Steve
Member
Last November I finally took the plunge and picked up a 1964 Amphicar. Something I'd been wishing to do for many years. When I saw this car and did a quick look around, I was sold. However, as is with most old things, a closer look reveals previously unseen issues.
I finally found a break in my schedule back in May to accept an invitaion from Gord Souter to bring my car up to Orillia for look. The old girl was running rough and the front brakes were dragging but I managed to back it off the trailer and limp it into the shop. What was expected to be a day and a half of work turned into 3 and a half days of very concetrated effort. Even at that, I left before we had a good sense that everything had been taken care of. Lucky for me, Gord and Joanne invited me into their home and even kept me fed throughout the whole ordeal. We replaced many warn and broken pieces during that time. I lost track of the times we went down to the basement for something else. After the second unscheduled day off work, I loaded the now smoothly running car with new brake lines and wheel cylinders on the trailer and headed back toward Ottawa. The next week, I drove it to the garage expecting to pass a road worthiness inspection without issues. The next day the mechanic said he didn't like the look of the 2 front wheel cylinders that we didn't change and said that there was oil leaking out of the left rear driveshaft. I mentioned it to Gord and he wasn't long getting in his car with Ray and driving the 5 hours one way with his doctor's bag and some new parts to fix the seal for free. I rebuilt the 2 wheel cylinders and sent the car back for another round of poking and proding but I'm still waiting for the vedict. I just wanted to take a minute to write this out so that those of you who don't know Gord well, will know what this guy is willing to do for the Amphicar community.
1. He invited me, a stranger, to stay with him in his home.
2. He has a wealth of Amphicar knowledge and will share it freely.
3. He never gets phased when things don't work out as planned.
4. He loves his tunes.
5. and most importantly, he stands behind his work.
Those who do know him, will know what I mean.
I've dealt with many small shops who don't want to know you after they've been paid. Canadian Amphicars is certainly not one of them. Thanks Gord. I'm years ahead of where I would have been without you.
Steve
I finally found a break in my schedule back in May to accept an invitaion from Gord Souter to bring my car up to Orillia for look. The old girl was running rough and the front brakes were dragging but I managed to back it off the trailer and limp it into the shop. What was expected to be a day and a half of work turned into 3 and a half days of very concetrated effort. Even at that, I left before we had a good sense that everything had been taken care of. Lucky for me, Gord and Joanne invited me into their home and even kept me fed throughout the whole ordeal. We replaced many warn and broken pieces during that time. I lost track of the times we went down to the basement for something else. After the second unscheduled day off work, I loaded the now smoothly running car with new brake lines and wheel cylinders on the trailer and headed back toward Ottawa. The next week, I drove it to the garage expecting to pass a road worthiness inspection without issues. The next day the mechanic said he didn't like the look of the 2 front wheel cylinders that we didn't change and said that there was oil leaking out of the left rear driveshaft. I mentioned it to Gord and he wasn't long getting in his car with Ray and driving the 5 hours one way with his doctor's bag and some new parts to fix the seal for free. I rebuilt the 2 wheel cylinders and sent the car back for another round of poking and proding but I'm still waiting for the vedict. I just wanted to take a minute to write this out so that those of you who don't know Gord well, will know what this guy is willing to do for the Amphicar community.
1. He invited me, a stranger, to stay with him in his home.
2. He has a wealth of Amphicar knowledge and will share it freely.
3. He never gets phased when things don't work out as planned.
4. He loves his tunes.
5. and most importantly, he stands behind his work.
Those who do know him, will know what I mean.
I've dealt with many small shops who don't want to know you after they've been paid. Canadian Amphicars is certainly not one of them. Thanks Gord. I'm years ahead of where I would have been without you.
Steve
