daimler specialist suffolk

Coming Soon – 1968 Daimler 250 Arrives at The Hangar

The Bridge Classic Cars secure storage facility, The Hangar, has welcomed a new resident recently – this 1968 Daimler 250.

The car has arrived to wait its turn for the team to completely and thoroughly inspect it at our Pettistree workshops deep in the Suffolk countryside.

New Metal – Repairing the Drivers Rear Wheel Arch on the 1986 Daimler DS420

The fabrication team at the Bridge Classic Cars Suffolk HQ have been busy working on repairing the inner and outer wheel arch on the 1986 Daimler DS420.

The team have uncovered areas of heavy corrosion in the lower parts of the classic Daimler. These are being systematically cut out of the car and replaced with new handmade patch panels, including the rear arches.

The team have thoroughly inspected any areas of corrosion and removed any affected material to bring it back to clean, strong metal to work from. From there, the team have made up the individual pieces needed to recreate the missing parts. Each of these is then carefully tacked into place to avoid warping certain areas and then finish welded.

Complete – The 1987 Daimler Double Six is Finished

The restoration teams at Bridge Classic Cars have finished the restoration of the 1987 Daimler Double Six so it was time to take some final photos of the car before it is safely put into storage.

The Double Six has been through every department at our Suffolk HQ, from being carefully dismantled by the workshop team and then handed over to our fabrication shop to repair some issues with the bodywork. Next, our paint and body team took over the project to get every piece and panel into perfect shape before repainted and polished.

Then once all the panels had been painted and aligned back onto the car, it could be given back to the workshop for our restoration technicians and trim shop to work on the car. Piece by piece the classic Daimler was put back together and fitted-out working towards its completion.

With everything finally finished, the car was fully valeted and taken over to our secure storage facility, The Hangar, where it will be stored for its owner.

Update – New Console Plugs and Alarm Sensor Removal on the 1987 Daimler Double Six

The 1987 Daimler Double Six is having the last few pieces of its interior refit finished by the Bridge Classic Cars in-house trim shop.

The first task was for the team to retrim the centre console plugs of the classic Daimler. After being covered they were installed into the centre console of the car before the team could move onto the next job.

In the rear window, on the parcel shelf, is an alarm sensor for the car. This trim shop carefully removed the sensor from the parcel shelf before recovering the area with a capping.

Refinished – 1987 Daimler Double Six Parts in Satin Black

The Bridge Classic Cars in-house paint shop have been working on refinishing some of the final pieces for the 1987 Daimler Double.

Various brackets, panels and the fan shroud have all been stripped, cleaned and prepared before being taken into our paint booth/oven to be finished in Satin Black for the project.

Once these have completely cured, the workshop team can begin getting them fit back onto the classic Daimler in with us for restoration.

Under the Surface – Stripping the Doors of the 1986 Daimler DS420

The doors on the 1986 Daimler DS420 have been stripped back by the paint and body team in preparation to be handed over to the Bridge Classic Cars fabrication team.

The doors had to be stripped back in certain areas in order for the team to assess the corrosion in each piece and come up with a repair plan for the doors.

There are a few areas which will need significant repairs by the fabrication team so keep an eye on the Bridge Classic Cars news page for more updates very soon.

Coming Back Together – Reassembly of the 1987 Daimler Double Six Begins

The restoration workshop at Bridge Classic Cars have begun the process of reassembling the 1987 Daimler Double Six following its time with our paint and body team.

The team began by getting the sunroof panel installed into the mechanism to be able to fit back into the roof of the Daimler so the trim team can come to help with the trim panels that surround it.

After the sunroof was back in the car, the team moved on to getting the sill plate mounted into the car and test fitting the polished plates onto the car.

Cut & Polish – Finishing Work on the Panels of the 1987 Daimler Double Six

The paint and body team at Bridge Classic Cars have been working on the final stages of the paint journey on the 1987 Daimler Double Six’s panels.

The team have gently cut back the paint and clear-coat on the panels with finer and finer abrasives in order to create a uniform finish for the pieces. Then, they can be machine polished and buffed to a mirror finish.

Taken Apart – Stripping Back the 1986 Daimler DS420

With the workshop team focusing their attention on the teardown of the 1986 Daimler DS420, the team have begun the process of stripping down the internals of the doors and the wiring in the classic Daimler.

The team began by removing the lights and trims of the car so as to disconnect the wiring to these particular pieces for the purpose of removing the wiring harness from the car. Once these pieces were clear, the team could turn their attention to removing the door jam mechanisms and bonnet/boot latches.

Inside Out – Raptorguard on the Inner Wings of the 1987 Daimler Double Six

The paint and body team at Bridge Classic Cars have sealed the inner wings of the 1987 Daimler Double Six which is in for restoration.

The team sealed the inner wings using a product called Raptorguard. This is a hard wearing urethane which will protect the inner arches and wing of the car from absorbing moisture from any dirt collected inside the panel. This is something we do on most of our restorations to protect the longevity of the pieces and ultimately the car itself.

