Recommendation for Good Autobody Shop In NW NJ or NE PA

Looking to get one of my cars repainted and haven't had good luck with a couple of the previous autobody shops I used. A shop who can deliver what they promise and not make excuses for poor workmanship or overinflated hours billed. Can someone recommend a good shop in Northwest NJ or Northeast Pennsylvania?

Kohrs Kustoms

https://m.facebook.com/pages/category/Automotive-Customization-Shop/Kohrs-Kustoms-162234830471187/

I am looking also but need it to be closer to MD.

John,
I gave them a call but had to leave a message. Your pretty far from Kohrs. Did you have a car painted there?

http://supercarrestorations.com/

He is worth the drive, trust me.
IF he has the space to take on another one depending on your time frame

GTX - I visited their website and it looks like they do good work but it really is far from me. I want to be able to keep an eye on the progress and my schedule will not permit me to do the 8 hour round trip drive.

I understand completely.

I will say Ive know Holgar for quite a while and trust him completely
IF , by chance IF my car ever gets hurt or needs serious repairs . I will seriously consider sending it to him with out fear it is done right and to my standards. And Im 2500 miles away

Huffman Auto Body in west Pa. is exceptional. Contact David Huffman on FB
Ron

Thanks Ron,
I'm looking for a shop in East PA though. Huffman is over 5 hours away.

r

No, but i have admired cars Dennis Kohr has done over the last fifteen years.

My car was done in Illinois by Troy Angelly.

The shop that did the Superbird is in Quakertown PA. If that's a reasonable distance I can shoot you the contact info.
text/call me if you want

I'd be interested in that info - I'm about 10 miles from Qtown.

At the moment, my RC is at Lindley Motors in Sanatoga PA. Part of what sold me on this place is the paint job on his personal vehicles. Ya know, body guys generally shoot they're own stuff with whatever is laying around and don't get retentive about it. First pic was a color test, currently working on pre-painting the panels.

Yeah he is about 7 hours for me but next car I need paint for is going there.
Holgur and Dennis are excellent also as stated by others.
Ron

Hey Frank, nice meeting you at Carlisle last summer. If you recall I was asking about this subject then too- I'm in the same boat, about ready to finally paint the R/T SE you once owned. I know you mentioned Hodge in South Carolina, I have a brother that now lives about 45 mins from there so that may be an option for me. Seems like everyone in NJ sends their cars out of state, but I really don't want to do that either if I can help it. One place you might want to at least inquire with is Ida Automotive in Morganville NJ. I saw the custom Challenger he built when it appeared at one of the local shows and the paint on it is really nice. Following along to see what else may turn up. You'd think there would be more options in the eastern PA or even southern NJ area, or lower NY state - I saw a shop on facebook that apparently does a lot of Mopars - has a couple of Cudas currently - somewhere along the Hudson River but I forget the name right now.

https://www.robidaconcepts.com/custom-vehicles
http://www.idaautomotive.com/showcarshotrods.html

I think most people on this board have been through the same headache as you. It's not easy dealing with restoration shops regardless if they are close or not. I'm in the NYC metro area ( Staten Island). I understand your concern of "being close " to keep an eye out so to speak. The bottom line is if you find the right shop, communication is the key. I've used 3 different shops in the past all considered " Higher end - well known" etc. All the shops did excellent work, and all are expensive!!! but the main difference was how they communicated with me. I think it boils down to " "transparency ", making sure the shop gives you weekly updates, in writing and with pictures of the work. I know it's not close to you but I have a current restoration going on at Mike Mancini's American Muscle car restoration in Kingston, Rhode Island. Albeit very far from you ( and me) but hands down this has been the best shop I've ever dealt with. Quality is exceptional, but more importantly is his weekly updates and communication with me. Just my 2 cents.

I'm trying to remember how long ago you bought the RT/SE. Seems like 25 years or more. Hopefully we can both find a shop that we can be happy with.

