Since 1971
A workshop out of time.
The Heritage Carrozzeria began in 1971 in a draughty coach house behind Lygon Street, with one English wheel, a set of lead-loading paddles inherited from a retiring panel-beater, and a stubborn conviction that the great motor cars deserved better than the production line that had replaced the craftsman. Half a century later, the coach house has grown and the names on the work sheets have changed — but the conviction has not.
We exist as the deliberate opposite of the modern restoration clinic. Where others work under fluorescent light in gowns of white, treating a car like a specimen, we work amid oak, brass and the honest smell of oil and leather. We measure twice and cut once. We form metal by eye and finish it by hand. We believe a motor car is not a machine to be processed but a piece of history to be understood, respected and passed on.
What we stand for
Originality, sympathetically judged. Transparency, photographed at every stage. And craftsmanship that does not flinch at the hidden surfaces no owner will ever see. These are not marketing lines; they are the working rules of the bench, and they are the reason cars come to us from across the country and beyond.
Our creed
Four principles, kept stubbornly.
By Hand
Metal shaped on the wheel, seams faired in lead, finishes flatted by hand. The old methods, because they are the right ones.
Sympathetic
We conserve what should be kept and renew only what must be. Patina is history, not damage.
Documented
Every project is photographed and logged. The record travels with the car as part of its provenance.
Honest
A written brief, plain advice, and no surprises. We tell you what we find, and we let you decide.
The people at the bench
Skills handed down, not bought in.
Coachbuilding, lead loading, French polishing, freehand coachlining — these are trades learned over years at the elbow of a master, not weekends on a course. Our craftsmen between them carry over a century and a half of experience, and they are training the next generation the only way it can truly be taught: by doing.
It is why we take on fewer cars than we could, and keep each one longer than most. There is no other way to do this work properly — and doing it properly is the only thing we are interested in.
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Years' combined craft
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Cars at a time
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Trades under one roof
Come and see the workshop.
Visits are by appointment — we'd be glad to show you the cars in our care and discuss your own.