Inspection – Assessing the 1986 Daimler DS420

The 1986 Daimler DS420, which arrived recently at the Bridge Classic Cars workshop from America, has been up on the ramp for our teams to begin inspecting and assessing the classic limousine.

As part of its inspection, the team will build up a report on the overall condition of the vehicle along with any areas which need further assessment and a plan for repair or refurbishment. This time, the team were focusing on the underside of the classic Daimler to make sure it was structurally sound and safe before any further work is carried out.

The team turned their attention to suspension pickups and mounts, sections of frame, substructure mounts as well as the all-important body shell sills.

Pulled Apart – Removing the Door Cards of the 1986 Daimler DS420

The Bridge Classic Cars in-house trim team have been working on the doors of the 1986 Daimler DS420 which arrived into our workshop from the USA recently.

The doors are being carefully taken apart so the panels themselves can be repainted. This involved the careful cataloguing and noting of each individual piece that came off the door from the small screw head cover to the large leather wrapped panels. The doors will then be taken into our paint and body team who will carry out a full assessment and then get to work on making the doors of the classic Daimler limo matching the rest of the car.

Build Up – The 1987 Daimler Double Six in High Build Primer

The paint and body teams at Bridge Classic Cars have been busy preparing the body and panels of the 1987 Daimler Double Six for the final stages of high build primer.

The classic Daimler, which is in with our restoration teams, has been worked on extensively by our paint and body team to get the classic saloon in to perfect condition before the first layers of paint. The body shop have meticulously sanded down, cleaned and prepared each individual part at every stage of its journey into the in-house paint booth.

This step, which is one of the final stages before colour, is the use of high build primer on all panels and in all visible areas or areas which have been worked own by the body and fabrication teams including the inside of the door jams and the all important in arches. With the high build primer now on the car, it will be taken back out of the oven to be inspected and any adjustments made before the next stage begins.

Primed & Read – 1987 Daimler Double Six in Primer

The 1987 Daimler Double Six has been taken back to bare metal in the places where the repairs were carried out by the Bridge Classic Cars fabrication team. Now, in the hands of our body shop technicians, the car has been refined and perfected before being thoroughly cleaned before going into the paint booth.

The classic Daimler is being finished in its first round of epoxy primer ahead of the team paint matching the reworked areas to the original dark blue paintwork. The team laid down the primer layer by layer carefully allowing it to settle flat and evenly across the luxury 4 door saloon. With this stage done, it will be transferred back into the preparation area for the team to begin sanding and finishing before it goes back into the paint booth for the next stage.

Top Work – Rust Repairs to the Sunroof of the 1987 Daimler Double Six

The fabrication team in the Bridge Classic Cars restoration workshop at our Suffolk HQ are hard at work repairing the rust issues in the sunroof of the 1987 Daimler Double Six.

Monty has been working his way methodically through the entirety of the classic Daimler. This time he has turned his attention to the sunroof and sunroof opening of the car, which is showing some noticeable signs of corrosion both on the interior and exterior of the car. Firstly, the sunroof panel was removed and stripped back to best assess the piece.

With everything cleaned back, the level of corrosion could be seen and assessed. Monty began handmaking the various patch panels and pieces needed for both the roof panel and the sunroof rails. With all of these pieces carefully templated and made, the process of welding them into the car could begin.

Because of the tolerances in the sunroof mechanism, the welding process has to be precise and accurate as to not warp any of the pieces with the heat generated by welding.

Preparations – The Doors of the 1987 Daimler Double Six in Primer

The doors from the 1987 Daimler Double Six have been moved from the body shop to the paint shop at Bridge Classic Cars.

The doors have been prepared for their first coat of primer before being taken back through into the body shop to be perfected and shaped in anticipation for the body shell to be moved into the department from the fabrication shop and readied for primer.

Sealed – The Boot Floor of the 1987 Daimler Double Six Seam Sealed

After the repairs to the boot floor of the 1987 Daimler Double Six – The Bridge Classic Cars teams have been working to make sure everything is sealed up tight.

The body team at Bridge Classic Cars have been underneath the and in the boot of the classic Daimler to seal any joints between the panels which make up the boot floor. This is crucial for the longevity of not just our repairs on the car but the longevity of the whole car itself.

Top to Bottom – Repairing the Boot Floor of the 1987 Daimler Double Six

The Bridge Classic Cars fabrication shop have been working their way through the rust repairs on the 1987 Daimler Double Six.

Monty has been cutting out the corroded metal in the boot floor of the classic Daimler. Using the pieces cut out of the boot, he created new pieces for the car which were then test fitted to check before being welded in. The hand-made floor patch also had the strengthening beads rolled into the material to follow the original channels in the existing floor to create one complete uniform piece once painted.

A small patch panel also needed to be made for an area of corrosion behind the fuel tank. Like the others, the area was cut out and rust treated before the new piece was welded in.