An intro / re-intro
Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2016 1:21 pm
Hi Everybody.
Some might know me and some not. Anyways my name is Actually Stephan van Tonder and I am making this post here to advertise a little bit and re-introduce myself.
I am a total VW / Audi nut that grew up in a VW workshop, my dad being a mechanic. So since I can remember I have been fiddling with cars and mainly the VW / AUDI /DKW brands and some BMW in early years.
I always wanted to become a mechanic but dad advised that I should rather become something that pays and do the mechanic thing as a hobby. I did that but at some point thought let me try a workshop.
Well he was right. It does not really pay if you do it right and hire huge premises and I lost the passion for it when I turned it into a job.
So I closed up and went back to my main pay job which is in computers.
Over the years I never stopped working on cars and kept all my equipment and many of my customers but was situated so that I really could not work on cars. In the last few years I moved onto a plot and so now have a fair amount of space again and setup everything so I can work on cars again.
So basically what I am doing now is offering again to take in some car work and I have pulled in a few friends that is in the same situation.
We have normal weekday jobs but have a passion, the tools and the ability to do some excellent car work.
Call Us Panic’s place.
So what we offer is the following, Servicing and repairs on all VW and Audi models, old and new. The passion is sort of on the old but we also love the newer and can do whatever you need.
I have a couple of two post lifts so services are easy and we have the tools to remove even a V10 Audi motor.
I dyno tune basically all aftermarket managements and specialise in Perfect power (sales and install) but also tune Dicktator, gotech, powermods, and even vipec or whatever you want to have done. I learn really quickly.
If we get something we have not done we either get or make the tools needed so don’t really scare for much. It might take a little while, while we manufacture tools to complete the job.
We also offer engine rebuilds and some performance mods, also know a thing or two about racing cars.
Just understand that this is mainly a weekend job so we can service between two to four cars a weekend if it is simple lube services or basically do one or two of the bigger things like timing belt/chain changes.
If it’s more serious like engine out things then it might take a bit longer. So please understand that it is not a fulltime thing and we do this with passion and not haste.
So your work will be good but not fast. If you are in a hurry for a turbo conversion for instance then this is not the place to come as it will probably take several months, not days or weeks and will require deposits for the parts upfront.
So what do we NOT do.
I do NOT do modern day ECU performance flashing. There are too many of these in the market and I will not get involved in that bunfight.
I do have somebody that I can refer you to at a decent price and can get it done on your behalf if you ask or need.
Anything in a hurry in the middle of the week. Although I do work in the afternoons I do it only for an hour or two.
Anything where you need big work done but cannot leave the car for a while.
What DO we do
I do diagnostics and have VCDS but can also do basic old school diagnostics that seemingly very few can still do.
Dyno Tune carb cars and almost all aftermarket managements.
Can also do things like setting basic timing for you after you have DIY’d a timing belt change on things like carb and MP9 or K-jet.
Quick timing set I don’t charge full dyno prices for and can do weekday afternoons.
I have a pretty good knowledge and tools on K-jet and can tune and repair unless there is an item that is not available anymore and can’t be sourced somehow.
Supply, install and Tune Perfect Power management systems and piggybacks.
Service and repairs on all Watercooled VW and Audis.
Limited services on other brands and if I refuse to service a brand then it’s mainly because I do not like it or do not know it or do not have tools for it. We specialise in VW and Audi for a reason.
Engine rebuilds and other minor engine repairs like Blown Headgaskets, head recons etc. on VW and AUDI
Replacing of timing belts and chains.
Suspension and brake work.
Changing Of clutches but must be able to leave the car over a weekend at least.
For services I prefer you drop Friday night and collect late Saturday or if it suits you on Sunday.
For management installs you are looking at most likely Two weeks at a minimum and much longer if you bring me something that is full of other problems.
I tune ONLY on Saturday mornings and I spend roughly 3 to 4 hours per car possibly more if it is turbo charged. And yes you are welcome to watch if you can stomach it(not Kidding).
Work is by appointment only. No walk in and be helped immediately. There will be quotes involved and bookings made.
So as you can figure out this is a Hobby / additional income for us and there are time restrictions.
So why would you use us?
A) You get work done by people that does it for Passion. So you get it done RIGHT. We do not hurry through the work because it is simply a job and there is time pressure to complete another in a specified time.
B) Generally the ‘per hour’ Rate is Lower because I am not hiring a workshop but do have some overheads to cover so cannot do it for free. (Equipment are expensive)
C) I often get parts cheaper than what you can and do not add a margin like dealers do. I source mainly at Goldwagen but will always buy the better Brands available and many will be OE if we know the cheaper replacement will not be long lasting.
