#1987 el camino full#

The exterior was weather-beaten, and the owner had used it freely as a pickup truck, so the box was full of dings and dents. It was in Arizona that Weitzel found an ideal project to work on with Jeff: a single-owner, two-toned 1987 El Camino. вЂњAnd if somebody mentions the golf course, IвЂ™m gone.вЂќД«ut as Jim and his wife, Karen, spend winters in Arizona, the retired body man looks for restoration projects to work on back home. вЂњI donвЂ™t have the drive I used to have,вЂќ he says. Now, Jim Weitzel says, heвЂ™s content to restore about one car a year, depending on the work involved. I donвЂ™t know how those guys bring their cars and just walk away.вЂќ START OF A FAMILY AFFAIRДЄs an 8-year-old hanging out at a body shop near his home in a Minneapolis suburb, the elder Weitzel figures the owner вЂњgot tired of tripping over meвЂќ and put him to work before long he had built his first car, a 1951 Ford, before he was old enough to drive it. вЂњI could never-I would be standing there watching my car the whole time. вЂњI went to and watched all those people who are just clueless вЂ¦ One guy was carrying his kid, and the kid was rubbing his feet on the car!вЂќ he recalls with palpable horror.

Son Jeff Weitzel, who took over Bodywerks when his father retired, feels the same way about a fine restoration. She lost it before she ever got to sit in it,вЂќ Weitzel says. He originally intended for it to be his wifeвЂ™s car, but he soon realized that вЂњit was too nice for a grocery store parking lot. Retired four or five years now from Bodywerks, the Elko, Minn., collision repair shop he started some 40 years ago, Jim Weitzel has a vintage green, 1969 Mercedes-Benz 280 SL. And, although each drives a classic car worthy of awards for its pristine condition, you wonвЂ™t find them showing off their rides unless they can be absolutely sure theyвЂ™ll be admired from afar. Lots of things run in the family when it comes to one father and son from the Midwest, including an interest in fixing all kinds of collision damage and restoring old vehicles to their former splendor.

1987 el camino