All,
After starting my Spyder build with Special Edition and Carey Hines over 1 year ago, my car is complete! Carey sent me some wonderful photos - I am enclosing them with this message. I've got a few more, and I'll be sure to post those too.
This project was a moving target for me -- the more I learned about this amazing car, the more things I wanted to change to make it more original. I turned out to be everything I wanted, and I have Carey Hines to thank for that. The changes have been innumerable, and he never once got frustrated or angry with me. In fact, I called him with changes on several occasions, and I was almost embarrassed to ask -- but he was always happy to make them. Many of these changes, mind you, he did at no expense to me.
In the course of building the car, a few amazing things happened:
1) I wanted barberpole vinyl -- the kind that was available from SMS was black and red -- not plain red. I was unhappy with the color, though there was no other choice. 30 minutes later: a call from Carey. He'd ordered dye in 356 red to make the car the right color. We ended up needing more vinyl, so he dyed the vinyl again (he did it 3 times in total).
2) I decided I didn't want to use a speedster windshield and wanted the large holes patched on the sides of the cowl. Carey was happy to fix it -- but it meant blending the cowl. Carey being a perfectionist, he wouldn't just blend the paint -- he had to blend it, and then re-clear the entire car (which had already been reassembled and had to be disassembled).
3) The 16" wheels and tires I purchased didn't have adequate clearance. This required Carey to move the entire engine and chassis back a small amount (just like it is in a Type IV or Suby Beck) for adequate clearance. Once again, no sweat. Carey made the changes, assured me that he would make it right, thanked me for my patience. (NOTE: at this point, if I was Carey, I would have told the customer to jump off a cliff).
This build has been such a pleasure -- though it took a long time (and as you can see, I am the ONLY person to blame for that) -- the project has been one of my fondest memories. Working with Carey has been one of the most pleasurable customer service experiences I could ever have. I've stayed at posh hotels, eaten at fancy restaurants, and been to glitzy shows, but Carey sets the bar for how to treat a customer. It is as if you are the only customer that exists -- and for that, I am most impressed. In total, since the project started, I received 1193 photos of my build, and over 1200 emails with updates, etc.
I should also point out that there are several others who helped me, and continue to be very, very kind, gracious friends:
1) Greg Leach -- has given me lots of advice, support with registering my car and some fantastic parts like my gas cap, tonneau cover and plexi windscreen -- FANTASTIC stuff with incredible service when I needed things in a pinch! Greg, you are AWESOME man.
2) Russ at Fibersteel & Ingo Poth -- two fantastic guys for advice and some really wonderful parts. Ingo, I wish I could explain to my wife why I needed $400,000 for one of your cars -- but I think she would divorce me if I did!
3) Larry Jowdy -- where would the world be without Larry? Like Hemingway once said, "the world is good and worth fighting for." He must have met someone like Larry to make him say that. I've not met someone who is always so ready to help everyone and anyone. Larry, if you're reading this, know that you're APPRECIATED and are amazing! I'm gonna come visit you once I get this Spyder on the road!
4) Pat Downs -- Pat talked to me forever about all things VW. He gave me books to read, and was just a wonderful resource. I am so grateful to him for letting me watch him dyno test my motor and spend some time with him at CB performance.
Car Specs:
2160 cc Type I
Weber red line fuel pump
Setrab oil cooler
Original style 550 gauges from Palo Alto Speedometer
Original shift box by Ingo Poth, rod shifter by Carey Hines (the rod shifter was painful!)
Ranch Pro Street transmission with 3:88
E-Brake by Fibersteel
Original Pedals and firewall by Ingo Poth
Floating floor by Carey Hines
Single plexi, gas cap and Tonneau by Greg Leach
Original jack by Ingo Poth with customizing by Carey Hines
Aluminum firewall by Ingo Poth, installed and highly modified by Carey Hines
16" wheels by Chris Coddington.
Excelsior Stahl Sport tires from Coker Tire
Barberpole vinyl interior done by Carey Hines' upholsterer, Bill
Heated seats
Bosch Horns
I'm sure there will be many more posts and questions in the future about this car, but it has been such a pleasure to meet so many of you on this site -- I have not met a better group of guys that those on spyderclub and the SOC forums!
Cheers,
Anand
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