D) If We do major work like engine removals ETC. it is by the book and the car will be right after, not have other new ailments that was introduced by breaking plugs, tearing boots and breaking items that should have been removed upfront like you often find at dealerships.
E) We have no external agenda like selling you a new car or seeing how many spares we can use, so will not test fit a bundle of stuff that might or might not work to solve a problem. We will diagnose till we know we are only installing parts that are needed to fix a repair.
F) We will never lie to you on the status of your work. If you brought the car and we managed not to look at it I will tell you so directly. Not tell you some story. As with everything in life sometimes things do not work out as planned or scheduled and you have the right to know that that was simply the case. If you would then rather remove the car and bring back later or never just say so and you are welcome to do that.
If we screw up and no human is infallible we will approach it in a grown up fashion and find a way to make it right with you. Please do discuss it first with us though before climbing on social media as is fashionable these days and we promise not to hit you with a laptop.
G) You are welcome to supply your own parts. If you bring bad parts I will tell you so and you can decide to use them or not.
I thank you for your time and hope that we would be able to help some of you guys out in future.
We are in Putfontein in Benoni.
You can contact Stephanie on 061 507 6017 for service bookings. Please state what you need done and if there are additional items you want looking at. We will order parts in the week ahead to cover the scheduled work. If something else is found then I will contact you to discuss how to proceed.
If you have major other work and want to discuss it you can contact me between the hours of 15:00 and 18:00 in the week or Saturday morning on that number. I also work well on whatsapp and is generally more helpful and friendly there than on phone calls while standing elbow deep in oil or holding up a gearbox.(which is almost always what happens when somebody feel like a bit of a chat)
Generally I do not do call outs but will on exceptions but it will not be cheap then.
But please understand one thing. That cell number is not a free, call at any time during the night or day, assist service.
I already spend a lot of time helping guys on the forum and do not feel like talking to somebody in the evening because he feels the right to get some free advice on his problem (which happens more often than you think).
The number will be active during the hours of 08:00 to 18:00 and will be switched off out of those hours so please do not be upset about that - it's just business.
Regards
Panic’s place.
Stephan(panic-mechanic) ,Rinus(blueblob) , Dewald, Marcello and Stephanie on Admin.
Some might know me and some not. Anyways my name is Actually Stephan van Tonder and I am making this post here to advertise a little bit and re-introduce myself.
I am a total VW / Audi nut that grew up in a VW workshop, my dad being a mechanic. So since I can remember I have been fiddling with cars and mainly the VW / AUDI /DKW brands and some BMW in early years.
I always wanted to become a mechanic but dad advised that I should rather become something that pays and do the mechanic thing as a hobby. I did that but at some point thought let me try a workshop.
Well he was right. It does not really pay if you do it right and hire huge premises and I lost the passion for it when I turned it into a job.
So I closed up and went back to my main pay job which is in computers.
Over the years I never stopped working on cars and kept all my equipment and many of my customers but was situated so that I really could not work on cars. In the last few years I moved onto a plot and so now have a fair amount of space again and setup everything so I can work on cars again.
So basically what I am doing now is offering again to take in some car work and I have pulled in a few friends that is in the same situation.
We have normal weekday jobs but have a passion, the tools and the ability to do some excellent car work.
Call Us Panic’s place.
So what we offer is the following, Servicing and repairs on all VW and Audi models, old and new. The passion is sort of on the old but we also love the newer and can do whatever you need.
I have a couple of two post lifts so services are easy and we have the tools to remove even a V10 Audi motor.
I dyno tune basically all aftermarket managements and specialise in Perfect power (sales and install) but also tune Dicktator, gotech, powermods, and even vipec or whatever you want to have done. I learn really quickly.
If we get something we have not done we either get or make the tools needed so don’t really scare for much. It might take a little while, while we manufacture tools to complete the job.
We also offer engine rebuilds and some performance mods, also know a thing or two about racing cars.
Just understand that this is mainly a weekend job so we can service between two to four cars a weekend if it is simple lube services or basically do one or two of the bigger things like timing belt/chain changes.
If it’s more serious like engine out things then it might take a bit longer. So please understand that it is not a fulltime thing and we do this with passion and not haste.
So your work will be good but not fast. If you are in a hurry for a turbo conversion for instance then this is not the place to come as it will probably take several months, not days or weeks and will require deposits for the parts upfront.
So what do we NOT do.
I do NOT do modern day ECU performance flashing. There are too many of these in the market and I will not get involved in that bunfight.
