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Hello friends, Is there a vendor that has a headliner for the '63 88 Holiday Coupe? I am considering buying one, but there are several issues, one of which is a missing headliner. ALSO, does anyone have new door cards? Or decent used ones? Thanks for any info. Rich in Tampa
Failing all else, SMS will make a correct headliner. I'm getting the headliner for my recently-acquired 69 Cutlass flattop from them. The quote on the wagon headliner was $425, but keep in mind that's about 2X the size of the one in a hardtop. I am also having them rebuild the inside door panels. That's about $1100 and probably a two year turnaround for four. They did a phenomenal job on the interior panels for my 67 Delta, and that only took 18 months...
That's about $1100 and probably a two year turnaround for four. They did a phenomenal job on the interior panels for my 67 Delta, and that only took 18 months...
With these kinds of delivery times, for some of us, it might be our descendants who actually take delivery of what we ordered.
One reads all the time about what a two-edged sword it is to deal with SMS. They have great stuff and do great work, but their delivery times are measured in the time-equivalent of light years, and they probably lose some business as a result.
If you’ve got such a hold on the market, why not take advantage of it, hire some more people, and get going on some faster turnaround times. No one wants to see their newborn grandchild reach adulthood while waiting for a seat fabric to arrive.
One reads all the time about what a two-edged sword it is to deal with SMS. They have great stuff and do great work, but their delivery times are measured in the time-equivalent of light years, and they probably lose some business as a result.
If you’ve got such a hold on the market, why not take advantage of it, hire some more people, and get going on some faster turnaround times. No one wants to see their newborn grandchild reach adulthood while waiting for a seat fabric to arrive.
Hiring more people means more overhead, more management, more indirect cost, and either higher prices or lower profits. The real question is, why isn't there a competitor? Lebaron Bonney was a competitor and they went belly-up. SMS bought them out.
Hiring more people means more overhead, more management, more indirect cost, and either higher prices or lower profits.
Not universally. If this were the case, no business would ever expand. But businesses expand all the time. As the saying goes, you have to spend money to make money. If done right, you have enough new business to cover the costs of the expansion, even if takes a period of time to recover your initial investment in the expansion.
Not universally. If this were the case, no business would ever expand. But businesses expand all the time. As the saying goes, you have to spend money to make money. If done right, you have enough new business to cover the costs of the expansion, even if takes a period of time to recover your initial investment in the expansion.
Yeah, my point was that they apparently think that their current business model works for them. I'm guessing that the barriers to entry for a competitor are not trivial.
Actually, I think the problem for SMS and other companies that cater to the old car hobby is that their potential market is limited. No one is making more old cars. As older cars are “used up” in one way or another (restored, parted out, scrapped), they are not replaced. A company like SMS has to keep this in mind. So I can see a reluctance to do too much expansion.
But I would also not want to be a vendor that has my customer wait times measured in years. That’s not good customer service no matter how good my product. There should be some middle ground.
The real question is, why isn't there a competitor? Lebaron Bonney was a competitor and they went belly-up. SMS bought them out.
Where does Kanter get their generic interior kits since LeBaron Bonney isn't around anymore? I bought a set of seat covers from the Automotive Interiors website years ago for my Ford truck. For all I know they could have been manufactured overseas.
Where does Kanter get their generic interior kits since LeBaron Bonney isn't around anymore? I bought a set of seat covers from the Automotive Interiors website years ago for my Ford truck. For all I know they could have been manufactured overseas.
I was wondering that myself, since they appear to be the same as the ones LeBarron Bonney used to sell.Those used to be sold under the EZ Rod brand before LeBarron Bonney, so maybe that's a different company?
I absolutely will not do business with SMS. 5 years ago, I needed fabric for my '67 Newport. SMS was real shitty to me, and said I'd never find the stuff, only they had it. WELL, I DID find it, and was happy to gloat to that turkey that I had the fabric. He continued to be shitty, insisting it wasn't correct material. I sent him a photo, and suddenly he wanted to know where I got it so he could buy them out. I never responded. READ BELOW FOR IMPORTANT MESSAGE.