X2

Another X2

I had to stop and think - yup I actually bought the car back in 1990 or 1991! It was listed in the local paper and was only a couple of towns over from me. I bought it off of Bob G, I guess he raced a lot at Englishtown. He never titled the car, it was still under your name. I kind of rat-rodded it and drove it around for a while, around 2005 or 6 pulled it apart and sent it to a shop that had popped up close to home and then closed a few years later. I was estimated to have a painted shell for $X, but at X + 50% I was still only in primer- I had to pull the car. Life got very busy afterwards and it's sat on the back burner since. In hindsight I should have sucked it up and just saw it through, lesson learned. It's only going to cost (a lot) more now. But ready to take it the rest of the way. The engine is at a machine shop for rebuild, I've been told everything checks out, has a lot of miles on it but no issues so that's good to hear. Have collected a lot of really nice parts for it.

Kohr's finally got back to me and said that they might have a spot 2 years out. I was hoping for something this summer. The other shops mentioned in prior posts are just too far away for my comfort. Can anyone else make a recommendation?

Time sure does fly. Can't believe it's been 30 years. Your car will look stunning in EV2 with a black top.

Thats going to be the problem.

Anyone one who is Good and will actually work on it / finish it within a reasonable time frame is going to have a wait list

GTX - You are probably right. I'm on the list just in case they get a cancellation. But still looking for something sooner

I've seen two cars ( only online in pictures) that are coming out of RMJ in williamsport pa. that look excellent, would that location work for you?
Ron

Ron, thats about 2 hours 15 minutes. Better than 5 hours. I will call them tomorrow and find out what their backlog is.

"Good" is a very relative term. Stan's B & S Auto in Scranton, PA, can do "good" work at reasonable rates. The owner is a big Mopar guy and their turn around times are decent. If you want a nice car that will still get driven I'd consider them, and like anything else you'll get better results if you are really specific about what you expect upfront. They do a lot of late model wrecks but also had several cars come through that were winning awards at Carlisle in the 90s so it's all in what you ask for.

https://www.facebook.com/Speedosautobody/

Staatsburg NY. Probably too far.

He does good work, fair prices, but a long turnaround time.

Scranton is a little over an hour. Very doable. That's the plan - very nice driver but still a driver...

2 hours - 15 minutes. A bit far for my comfort level but thanks for the recommendation.

Last time I was down there he had a 66/67 B-body in the shop that he had painted (beautiful) and a sad mouth Challenger that was getting metaled out. Both would give you an idea of the kind of work they can turn out if they are still there. The Challenger was a rot box when they started on it.

Speedo's - that's the one I was thinking of.

he has a 69 charger in there now he is doing.. looks incredible...


http://www.midatlanticmusclecar.com/




.

I stoke with Stan at Stan's B & S Auto in Scranton, PA and was impressed. He essentially said the car would be straight as an arrow when done, and could get me in the shop late May. He also said I could save a bundle if I strip the car down so he can focus on just body and paint. Another important tidbit is that they only work on 1 car at a time. Family business with long time employees. Stan actually seemed excited to get a '71 Hemi RR in his shop.

Thanks to all for posting

Stan,aka "Stas" is a hack. Look at that green 70 Dart he did a few years ago., the fender /hood alignment is so bad you can see the engine through the gap . The 70 'cuda he did had repro 1/4's hung in it and the body line is flat along the sides. As far as winning awards at Carlisle here's how that works: One guy from the Pennsylvania Pentastars goes around with his ballot and picks cars from the club and then they all sit around and mark their ballots the same. Don't ask me how I know!

Again, I would recommend checking out their work in person as everyone has different expectations. The Challenger is his son's and should still be in the shop. It was in primer last time I saw it and you can get a good look at the quality of their metal work. The paint work on the Coronet is beautiful. The shop does late model wrecks and low budget jobs as well as nice restorations. He's not Roger Gibson but I have seen him turn out some great work over the years.

I should also say that I have no connection with the shop. My cousin had a place nearby so I would have an opportunity to check out what they were working on from time to time. They are the only Mopar shop locally and I have never heard any complaints. I am not a "club" guy and that has nothing to do with it on my end. My Barracuda will need some paint work later this year and that's where I was going to take it, assuming he could fit me in.

Looks like mixed reviews on Stan's work. Is there someone on the board who has actually had their car painted there?

He painted an FJ5 Superbird a few years ago. Those guys are pretty close-knit, I imagine someone here must know the owner. Pretty sure it was a 440 car.