THIS ARTICLE APPEARED IN THE NEWS SUN OF HIGHLAND COUNTY, FLORIDA ON SUNDAY, JULY 2, 2006
LIVING A DREAM
By Christopher Tuffley

Stuart Best grew up in Miami. When he was a kid he played in a vacant area that is now the site of the Miami Dolphins Stadium. Several years ago, having worked his way up from being a beginner to becoming a senior mechanic in someone else's business, to owning a business of his own, to growing big enough to hire other mechanics. Best was ready for a simpler life. Preferably a distance away from the much changed, overcrowded South Florida. For several years he and his wife Joyce traveled Florida, starting at St. Augustine and working south, looking for the perfect place. Driving around Lake Jackson and the Historic Circle for the first time the Bests thought they might have found home. Then, two years ago, they were in town visiting, sitting on the veranda of the Kenilworth Lodge when the Marine band first came to play. Sitting there, overlooking the lake, sharing the music with so many friendly people, the Bests knew they had found home. They have been moving here in stages for some time now. Best celebrated the grand opening of his new business, Classic Car Depot this month. In the future he hopes to be able to specialize and work on only classic cars, but right now he is happy to work on anything. He is certified in a wide range of vehicles, European as well as American made, and has decades of experience. Every car manufacturer has the same goal, Best said, to get four tires to run down the road. Each manufacturer has their own way of doing that. The trick is not to be intimidated. Best said he learns something new every day. He started as a kid redesigning bicycles and then making go-carts and off-road vehicles. At 15, he was working in a service station. Mechanics is in his blood. His mother's brothers, for example, all worked for General Motors. He holds up his hand, People with square palms are supposed to be skilled with their hands, he said. He considers himself one of the lucky ones, someone who turned a hobby into a living. What could be better than doing what you love, he asked. I was the youngest in the family. I was known as the black sheep. But you can overcome your mistakes. You can make amends. And that helps you think twice about making that kind of mistake again. A wise person learns from someone else's mistakes, he added laughing. I had to ask myself, why am I always running into a brick wall? We didn't come here to become millionaires, he said. I work for time off. But you have a wonderful thing going here. We just want to be a part of it. Classic Car Depot is at 330 US 27 N. Suite 8.
That's next to the Heartland National Bank, north of the Gate service station.
Walk-ins are welcome, but it is wiser to call for an appointment at 863-385-3305. The Classic Car Depot is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

A CLASSIC

THIS ARTICLE APPEARED IN THE NEWS SUN OF HIGHLAND COUNTY, FLORIDA ON SUNDAY, JULY 2, 2006
TUFFIN IT WITH TUFFLEY
By Christopher Tuffley

I once dreamed of becoming a mechanic. I even tried to make it happen. I attended Miami Lakes Technical Education School in Miami Lakes and studied how to maintain and repair outboard motor engines. I wanted to work with boats. So I got a job in the parts department of a marina and prepared for an opportunity to be promoted to mechanic. Here is why I am not a mechanic today. At the time, my wife and I owned a battered 63 Volkswagen Beetle. The kingpins in the wheel assembly had gone bad. My wife suggested I save us money and change out the kingpins myself. I bought all the parts I needed, including a Chilton's manual and went to a rent-a-bay. It took me most of a morning but I got the job done with no pieces left over. I was a proud and happy camper. Then, about six weeks later, the car developed brake problems way beyond my ability to even think I could fix them. I took the car to the local VW specialist.

He called me in only a hour. Who have you been taking this car to? he asked. Why? The kingpins were put in upside down. He said. Oh. Ooh. Thanks. I won't go there again. "Incompetent, Thief, gives us all a bad name, the specialist had said in disgust, then remembering, Do you want me to fix them? Yes, please. But I had dreamed the great dream. Of how eventually, having paid my dues I would own my own business, call my own shots. And that the work I would do would make people happy, and safer. Work I could look to at the end of the day, and say, I did that. Work I would do well enough to be respected. I'd had a dream. You'll forgive me if I was a little jealous when I walked into Classic Car Depot and met it's owner, Stuart Best. He is living my dream. Best has converted what was once carpeting space, with an interior office, and turned into an open, every inch useful automobile shop. One in which he can repair everything but tires. Best loves cars. His dream is to work exclusively on classic cars, but for now he's happy to work on any make or model. He brings his long-legged Jack Russell terrier with him to work. Jackie is laid back for a Jack Russell and has a taste for rubber shock bushings. Best is comfortable in his shop. He is thoughtful, and it shows in the details. For example, except for one counter/cabinet and the car lift, everything else is on wheels. The walls of his office are tool boxes and shelves, which can be easily moved without any notice. And the place is spotless. This is one of those floors you can eat off of because it is so clean. Like I said I was a little bit jealous. Best was working on a 57 Chevy Bel Air. In fact, it belongs to his wife, Joyce. He was checking out the wheel bearings, more proactive maintenance than problem solving, everything seemed to be fine. Right at the beginning he let me remove the tire's lug nuts, but after that he took over without seeming to realize he had done so. He worked with the kind of easy rhythm that is the result of years of practice. Every move counts. The Chevy Bel Air, which has become the icon of classic cars, wasn't as popular in its own day, Best said. In 1957, Ford was the popular car. Best found it hard to describe what makes a classic. Antique is different from classic, he said. Antique simply means old. But classic. That's something else. In the beginning, a classic was usually a luxury car, but that has changed. Now pretty much any car can become a classic. But it's usually something that stands out from the rest something that touches the heart. In other words, a Ford Pinto, an American Motors Gremlin, a Chevy Vega any car can be a classic to someone but more usually, it's the cars with personality that usually get remembered, the cars with style. Take the Bel Air, Best said its lines were taken from the F86 fighter jet. The headlights are like the jet engines, there are rockets on the hood, and the interior is like a cockpit. He doesn't hold much hope for today's car models however. Too much plastic he said. Too generic, they all look the same. Except maybe the new Pontiac GTO 6.0, V8. It's not the everyday car everybody can drive, is how he said it. As for my 1991 Lumina. Future classic? I asked. Best looked at me with sympathy. Is it a van or sedan, he asked and paused as if he'd said it all. Then seeing that I was expecting a serious answer, he added, It will be an antique in two years. You'll forgive me if I was a little bit jealous.