywhere from 20-50hr. I am the receptionist, service writer, welder, mechanic, machinist, tuner, and cashier. Depending on the role, labor rates vary from $50 to $150/hr pending role.

[ForcedFirebird]

I took all those pics this morning. That's just what's here now. It's been a conveyor belt of cars for 15yr spread over 2 shops. Many cars get sold, and I meet the new owners years later. The red ix in the back has been coming here since 2011. One member here has been around since 2009 when I bought the first lift and rented a tiny bay.

2009



2011



2013



race license in 2014!



2016

[Panici]

Would you say that you're passionate about working on these projects?
If that's the case, curious what it's like to get paid for something that "brings you joy" so to speak.

I thought about being a mechanic, but I know I would hate doing oil changes and brake jobs all day.
Now if I could be a wrench for specifically interesting/vintage/high-performance rides that would be different. I don't regret my career choices, but always wonder what it would be like if I had chosen an alternate path.

[jbontke]

I thought about being a mechanic, but I know I would hate doing oil changes and brake jobs all day.
Now if I could be a wrench for specifically interesting/vintage/high-performance rides that would be different. I don't regret my career choices, but always wonder what it would be like if I had chosen an alternate path.

I haven't known anyone who started a venture without have to do the "unfun" stuff to get started. The big take-away is "get started". I have been wrenching on all facets of cars professionally and in my spare time for over 25 years. In my mid 20s I switched careers to software engineer. Looking back, I wish I would not have. But maybe my body is thankful. And now, I am trying to build a side job working with my automobile passion and "retire" into something enjoyable.

[ForcedFirebird]

Passionate? Yes and no. It has become a "job". You know, "old hat" status. Then I go through pics, or take a look around, and realize just how blessed I am. There's SO much stuff we worked on over the years that never even had a single photo snapped. In 2013 there was 2 techs, me and another office person to do sales/shipping etc.

I hate the title "mechanic" lol. The kids know to tell their friends "my dad owns a performance auto shop" ha

I was a journeyman mason from 1996-2004. Then started general contracting. Housing market went bust the same year my wife was diagnosed with cancer. She was at a chiropractor with back pain, he saw something weird in the x-ray. Malignant tumor on her kidney 3x the size of the actual kidney.

We were in dire straights, was doing car work in the home garage to make ends meet housing market went bust, so no contracts and wifey was in mortgages, got laid off. Wife's mom was living with us in Hospice, lymph cancer. She spotted me enough money to buy the flow bench and car lift, and I went head on. Was, still trying to make it as a GC, working at night at the shop or at the CNC factory to make ends meet, we had 4 children by then, three toddler. 2011 I went full time shop. Wife had the kidney removed in 2010, clean bill of health. 1.5yr ago, she was feeling ill and was rushed to the hospital. Doc called me before I could get there and asked if it was OK that they operated on her immediately. I asked to talk to her, we chatted, made our piece. When I finally talked to him on a break during the 6hr surgery to let me know WTF, turned out her small intestine got twisted and decided to reside where the kidney once was. Doc had to disembowel her completely, untangle the guts, and sew her back up. Near death 2x.

[ForcedFirebird]

I do oil changes, but there's few that will pay my price - so generally it's the return clients who won't let anyone else touch the car. It's $130 plus oil/filter. Most of the time it's LiquiMoly, so it's at least $20/qt.

[decay]

As long as you take everything with moderation, it all works out in the end. :)

ITBs and turbo K-swaps... yeah, "all things in moderation" lol :P

have you done a naturally-aspirated K-swap? i'm curious how that feels.

i'd be giving up the sewing-machine smoothness of the m54, which i do love, but the engine would be behind the shock towers and removes maybe what, 100lbs? i keep thinking about it because i've hunted low-mileage K24A2s out of t-boned cars for less than $2k- the swap parts from Ksport are more expensive than the engine itself.

with the rest of my usual weight-reduction approach i could have a Z3 down to maybe 2600lbs? i'm tempted.

[ForcedFirebird]

I didn't do the swap, just doing chassis/suspension stuffs.

Come to think about it, personally have only swapped BM to BM - although, put an LS1 and t56 in a w211 MB one time lol.

https://youtu.be/cuHg5WiS3nE?t=450

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y12guj_ECXc

[decay]

I didn't do the swap, just doing chassis/suspension stuffs.

Come to think about it, personally have only swapped BM to BM - although, put an LS1 and t56 in a w211 MB one time lol.

https://youtu.be/cuHg5WiS3nE?t=450

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y12guj_ECXc

my mother had a 190e 2.3 when i was growing up and i'm still pissed off at her for selling it before i turned 16 and it could be a hand-me-down

i cackled at the pass in your first video

no, jalopnik, the answer is not always miata

[ForcedFirebird]

no, jalopnik, the answer is not always miata

Unless you are me. I passed my own e30 when opening for the 14hr Sebring in 2015 in another dude's Miata (0:56 in vid lol)....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Ez-_tszYPo

[decay]

Unless you are me. I passed my own e30 when opening for the 14hr Sebring in 2015 in another dude's Miata (0:56 in vid lol)....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Ez-_tszYPo

ok that was a fun watch. so many classics i've loved. porsche 924, and i embarrased more than one mustang with a VW mk2 swapped to 16v with the close-ratio transmission the 8v engine came with.

that crown vic was a killer, though. i didn't think those cars could handle. must have had some good luck the couple times i ran from CHP way back when we were young and stupid *grin*

[It's Soda Not Pop]

The K swap is another idea that I've tossed around. But then I just don't feel right not using a BMW inline. It's awesome that you get to do what you love. Even if it does become a chore at times. Maybe one day you could host a Cars and Coffee type deal or a meet and greet and the ones from this forum that want to can make a pilgrimage.