Sep
We’ve moved—and grown! Our former Clinton Township location has relocated to the corner of 19 Mile Road and Merrill in Sterling Heights. With four buildings and dedicated space for each department, we have more room to bring your restoration project to life and better serve our clients.
Visit us at 6430 19 Mile Road, Sterling Heights, MI 48314, and see what’s taking shape.
Ready to talk about your project? Schedule Consultation or contact us to arrange a shop tour.
Dec
Let’s help make Christmas a little brighter for children in our area! That’s Minor Customs is teaming up with Toys For Tots as a donation dropoff location. Bring new, unwrapped toys to our Sterling Heights location (6430 19 Mile Road, Sterling Heights, MI 48314).
What kind of toys can I donate?
- New
- Un-wrapped
- Preferably around the $10 or above price range
- Books are also needed
(children receive 2 toys each and 3 books count as ONE gift!) - Homemade toys are also accepted
What kinds of toys are NOT allowed?
- Used toys
- Toys that look like realistic weapons
- Toys with candy or food
- Toys with chemicals (i.e., slime, experimental labs, crystal projects, etc.)
What ages of children are eligible
to receive toys?
- Ages 0 up to 12 years
- Gifts for ages 0-2 are in great need
Can I make a monetary donation?
You can make a monetary donation directly to the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation on their website.
Make a Donation
May
Don’t miss out on upcoming events, promotions, car shows, projects or new services from That’s Minor Customs! Use our simple email signup form to stay in the loop!
Click Here To Join Our Email List
Feb
As we prepare to expand to our Sterling Heights location, That’s Minor Customs has positions available in our high end custom automotive shop. That’s Minor Customs is known for the best restorations and customization of classic cars, hot rods and muscle cars in Southeast Michigan and WE WANT YOU to be part of our success!
Ideal candidates are experienced in auto body repair & restoration, painting & finishing, body parts replacement and/or fabrication. Our facility also performs mechanical repairs and performance upgrades/customizations.
If you are an experienced, hard worker with the skills to pay the bills – we want to talk to you. Contact us today at (586) 690-8072 to set-up an interview or submit an online application on our website at https://thatsminorcustoms.com/employment
Feb
That’s Minor Customs is pleased to announce the launch of our new website at https://thatsminorcustoms.com
Our new website highlights the various services we provide in regard to classic car restorations, collision and auto body services, automotive painting and finishing, mechanical repairs and performance upgrades, in-house fabrication, and more.
You can also browse a portfolio of past projects to get a peek at the high quality work we do at That’s Minor Customs.
To schedule a consultation for your dream car, hot rod or muscle car restoration project – call us today at (586) 690-8072 or contact us via our website.
Mar
The 66th Annual Meguiar’s Autorama recently took place at the Cobo Center located in the heart of downtown Detroit. That’s Minor Customs was proud to exhibit some amazing vehicles this year from customers that showed our dedication and skills in the field of automotive restoration and paint.
Mr. Gary Niver quickly became a favored customer when he brought his 1962 Corvette to us for repairs after a faulty window regulator caused a glass blow-out on the driver’s side. Once we got into the door we began to find more issues, likely created from some less than superior restoration work at another shop. With the go-ahead to correct almost anything we found, before we knew it we were working our way around the entire body fixing mistakes. Ultimately it led to a complete paint and refinish that took home both awards for Outstanding Sports/Sport Compact and 1st in Conservative Sports Pre-1963. Both our team here at That’s Minor Customs and Gary could not have been happier with the result.
In addition to his beautiful ’62 vette, Mr. Niver also agreed to display his 1955 and 1956 Chevy Bel-Air 2-door hard tops within our display. That decision also proved fruitful with both cars taking home awards. The ’55 for 2nd place Mild Hard Top and the ’56 winning both Outstanding Paint and 1st in Conservative Hard Top ’55-59.
Lastly I present to you the winner for Custom Rod Convertible ’35-48 and the prestigious Master Builder Award presented to Mr. Paul Curtis and his 1935 Plymouth Convertible. A real rare beauty in form and function. That’s Minor Customs owner Frank Maiorano is seen here sharing in the joy received from all the combined hard work.
For the complete listing of all award winners this year click this logo !
Feb
Take a peek into the preparations for paint on this first generation C1 1962 Corvette. This was the last year for the solid-rear-axle suspension that was used from the beginning on the Chevy sportscar. You can see in it all it’s glory at the Detroit Autorama at Cobo Center this weekend March 2-4th.
Follow That’s Minor Customs on YouTube for more videos and updates!
Feb
As a proud donating supporter we encourage you to stop by The D Lot at Detroit Autorama and purchase some raffles tickets to help Forgotten Harvest curb hunger and food waste. In its fifth year, hot rod designer Murray Pfaff and The D Lot (as in Detroit) presented by AMSOIL, will transform 6,000 square feet of the show into a display of vehicles designed by Pfaff. Six Chevrolets and a Ford will be brought in from as far as Pennsylvania, Utah, Missouri, Alabama, and Oregon.