Just last month, I was looking for vinyl for my '65 New Yorker. SMS wants $85 per yard. I basically googled it, and the ETSY website came up. Lo and behold, a vendor on ETSY had the correct vinyl, NOS, for $50/yard with FREE shipping. That ETSY vendor's name is DEADSTOCK AUTO VINYL. Deadstockautovinyl.com. 352-339-1078. They also have another store called The Estate Stash, same folks. The Estate Stash has LOTS of NOS auto fabric from the '60s and 70s. I bought 4 yards of really nice NOS Chrysler turquoise fabric (for the '67 New Yorker) to use in my 65 NYer. Yeah, it isn't year-correct, but it's extremely close and looks great, and I'm not taking the car to Pebble beach. 4 yards of the fabric cost me $200 with free shipping. SMS wanted $159/yard, and we know how they charge for shipping. Dead Stock has a lot of fabrics, for GM, Ford. Mopar, even AMC.
SMS sent me a sample of correct headlining material.. 7 months later they ship me something this is not the correct color or texture at $129/yard.
Why would I pay this much money for the wrong material when I can find other kinda sorta close color for like $12/yard?
Why did it take 7 months for SMS to string me along? Why not just say, oh we can't provide it but we have some stuff that might work. And send me a sample to evaluate and let me determine if it is OK to send, rather then just sending crap and hope I except it?
Rallye469's story is often repeated in the classic car world. So the question is, (questions are):
*How can they get away with this? 3 years to get the product?? I was in the remodeling business for 30 years, and if a job went 3 SECONDS past the expectation, the customer was complaining.
*Does the customer pay for door cards in full, up front? Well, I would not do that, especially if I researched their reviews. I guess if they have your money, they just don't need to be in a hurry. This is the cardinal sin in the remodeling game....if a contractor comes in to remodel your kitchen for 30K, and asks for 50% of the dough before he even starts, well, then you are already dealing with the wrong guy. Ever hear of a story like that?....a thousand times a day.
*Are there monopoly laws that can be applied here? Surely the Better Business Bureau is aware of the situation, are they involved?
Thankfully, on my budget, I am not dealing with high-end show cars, so I'm not held hostage by vendors of this type.
I also have a '63 Dynamic 88 two door hardtop.
It was about two months time from when I sent a sample of the original material to them until i received my pre-sewn headliner.
A lot of people don't realize that when SMS gets the order they have to make the item.
Nothing is sitting on a shelf, ready to go.
Sometimes. they even have to make the material itself.
I've read bad reviews on Just Dashes, apparently SMS is the same kind of operation. The astronomical price combined with lousy customer service is too high to pay in my book. I'll stick to aftermarket companies and suppliers.
I ordered my door panels, headliner, sun visors and seat covers from SMS two and a half years ago. The headliner arrived within a few weeks, I’d sent my old door panels in upon placing the order. Last November, they asked me for my old seat covers to use for patterns. I had specifically requested standard ‘70 coupe bucket front with matching custom flattop wagon rear seat covers on placing the order. After waiting all this time, their response was “we don’t have the pattern”. (Zero apologies/F’s given) I understand when folks don’t have the resources to accomplish my goals, but SMS wasted years of time that I could have sourced from a competitor. Ultimately, I ordered a standard seat kit from Legendary during the holiday sale with a 280 day lead time with intentions of deconstructing the rear seat to create my personal goal. Meanwhile, I’m still waiting for the door panels….October will mark 3 years…. Regarding manpower, I believe that the current standard (especially since the Covid epidemic) among the working class has diminished drastically. No one seems to want or need to work anymore. The lack of manpower at SMS seems to be a byproduct of this approach. It makes me wonder how the Second World War would have ended if our people had the same attitude then…. Apologies for my rant, I’m just a car guy who expects to receive what I’ve paid for and trying to brace others for continued frustration. Still grateful for faith/health!!😀
March 20th, 2024, 03:03 PM