I do have somebody that I can refer you to at a decent price and can get it done on your behalf if you ask or need.
Anything in a hurry in the middle of the week. Although I do work in the afternoons I do it only for an hour or two.
Anything where you need big work done but cannot leave the car for a while.
What DO we do
I do diagnostics and have VCDS but can also do basic old school diagnostics that seemingly very few can still do.
Dyno Tune carb cars and almost all aftermarket managements.
Can also do things like setting basic timing for you after you have DIY’d a timing belt change on things like carb and MP9 or K-jet.
Quick timing set I don’t charge full dyno prices for and can do weekday afternoons.
I have a pretty good knowledge and tools on K-jet and can tune and repair unless there is an item that is not available anymore and can’t be sourced somehow.
Supply, install and Tune Perfect Power management systems and piggybacks.
Service and repairs on all Watercooled VW and Audis.
Limited services on other brands and if I refuse to service a brand then it’s mainly because I do not like it or do not know it or do not have tools for it. We specialise in VW and Audi for a reason.
Engine rebuilds and other minor engine repairs like Blown Headgaskets, head recons etc. on VW and AUDI
Replacing of timing belts and chains.
Suspension and brake work.
Changing Of clutches but must be able to leave the car over a weekend at least.
For services I prefer you drop Friday night and collect late Saturday or if it suits you on Sunday.
For management installs you are looking at most likely Two weeks at a minimum and much longer if you bring me something that is full of other problems.
I tune ONLY on Saturday mornings and I spend roughly 3 to 4 hours per car possibly more if it is turbo charged. And yes you are welcome to watch if you can stomach it(not Kidding).
Work is by appointment only. No walk in and be helped immediately. There will be quotes involved and bookings made.
So as you can figure out this is a Hobby / additional income for us and there are time restrictions.
So why would you use us?
A) You get work done by people that does it for Passion. So you get it done RIGHT. We do not hurry through the work because it is simply a job and there is time pressure to complete another in a specified time.
B) Generally the ‘per hour’ Rate is Lower because I am not hiring a workshop but do have some overheads to cover so cannot do it for free. (Equipment are expensive)
C) I often get parts cheaper than what you can and do not add a margin like dealers do. I source mainly at Goldwagen but will always buy the better Brands available and many will be OE if we know the cheaper replacement will not be long lasting.
D) If We do major work like engine removals ETC. it is by the book and the car will be right after, not have other new ailments that was introduced by breaking plugs, tearing boots and breaking items that should have been removed upfront like you often find at dealerships.
E) We have no external agenda like selling you a new car or seeing how many spares we can use, so will not test fit a bundle of stuff that might or might not work to solve a problem. We will diagnose till we know we are only installing parts that are needed to fix a repair.
F) We will never lie to you on the status of your work. If you brought the car and we managed not to look at it I will tell you so directly. Not tell you some story. As with everything in life sometimes things do not work out as planned or scheduled and you have the right to know that that was simply the case. If you would then rather remove the car and bring back later or never just say so and you are welcome to do that.
If we screw up and no human is infallible we will approach it in a grown up fashion and find a way to make it right with you. Please do discuss it first with us though before climbing on social media as is fashionable these days and we promise not to hit you with a laptop.
G) You are welcome to supply your own parts. If you bring bad parts I will tell you so and you can decide to use them or not.
I thank you for your time and hope that we would be able to help some of you guys out in future.
We are in Putfontein in Benoni.
You can contact Stephanie on 061 507 6017 for service bookings. Please state what you need done and if there are additional items you want looking at. We will order parts in the week ahead to cover the scheduled work. If something else is found then I will contact you to discuss how to proceed.
If you have major other work and want to discuss it you can contact me between the hours of 15:00 and 18:00 in the week or Saturday morning on that number. I also work well on whatsapp and is generally more helpful and friendly there than on phone calls while standing elbow deep in oil or holding up a gearbox.(which is almost always what happens when somebody feel like a bit of a chat)
Generally I do not do call outs but will on exceptions but it will not be cheap then.
But please understand one thing. That cell number is not a free, call at any time during the night or day, assist service.
I already spend a lot of time helping guys on the forum and do not feel like talking to somebody in the evening because he feels the right to get some free advice on his problem (which happens more often than you think).
The number will be active during the hours of 08:00 to 18:00 and will be switched off out of those hours so please do not be upset about that - it's just business.
Regards
Panic’s place.
Stephan(panic-mechanic) ,Rinus(blueblob) , Dewald, Marcello and Stephanie on Admin.