These cars include:
- Keith Echols’ powerful and stylish Chevrolet Caprice called Acacia
- Jeff Mochilov’s super-sexy custom1972 Corvette roadster Speedvette
- Byron Burnam’s incredible hand-formed wide-body race inspired 1976 Chevrolet Vega
- H&H Performance’s handsome and capable1975 Ford Bronco
- Tredwear’s track capable late-model Silverado widebody pickup the Scottsdale SS
- Tredwear’s 1939 Chevy Coupe dirt track racer turned street terror Tarantula
- Terry Cook’s intense 1955 Chevrolet Bel-Air custom street machine Kryptonite
The D Lot’s raffled prizes benefit Forgotten Harvest, a food rescue that was formed in 1990 to fight two problems: hunger and waste. Last year alone they rescued over 42 million pounds of food by collecting surplus prepared and perishable food from 800 sources, including grocery stores, fruit and vegetable markets, restaurants, caterers, dairies, farmers, wholesale food distributors and other Health Department-approved sources. This donated food, which would otherwise go to waste, is delivered free-of-charge to over 250 emergency food providers in the Metro Detroit area. It also works with other food rescues in a network across the mid-west and beyond.
CLICK HERE for the entire article brought to you by The SHOP Magazine.
Be sure to find the That’s Minor Customs booth inside Autorama as well. We’ll have a slew of cool rides on display!
#autorama #detroit #forgottenharvest #customauto #Pfaffdesigns
Nov
Rust can be a real car killer, if you’re not careful and you let it go too far, say hello to the scrapheap. Creeping it’s way into every possible nook n’ cranny of a cars bodywork, any area of water accumulation will begin to eat away at the metal and you’re destined to be dealing with a disaster over time.
Rust repair can be the bane of most auto restorers, but will make all the difference in the final product when done correctly. It’s mind boggling that some people think that entire sheets of metal can be replaced by white, gummy filler, but you’ll be surprised how many ‘restorers’ will take this easy route. Plugging rusty holes with filler is a quick fix but in the long run, the filler will either soak up water that would otherwise run off the car, feeding it back into the bodywork, or it will not provide any significant form of protection and will let water and moisture seep through from the surroundings into places you really don’t want it to be. Trust us, just don’t do it! If you’re going to take the time to address the issue, do it right.
Here is a photo set following all the stages of a proper rust repair on a 1979 Nissan Datsun 280ZX rear passenger panel.
There are plenty of manufacturers that offer reproduction replacement panels for common models, but often they are never going to be the standard of the original body panels and are often damaged in transit upon arrival. It’s also a frequent occurrence that you’ll go to line up the outer panel ready to weld it on and it will seem like it doesn’t fit at all. Keep in mind there are often inner structural panels that will reveal themselves once the corroded and rusted outer is removed.
For this 79 Datsun 280zx we custom cut patches to weld in. Of course keep in mind that all surface rust and corrosion must be removed, as only clean, bare metal can be used for efficient welding to take place.
Inner panels for structural integrity also had to be replaced and welded in
Angle grinder is next to clean up and smooth the welds
Smooth and clean to keep the body lines as original.
Good quality work leaves you with a beautiful finish, worth all the time and effort and will last for years to come.
Nov
The ultimate upgrade for your classic is now available, right out of the box! Forget foraging through junkyards searching for that salvageable Challenger or Charger, the demand has finally lead Fiat Chrysler’s Mopar division to release the 6.2 liter supercharged crate engine kit deemed “Hellcrate”. Because everyone should have 707-horsepower under the hood.
Mopar is unveiling this beast in a box this week at the Annual SEMA show in Las Vegas with it’s price tag listed at $19,530. Also offered is a “plug and play” kit for $2,195 which Mopar describes in their recent press release:
“The kit includes a powertrain control module (PCM), power distribution center, engine wiring harness, chassis harness, accelerator pedal, ground jumper, oxygen sensors, charge air temperature sensors and fuel pump control module, for the 6.2-liter supercharged Crate HEMI Engine. The PCM is unlocked and set to the factory 707-horsepower calibration.”
Mopar says its engineers optimized the Hellcrate HEMI Engine Kit for use with manual transmissions, and that the engine also requires a Front End Accessory Drive Kit, which includes things like a power steering pump, belts, an alternator, pulleys and more. The brand does not mention pricing for the FEAD kit quite yet.
This is the second most powerful American motor ever made, after the DEMON version, but it is the “first-ever supercharged, 707-horspower factory-backed crate engine kit” to be offered. Unfortunately, the Hellcrate is only certified for use in pre-1976 vehicles due to emissions certifications, but definitely tons of options for all you classic speed junkies.
For more information go to Moparhellcrate.com