Hidden Quality Part 1 - Behind Every Door

As a client, you may never see the full extent of our restoration work, so we'll go behind the scenes to reveal the craftsmanship beneath.

We start this series by delving into the restoration of the humble Door, where mechanical engineering meets paint, chrome, leather and glass.

Let's take a closer look.

Every Hemmels car re-starts its new life from its bare metal beginnings. The doors, with their aluminium skins, are given special attention, ensuring the wear and tear of the past 60 years is erased.

Above, note that all of the functioning components of the door are removed. Below, the doors are re-hung to ensure a perfect fit with precision gaps.

It may come as a surprise to know that at this very early stage of body rebuild Hemmels aligns both the soft-top and hardtop frame to ensure a snug fit.

The doors are painted separately from the car. Each door is primed and painted both inside and out - there are no shortcuts.

The mechanical components that comprise the inner workings of the door are completely overhauled and pre-tested to ensure they operate flawlessly. The engineers then begin the task of re-fitting the components, ensuring they align accurately.

A closer look reveals that not only are the components made to look and operate like new. The complementary zinc bolts come tone-match the others on the car - by design.

A custom-fitting sound deadening panel is installed which will also form the basis for the leather upholstery.

The painstaking restoration of all the components will be forever hidden from the client's eyes.

The doors are fitted with their final leather trim, ruched pockets and arm rest. The re-chromed door release handle, lock and window-winders are installed along with chromed closed plate. But the work is not yet complete.

The final adjustments to the window are made ensuring that an airtight connection is made for the windscreen seals, soft-top and hardtop, all made easier due to the initial fitting work completed earlier in the process.

Door mirrors and re-chromed door handles are installed, along with new key barrels.

We shudder to think about how much effort goes into ensuring the restoration of a door on a Hemmels car. Yet we know a thorough re-build of each door is vital. With the majority of its complexities and moving parts overlooked, the restoration of a basic door is just one example of the Hidden Quality in every Hemmels classic car.