The Garage 266

21
PROFILE Autofarm
with Porsches.
That prompted a move out to
Penn, near Beaconsfield, which
saw Josh Sadler going it alone,
later being joined by Jack
Phillips and Mike Evans. And
once again Autofarm moved, in
1993 heading to Oxfordshire,
not far from the M40, in some
historic farm buildings.
Business was more than
buzzing on the day The Garage
paid a visit: Autofarm’s international
reputation and the
high regard it’s held in means
Porsches of all ages – not just
911s but 928s, Boxsters and
even Cayennes – are in for servicing,
repairs or restoration
work. And for the owner who
doesn’t always have the time to
drive their Porsche, Autofarm
offers a storage facility too.
Two years ago Steve Wood
and Mikey Wastie bought the
business and they are building
on its success through every
aspect of owning and running
a Porsche. Whether it’s a routine
service or bare-shell restoration,
Autofarm can take
that work on as we saw with a
late-1980s 911 in for what was
initially to repaint a couple of
panels but ended up being a
full-on restoration, including a
colour change.
“We will restore a car but
we aim to keep as much of the
original panels and components
as we can – it’s all about
the cars,” Steve says.
And such is the diversity of
the work tackled even the way
a customer is greeted is addressed
in a way meeting that
diversity, as Steve explains:
“We have two managers on the
front desk, one dealing with
projects and one dealing with
servicing. We have three technicians
in the service department,
three on projects (the
restoration work and anything
that will take longer than a
week) and one in the engine department,
which handles any
aspect of engine rebuilding.
To Autofarm, the value of
any Porsche is in its history,
and any car coming in for work
– no matter how small that job
might be – is catalogued and
work detailed on that record.
It’s a trait that goes back to the
business’ earliest days when
Josh Sadler began compiling
a list of 2.7 RS models. The
company has long been associated
with this 911 derivative
and finding long-lost examples,
including one from Beirut
which received a sympathetic
re-commissioning rather than
a full restoration.
But such is Autofarm’s enthusiasm
for all Porsches the
business doesn’t look to take
on any restoration work just
like that, as Steve explains:
“We’re not a run-of-the-mill
restorer – we’ll always give
someone guidance on the best
course of action.”
The clientele ranges from
enthusiasts who’ve bought
their first Porsche and want
it serviced through to the serious
collectors, but what remains
crucial to the business’
success is the relationship
between customers and staff.
Says Steve: “Our customers
know our technicians and we
like to hear that cars are being
driven and enjoyed.”
Looking after such a wide
range of cars means Autofarm
needs different forms of diagnostics
tools to cover more
recent models, something not
needed on the earlier cars,
but the product knowledge of
Autofarm’s staff is invaluable
– and inspiring for customers.
A first-rate business in a
first-rate location and working
on interesting cars - working at
Autofarm is always going to be
busy but it’ll be enjoyable too,
and for Porsche owners knowing
their car is in such safe
hands can’t be bad either.
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