[DAVES]

Originally Posted by dadspet

WOW WOW I wasn't going to respond to this and perhaps I shouldn't but I couldn't let it just pass by without some clarifications that are not clearly relative to my post!

The 71 XKE Jag car was purchased in 1975 and I actually did most of the work required on the car as a hobby that didn't require heavy lifting. That included: repainting the car myself, rebuilding and sync 4 carburetors, replacing the electronic ignition and more replacing of trim/rubber than I care to mention along with a lot of polishing after working probably 50 to 60 hrs / week and Saturdays for a very technical company along with raising 3 children.
Believe me when I say after aging 47 years I physically cant do the things I could do 47 years ago-I wish I could. But besides that why would I want to try and put the car back together (put heavy doors back, all window glass, all the chrome parts, gas tank, all the rubber molding, seats, side panel trim, rugs and underlayment, wiring harness to front and back lights) When the shop took it apart and was supposed to put it back together as part of the original estimate. I got to believe anyone would expect their car to be put back together in the same way it went into the shop and not returned unassembled in several pieces with boxes of parts, especially to someone over 80. This doesn't seem really hard to understand!

To answer a few other previous points brought up.

This is not a small fly by night shop. They are a large certified body shop for at least 10 manufactures and very busy. The work required to do a car like mine far exceeds the average collusion insurance job he easily can do in a day or 2. He has told me he will not do anymore classic restorations since they just take too much work and has told a few cars he already had in his shop but not started he will no longer do these types of cars and take them someplace else. If you have a modern car he is certified in I got a feeling you will be very happy with the shop and if you don't and he sticks with his story he isn't going to take in you car.

The work/paint job they have done so far is beautiful and recently he has sent me photos of the work progression toward putting it back together which left me very hopeful that after my last visit a week ago he has perhaps got more serious and will complete it far enough to take to the upholstery shop. I do believe the completed car will be great and I have been trying to understand his problems (covid, hiring qualified, injury's, trying to do a really good job requiring much more time than insurance jobs, others in shop need their car back since its their only car and they have a rental) Keeping my fingers/toes crossed and trying to keep a good relationship with the shop --but running out of patients.

Far more information here than in original post. This site is in many cases a gossip line. My mother and sister used to read Ann Landers and her sister, can't recall her name. My advice, realize as in Ann Landers people offer advice. In the end you must decide what to do. Should it go bad. Should it cost you money advice givers may say sorry to hear that.

"Trying to keep a good relationship with the shop," I was trying to help. Original post asks for an attorney. Putting pieces together. You feel it has become necessary to calling an attorney on them. Plus the fact that they don't want, any longer to work on older cars. There is no relationship to save