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October 2023 by Greg
Cecil has done an outstanding job doing some major service work on my XKE. The car has never run better. He took the time to explain everything carefully and was a pleasure to work with. I am definitely a satisfied customer.
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May 2023 by greg fasick
Just purchased a 1965 Tr4 with a rebuilt engine that had issues. Cecil found and fixed numerous items with the engine and had it running fantastic when I picked it up. His team is very experienced and great to work with! They even did some body work on the car! Highly recommended!
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October 2022 by Robert
Couldn’t answer one question without cutting me off. Rude.
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January 2021 by Wicca Davidson
Cecil has done everything needed to help me get used to my Morris Minor Traveller 1000, from rescuing me from the corner of Conn Ave and East-West Highway, to making a "house call" to help me get the car started.He is very knowledgeable and has been very kind to me.Cecil is a great guy, but doesn't suffer fools happily. Lucky for me he ignores when I am one. Oh yes. He knows the car inside and out and it is running great. If I am doing something incorrectly, or need help understanding - Cecil will take the time to sort things out.The Morris Minor is running well.
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August 2020 by Paul Garver
I met Charles (Cecil) three years ago when I purchased a car that I wanted since I was 14 years old, a Triumph TR6. Charles reviewed the car and provided me with an honest assessment of the vehicle and we began a multi-year partnership to restore the car. Together we systematically worked on phases of repairing and enhancing the performance and reliability of the vehicle. I trust him implicitly and have always found him to not only be a true expert and professional but someone I truly enjoy visiting with him at his shop and seeing the various projects in process. He has educated me thought the process and continually presents me with the facts and options necessary to make decisions regarding improvements to the car. After three years I believe I now have an excellent example of a restored TR6 that is a blast to drive that turns every head and produces a broad smile on my face. Charles is the only one I trust with my prize and would highly recommend him to anyone looking to pursue their passion and dream of owning a British classic automobile.
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July 2019 by Peter Dattels
I have a 1967 Morgan Plus 4. I had been trying to sort out a problem of intermittent hesitation that had plagued the car and no one could seem to find the problem. Cecil took the car and carefully went through a thorough diagnostic. He consulted with others and solved the problem, tuned the car, made other enhancements to assure fuel flow, and it has never run better. What I like about Cecil is that he does not give up or take short cuts. He may want your car for some time, but when completed you will be happy and it is money well spent...especially where reliability is always a concern for classics.
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April 2019 by Lyle F.
Cecil knows vintage and classic British cars and knows how to get them to run properly. He was trained by BL in the proper way and can accurately diagnose problems and provide fair estimates. He has worked on my 1970 XKE, 66 Sunbeam Tiger and 1960 Triumph TR3. Good shop and hard to find.
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October 2018 by Jonathan Lopez
I found Cecil accidentally and I am so glad I did. I whole-heartedly recommend Cecil - he is a dedicated mechanic who goes the extra mile to make sure the job is down right, even if it means spending a great deal of time he did not intend to (and did not charge for) to make it work. My TR6 had been in a front-end accident and required substantial body work to get back into shape. So much work that it could not even drive. I cold-called Cecil about my issue and he came to my house on his way home from work not once, but three times (once with his body man) to give an inspection and an estimate. This was all at his suggestion. The price he quoted was more than fair and he honored the price when the work was finished, even though I know he spent much more time on the car than he intended. The car looked absolutely beautiful. In addition to getting the car back on the road, he also then spent considerable time (all at very reasonable prices) to get the car running smoothly and - even able to pass a DC smog test. Cecil is a man of his word and is extremely knowledgeable, I do not think you can ask for more than that in a mechanic.
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March 2018 by David Curtin
Cecil got my Spitfire back on the road! I could not figure out why the car would not start and run again. Cecil diagnosed and fixed the issue. He is a wealth of knowledge and I am so grateful that I found him. He showed me step by step what went into the repair and I felt he gave me a fair price for the work. Guys like this are hard to come by these days. If ever my beloved Spitfire is feeling under the weather, I will be taking it to Cecil.
