Classic Car Restoration | Clayton Classics

Our Process

5 Key Steps to a Clayton Classic Restoration We typically spend over 2000 hours on a complete restoration

Exterior appearance

From paintwork and body gaps to shut lines and chrome trim, all are finished to the highest standard to create your very own stunning-looking car

Internal trim finish & comfort

Award-winning interior trim and upholstery throughout ensuring even the small details are perfect

Mechanical restoration

Ensuring long life reliability through our exacting standards, our engineers add optional modern car conveniences to enhance your driving experience while still in keeping with traditional features

Driving experience

Thorough testing prior to delivery ensures top performance and high-quality specifications (any optional extras are first developed and tested on our own cars to ensure full reliability)

Lifetime support & backup

Lifetime support and backup – there’s care, and then there’s Clayton Classics care. We ensure your car continues to look and run as perfectly as the day it leaves our workshop.

Jaguar E Type stripped to bare metal in car workshop

A Clayton Classics

Restoration Lasting relationship and lifetime support

Whether it’s a full restoration and rebuild project, or even just the small touch-ups to your vintage car here and there, one thing always remains the same – everyone involved loves classic cars. That’s why we work with you to design and develop an individual vehicle to your exact specification, involving you at all critical stages of the project.

We love to develop lasting relationships with our customers and fellow classic car enthusiasts, so we offer lifetime support on all Clayton Classics restorations to ensure that the drive of your life is your drive for life.

Want to visit our workshop during the restoration process? No problem! Come and see your car at various stages of the build, and we’ll also keep you updated with regular emails and restoration photos. We’re just as excited as you are, and we’re with you every step of the way.

E Type S1, 3.8

Red interior and leather seats in classic Jaguar E Type

E Type Roadster

E Type S1, FHC

A Clayton Classics

FULL RESTORATION PROJECT INCLUDES:

Here at Clayton Classics, we take enormous pride in our 7-step process to give you the classic car of your dreams. Here are the technical and aesthetic upgrades you can expect when you book in a restoration from our award-winning team.

Full Vehicle Strip Down

First, your classic car is fully assessed for condition and driving quality. Photographs are meticulously taken both outside and inside.

Then, we carefully dismantle your car down to its parts, labelling and storing all component parts in fine detail.

Each part is assessed for condition and originality, then categorised for either replacement or refurbishment to give your car the best rebuild possible.

Bodywork Repairs & Replacements

Soft bead blasting removes all paint and corrosion.

All previous repairs are noted in detail.

Large panels (e.g. Jaguar E-Type bonnets) are hand-stripped to avoid distortion. All outdated work and/or corroded panels are carefully removed and replaced, taking great care over panel alignment, door fit, and shut lines.

Door and window rubber seals are then fitted, and panel alignment is perfected before removing these again for paint.

Finally, all chrome work is trial-fitted to the completed body, then adjusted as necessary for a perfect fit before being re-chromed.

Perfect Paintwork

At Clayton Classics, we use Concours standard paint at our state of the art facility to ensure all paint coats are applied as brightly and evenly as the day your classic car left the manufacturers.

Choose from a wide array of colours from the classic British racing green to royal red.

Mechanical Rebuild

All components – including your engine, gearbox, rear axle, steering, suspension and brakes – are carefully stripped and fully refurbished to the highest engineering and safety standards.

All of our rebuilds include uprating and modifications to improve your car’s reliability.

Specific upgrades can be applied to almost all aspects of the car, including engine performance, gearbox, suspension, brakes and wheels.

Electrical Rebuild & Upgrades

All instruments and switches in your classic car are overhauled or replaced.

A new wiring loom is fitted, incorporating modern connectors with improved and extended fusing.

Many components are powered via relays to reduce stress on switches and increase reliability. Most classic cars will be converted to alternator power to give you upgraded performance and control.

As standard, your car will be installed with halogen headlamps, interior light upgrades, improved heating and electric fans to aid cooling.

As an added extra, the team can also install full air-conditioning for the ultimate comfort. Alarms, tracker systems and in-car entertainment can also be specified and installed at this point.

Interior Trim

All classic cars are fitted with brand new Concours standard interior trim, inertia seat belts and Sundym glass for luxurious finer details.

Bespoke additions such as seat upgrades, trim colour, steering wheel and even bespoke luggage are available for installation to fit your exact requirements.

Final Testing, Sign-Off & Completion

With thorough road testing for a minimum of 500 miles, followed by fine tuning on a rolling road, all vehicles are tested to Clayton Classics exacting safety and engineering requirements to ensure your drive is safe and comfortable.

Then, fitting of final trim and final preparations are underway.

After one final thorough inspection and polish, your classic car is ready for presentation!

We will include a presentation package specially for you, including a personalised book detailing the history of your car and an in-depth photo compilation of its restoration from start to finish.

“The collection experience was lovely; I went there with a friend, who I’m going to do a few historic rallies with, and he was blown away. We drove it home, the sun was shining, the car felt like it should.. the whole thing felt like one of those bucket list days”

Clayton Classics’ Customer

“In contrast with what is usually a hectic and impatient world I would like to thank you for so tirelessly dealing with my many queries, making sure that everything was fitted and set up just as I asked for, sending photographs and keeping me well informed. All in all the experience of buying the car, observing the project, and taking delivery has been a great experience.”