20 replies to this topic

[lordyoung1980]

As per the title, where are they all going? I have noticed in my area that all the specialists have all gone. After some digging I've gound out why. But no one seems to fill the void. Just wondering why that is? I know online ordering would kill off the parts side of things but in terms of work getting done for those not confident enough what happens then? Also the social side of things as it would be a hub for meet ups etc. has the scene matured enough that most of us are happy to tackle jobs on our cars? Whats going on in your part of the world in terms of local knowledge? Do you even miss them? I wasn't looking for work to be done but looking for parts and was surprised to see no one around catering to the need.

[mab01uk]

Same reason lots of local garage workshops, high street shops, pubs, etc have closed recently, (apart of course from all the Vape Shops, Turkish Barbers, Phone repair shops, Nail bars, etc). There are just not enough local customers with spare cash to spend to support & justify the high cost of overheads of running a small business with the current high business rates and taxes imposed by government, while still making a decent profit to pay the wages...

The other reason is many of the 'specialists' have retired or are near retirement age and few young people have an interest in going into such work as a career....governments have long neglected trades and apprenticeships, since Tony Blair decided to encourage all school leavers to go to University and get a degree instead....even if the degree subject would never lead to getting a worthwhile job to pay off the student loan debt at the end.

A friend of mine has just reduced the size of his garage workshop to reduce the rent overheads, due to a shortage of good skilled mechanics and work experience youngsters/ potential apprentices, a few did turn up for work for a couple of days and then went missing, never to be seen again...the work was just too hard and too dirty working on old cars..

Edited by mab01uk, 30 June 2026 - 10:42 PM.

[68+86auto]

Along with all the issues of finding employees or customers, the legal requirements keep growing.

There is a one-man carburettor business near me. It looks like he does good work. He has been planning to retire next year which was bad enough but this week, workplace health and safety turned up. Apparently someone nearby made a complaint and now he has to install an expensive exhaust fume extraction system to continue working (I do believe it is a good idea to do so). Because of this he is now thinking of closing down much sooner.

[68+86auto]

I do also have the belief that most of these classic car businesses haven't improved their businesses like they should. They are still doing things the way they did many decades ago and that way likely wasn't good then.

 

Some of this is because we are left with the mechanics who never changed from doing minis or other classics. They weren't necessarily good mechanics back then, they just never changed and became the only ones doing the job.

Edited by 68+86auto, 01 July 2026 - 12:53 AM.

[DeadSquare]

I'm dying out.

[mab01uk]

A good example below of how many small local UK businesses of all kinds are closing down for good, as it has just been announced my local bakery shop which employed several young people, is closing after 89 years of trading....perhaps we need a government whose members have actually run businesses and had jobs out in the real world...rather than 'career politicians' and civil servants who come straight from University, after studying politics or a similar related subject.

 

"Part of a small family run chain, Coughlans Bakery – which operates a chain of shops across Kent, Surrey, West Sussex and South London – announced it had ceased trading on Tuesday after it went into voluntary liquidation. Managing director Sean Coughlan blamed the closure on the government's decision to increase national insurance contributions for employers in April last year, along with high business rates. Posting on social media, he described the rates as having "absolutely smashed local business".

He said that the rises in taxes, wages and fuel prices were costing the businesses an additional £20,000 a week.
Alongside the rise in the employers’ National Insurance contributions, which first came into effect in April 2025, Mr Coughlan added that the recent increase in the minimum wage had piled further costs on to the business, combined with the spike in fuel prices following the conflict in the Middle East. Coughlan also said that the recent heatwaves, which saw the south east of England swelter in temperatures as high as 35C, had been the "nail in the coffin" for the firm.
He added that "no-one really seemed to come out" during the hot weather, leaving the business to make "about 50% of what we would normally take in a week", while all the outgoings remained "exactly the same"."It's heartbreaking," he added.
Coughlan said that the bakery went into voluntary liquidation in order to make sure it will still be able to pay suppliers and employees."

https://www.facebook...49097219955710/

 

Coughlans Bakery in liquidation after being ‘absolutely smashed’ by £20,000 rise in costs:-

https://archive.ph/xQgAZ

Edited by mab01uk, 01 July 2026 - 05:41 PM.

[mab01uk]

However it is not all doom and gloom! There are still quite a few Mini specialists around the UK, often with long waiting lists of customers, you just might not be lucky enough to have one in your local area.

eg.This months MiniWorld magazine (August 2026) has a review of 'The Real Mini Company' which seems to be very busy completing about 20 restorations a year, plus has a sizable waiting list of customer projects waiting to commence.

https://www.therealminicompany.com/

Edited by mab01uk, 01 July 2026 - 01:35 PM.

[lordyoung1980]

Funny enough I picked up that copy yesterday and had a read of it. Hadn't picked up mini world for a while now.

