Campbell, Calif.—Doing one thing and doing it well has served Dave Russ well over the last 25 years. What started in the early ’80s as a British auto dismantling yard and parts store has become a well-known source for British car restoration and service, as well as a source for new, used, and rebuilt parts for MGs, Jaguars, Triumphs, Austin Healeys, and Rovers.
“Customers keep coming back year after year because we give them the best part and the best information,” said Dave Russ, owner of British Motorsports Inc., adding that this has translated into restoration jobs and service of these vehicles and daily drivers.
“My first car was an MG Midget; and I did what I thought was right at the time, and took it in for a tuneup,” he said. “When it came back and ran worse than when it went in, I decided I needed to learn how to how to do my own maintenance and repair work. Gradually I learned every aspect of repair for British cars.”
After graduating from UC Davis with a degree in environmental science, Russ said he found it hard to find work in his chosen field and took a job selling British auto parts. By 1983 Russ had enough business acumen to open British Motorsports.
In the early days Russ said the primary focus of the business was purchasing salvaged vehicles from insurance auctions and selling used parts, which has resulted in an accumulation of a huge core bank of not just engines and transmissions, but a vast assortment of rebuildable parts, such as windshield wiper motors, distributors, gauges, carburetors, electrical components, brake parts, steering racks, and more.
“We find that in most cases a rebuilt original part exceeds the quality and authenticity of a new reproduction part,” Russ said. “We send some of these parts out for rebuilding, and others are rebuilt in house.”
None of these cars are built anymore and a lot of the parts were cheaply reproduced, Russ said. “Not to mention fewer and fewer (people) had the knowledge to fix or provide the correct part,” he said, adding that with intense competition in parts sales, he had to rely more on service.
“We help those that buy their parts over the counter or on our eBay store with the technical service they need to get the most out of their investment,” he said.
Many of the shop’s restorations came from customer requests and it has a discounted parts program for these long-term projects, Russ said. “Our service, knowledge and attention to detail have kept us busy.
“An Austin Healy 3000 or MGA can be $15,000-$20,000 to restore on our end with another $6,000-$10,000 in paint and bodywork. It takes a year or more to complete and we have two or three in process all the time,” he added.
In addition to using his own parts in restorations, Russ said his parts are appealing to eBay customers worldwide.
“I had a customer from Australia that saw a distributor we had listed and he e-mailed us to see if we had a trim piece for his console and we did,” Russ said. “He bought both and we still supply him with parts.”