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February 2018 by John Nelson
Perfect restoration
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February 2017 by Michael Oldak
Old school mechanic who really knows classic British cars
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January 2017 by Craig Roberts
Craig Roberts Your review will be posted publicly on the web. Learn more My experience with British Classic Restoration has been exemplary. The first service I contracted Cecil Barrett to perform on my 1970 MGB Roadster was a simple tire change. Easy enough? Actually, no. Y'see, my LBC (Little British Car) is equipped with Dunlop wire wheels and mounting tires on them properly and damage free requires unusual skill and largely forgotten technique. Chances are, your local tire shop will have no one on staff who has the requisite knowledge, experience and equipment needed to do the job properly. Thankfully, the huge tire dealer just up the street from Cecil's garage was acutely aware of their own lack of expertise in this area, while happy to sell the needed tires, kindly and honestly recommended I seek a specialist like Cecil to mount them correctly. And, he did. From the outset -- both in job performance and passing on of his impressive knowledge -- Cecil has continually inspired confidence. As he states himself, this master British Leyland trained technician seeks to diagnose a problem or fault accurately and fully then resolve it at what an electronics engineer would call "component level." For instance, I returned recently to British Classic Restoration as my MGB that had been exhibiting (to use a highly technical term) a back end "clunk." The popular approach to eliminating this annoyance -- which, left untreated, can lead eventually to catastrophic failure of the car's rear end -- is to simply replace the differential's thrust washers "in situ". Sure, in some cases this economical repair may do the trick and ofttimes mitigates the symptom. But, as Cecil demonstrated to me, replacement of superficial components often merely masks an underlying and potentially serious cause of trouble. Because he is thorough and proudly dedicated to keeping our classics trouble free and on the road in the long term, my favorite LBC mechanic removed the differential, disassembled it and discovered -- as he suspected all along -- worn axle splines (He wasn't kidding. I saw them). On his advice, I then obtained the proper new parts for Cecil's rebuild of the car's rear end. Yes, it was more expensive than a relatively quick n' easy thrust washer replacement, but I now drive a little old MGB with lovely, smooth mechanical shifting and speed changes that I know is not in the process of self destruction. I trust Cecil implicitly. If he told me my carbs or distributor or engine or gearbox (or differential) was in need of attention, even if the device had been supposedly serviced or rebuilt by someone else a week earlier, I would confidently entrust the job to Mr Barrett.
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October 2016 by d ingram
II purchased a 1967 Jaguar that I wanted British Classic Restoration to look over as the car was overheating. Per Cecil or Charles (as he's given me 2 names) the car has a a bad radiator and all the hoses are bad in the car. He quoted me $1000 to rebuild a radiator and hoses ( and many places are telling me that's a big no no). He also informed me the Carburetors are bad. Another almost $900. Then I was told the heating valve had been bypassed and that I would have no heat in the car in addition to other minor issues as well. More$$$ The dealer I purchased the car from promised me that the Carburetors had been rebuilt. I also asked this Cecil what was causing the leak or overheating. After going back and forth about he finally said one of the hoses is leaking. I needed a second opinion so I had the car towed to my regular mechanic so that he could look over and store the car until I am ready to get work done.......and he informed me that the Carburetors in fact had been rebuilt and are ok. Also that the radiator appears to be ok and that a hose is leaking but the set of hoses are only $150 for the car plus an hour or two of labor. Also that the valve that was bypassed will not effect my heat in the winter as it will affect the heat not being able to turned off in the summer per say. I brought my car British Classic Restoration because Mr. Cecil sounded very knowledgeable and appeared to be very friendly. But it seems very untrustworthy. After telling him I was having it towed until I am ready to do any work and I am having some financial problems to spend that much at the moment......he asked the driver where the car is heading to; and after being informed another shop he calls me with an attitude and hangs up. This was not at all professional. Maybe he does good work , and maybe he was looking to get me to fully restore the vehicle instead of just getting it running. But bottom line is I DON'T TRUST THIS SHOP after hearing about the Carburetors and getting a totally different second opinion from someone I have trusted for years. 1 STAR IS FOR HIS AVAILABILITY AND FOR HIM TAKING THE TIME TO LOOK AT THE CAR..... THAT'S IT