[Midas Mk1]

Quality work costs, and there’s a reluctance by many to pay for it.

I found this working at a british classic specialist last year, labour rate 1/3 of where I worked before there (and now back there), yet struggled with some customers.

Many vehicles would come in for one thing, having on the ramp and doing an inspection, you’d find a multitude of critical work, that wasn’t expected or budgeted for by the customer, many of which are a 3rd/4th car.

This then means cars hanging around for agessss, and momentum then lost by the owners.

Knock on effect of this slow turnover is then not investing in building, equipment (or on staff - yeah), in which then leads to classic experienced staff like myself to leave.

If I won the lottery i’d run my own classic workshop, for the love, not the money. That’s my experience to be honest.

I’m back enjoying my love / hobby now.

Edited by Midas Mk1, 01 July 2026 - 07:46 PM.

[Peter_NottinghamS]

However it is not all doom and gloom! There are still quite a few Mini specialists around the UK, often with long waiting lists of customers, you just might not be lucky enough to have one in your local area.
eg.This months MiniWorld magazine (August 2026) has a review of 'The Real Mini Company' which seems to be very busy completing about 20 restorations a year, plus has a sizable waiting list of customer projects waiting to commence.
https://www.therealminicompany.com/

The Real Mini Company is an excellent Mini specialist.

They took in Marvin (https://www.ukminis....oad-mini-marvin) as he was delivered as a dangerous non-runner and sorted out lots of issues for my son (who didn't have the skills and knowledge at the time.

Lovely people, friendly and knowledgeable and a workshop full of many projects being expertly worked on.

[Icey]

You can blame the government all you like but it’s likely got only a small part to play in it. If there was enough, profitable work the industry would expand to fill the demand.

Yes overheads (labour and energy being the most significant) will play a part in that but owning a classic car and paying for someone to work on it are luxury items, very few (I’d like to say none) would buy a Mini and expect to be able to pop it into a dealership for a quick oil change ‘like the old days’. You know you’re going to be paying a specialist and therefore would/should not be as sensitive to higher prices because you know you’re paying for rarefied skills.

That the number of people selling those skills is reducing suggests that something else is going on and my take is that it’s two-fold - first is that fewer people can afford to own/run a classic, and second, those that do do more work themselves.

There is a third factor that I would also consider - it’s an unreliable industry. Now owing a classic is a luxury it means it’s the first to get cut when times get tough. Building a career that could see you with years of lean times will not attract new talent, engineering is vastly undervalued in the UK.

[Spider]

We've lost 2 in the last year.

I don't think there's any singular reason for them disappearing.

The cars are not made anymore and there's no more legal ones hitting the road. Every year, there's always going to be lass around to need parts and repairs.

 

Without getting political, money does seem tighter these days, so I think people have less spare cash to splash around.

 

Many who own these shops are getting older, I don't see too many young ones starting up. As the cars are increasing in value and price, many younger ones simply can't afford to buy a Mini (or a Moke) in the first instance.

 

One of our biggest parts suppliers is likely shutting up due to retirement in the next couple of months. The owner has been trying to sell the business and while they started a long time ago just in Mini parts, they did branch out in to other marques back around 2000, they are the largest supplier of Land and Range Rover Parts in the country.

Another that has pulled back was due to his health, though he closed his shop, he is still doing a few bits from Home now his health has improved.

[nicklouse]

Most of the ones I knew are dead. Or their kids are playing with different cars or were ,

making more money in the city.

 

the only ones that are still going are the ones that became more than one man operations.

 

there are a number of specialists about that I don’t expect to last long. And by that I mean into a second generation.

[bpirie1000]

I would also suggest that a contributing factor is the fact that a higher number of minis these days are now MOT exempt. The yearly nervous trip to the mechanic now being optional and for residual value if it were to be sold. 

 

Lack of guidance in the mechanical field, people just deciding to just keep the car going and less concerned with the actual road worthiness of the car. 

 

I see several old classic that appear to have more filler than a halfords store in them that are tax exempt and very rough...to say the least....

[Retro_10s]

I do also have the belief that most of these classic car businesses haven't improved their businesses like they should. They are still doing things the way they did many decades ago and that way likely wasn't good then.

 

Some of this is because we are left with the mechanics who never changed from doing minis or other classics. They weren't necessarily good mechanics back then, they just never changed and became the only ones doing the job.

 

This is a very good point,.. for quite a while i was a commercial spares delivery driver, and went to quite a few businesses that were doing restorations on classic cars, trucks, etc. Most were old garages, using dangerous pits, poor lighting, run by guys that can't get in and out of cars anymore and keep all their orders written on little bits of paper, licking pencils before writing, A sad looking PC in the corner running XP. 

 

These places are wonderful to look around, but so stuck in the past that it's cheaper to call it a day than to drag them into the future. 

 

There are still new businesses opening up doing classics maintenance and such, but they're far and few between.