A
amphiguru
Guest
Dear Amphicar Owners,
With some restorations now approaching $100,000, there is increasing
pressure for a very detailed assembly guide listing everything from
the correct weld spots on the body to the precise size and color of
every nut and bolt. While we could easily reference our Amphicar
prototype in the back corner of our warehouse, we have learned that
the Amphicar is not owned as a piece of passive art. Yes, you could
enjoy the vista of your "spot-on perfect" Corvette on top of your
living room fireplace mantle. However, the Amphicar's lure is in
what it does, not what it looks like. Perhaps in the future,
Amphicar may enter passive art status. But for now, we salivate
every time we slide down the boat ramp.
I thought, in retirement, I might publish such a guide. But
retirement never seems to happen. There is so much to do for
Amphicar. It takes all my time trying to find parts at reasonable
prices for all Amphicar owners. Reasonable is really the key. It
is a simple matter to present a new Amphicar part as a "boutique
part". (Boutique is an extremely expensive item which serves only a
few owners.) Here are examples of boutique parts available today:
Front bumpers $650.00
Shock absorbers 260.00
Sun visors 172.00
Glove boxes 75.00
Choke cables 75.00
Hand throttle cable 120.00
Assorted mouldings 40.00 to 70.00
Here are other boutique parts:
Ten Years Ago Same
Parts Today
Rear bumpers 500.00
155.00
Amphicar script 200.00
90.00
Triangle hood emblem 170.00
99.00
Wheel cylinders 150.00
80.00
Inside mirrors 130.00
40.00
Convertible tops 500.00
300.00
Clutch release bearings 35.00
16.00
Last week we introduced the original design radiator mount for only
about $9.00 each.
Here is the delicate balance we run into in finding parts. If we or
another vendor make a boutique part, and it is not superseded with a
high volume, low priced part, then sooner or later it will be too
late to introduce the low priced parts. At that critical point, the
boutique priced part becomes the "normal price", but it excludes 75%
to 80% of the Amphicar owners from even being able to afford the
boutique item.
As you can see, all of our time is spent in the hunt for truly
affordable Amphicar parts. Therefore, creating an originality guide
for Amphicar restoration isn't in our immediate plans.
Over the next few months, we will introduce more replacements for
this boutique trend. Other new items will be introduced before they
go boutique. Amphicar owners, we are not necessarily against
boutique priced parts. They at least keep some Amphicars on the
water. We would like to see 200 cars at Celina, not the 50 to 80 we
see now. Reality tells us that boutique parts will probably
proliferate the market as Amphicar values continues to climb into
the stratosphere.
We, at Gordon Imports, Inc., are committed to supplying parts so
that every last Amphicar may again swim.
Hugh Gordon
With some restorations now approaching $100,000, there is increasing
pressure for a very detailed assembly guide listing everything from
the correct weld spots on the body to the precise size and color of
every nut and bolt. While we could easily reference our Amphicar
prototype in the back corner of our warehouse, we have learned that
the Amphicar is not owned as a piece of passive art. Yes, you could
enjoy the vista of your "spot-on perfect" Corvette on top of your
living room fireplace mantle. However, the Amphicar's lure is in
what it does, not what it looks like. Perhaps in the future,
Amphicar may enter passive art status. But for now, we salivate
every time we slide down the boat ramp.
I thought, in retirement, I might publish such a guide. But
retirement never seems to happen. There is so much to do for
Amphicar. It takes all my time trying to find parts at reasonable
prices for all Amphicar owners. Reasonable is really the key. It
is a simple matter to present a new Amphicar part as a "boutique
part". (Boutique is an extremely expensive item which serves only a
few owners.) Here are examples of boutique parts available today:
Front bumpers $650.00
Shock absorbers 260.00
Sun visors 172.00
Glove boxes 75.00
Choke cables 75.00
Hand throttle cable 120.00
Assorted mouldings 40.00 to 70.00
Here are other boutique parts:
Ten Years Ago Same
Parts Today
Rear bumpers 500.00
155.00
Amphicar script 200.00
90.00
Triangle hood emblem 170.00
99.00
Wheel cylinders 150.00
80.00
Inside mirrors 130.00
40.00
Convertible tops 500.00
300.00
Clutch release bearings 35.00
16.00
Last week we introduced the original design radiator mount for only
about $9.00 each.
Here is the delicate balance we run into in finding parts. If we or
another vendor make a boutique part, and it is not superseded with a
high volume, low priced part, then sooner or later it will be too
late to introduce the low priced parts. At that critical point, the
boutique priced part becomes the "normal price", but it excludes 75%
to 80% of the Amphicar owners from even being able to afford the
boutique item.
As you can see, all of our time is spent in the hunt for truly
affordable Amphicar parts. Therefore, creating an originality guide
for Amphicar restoration isn't in our immediate plans.
Over the next few months, we will introduce more replacements for
this boutique trend. Other new items will be introduced before they
go boutique. Amphicar owners, we are not necessarily against
boutique priced parts. They at least keep some Amphicars on the
water. We would like to see 200 cars at Celina, not the 50 to 80 we
see now. Reality tells us that boutique parts will probably
proliferate the market as Amphicar values continues to climb into
the stratosphere.
We, at Gordon Imports, Inc., are committed to supplying parts so
that every last Amphicar may again swim.
Hugh Gordon
