In the dusty backstreets of Al Quoz in Dubai, you are lucky if you can take more than a few steps without needing to clean your shoes. Gladly – and by necessity – there are no such problems inside the spotless white interior of Top Gear Customs Auto, a one-stop shop for transforming your car into something fit for Pimp My Ride.
“Our ethos is to give our customers a one-of-a-kind car,” workshop manager Mandy Villegas explains. “We have a slogan: ‘Take pride in your ride’. Whether you have a new or old car, we can completely revamp your ride from the inside (engine and interior) and out (bodywork), so that the new car reflects the customer’s style and personality.
“We do carbon-fibre door handles, power-window switches, interior panels, steering wheels, mirror covers, bonnets, trunks, side skirts, diffusers, front lips etc. Additionally, we offer accident repair, bodywork and paint jobs, service and maintenance, mechanical and electrical repair, and interior work.”
Japanese cars have become something of a mainstay at TGCA – when I visit, the majority of cars in the shop are Nissan GT-Rs. Indeed, I’m offered a spin in a souped-up, 1,200hp result of the workshop’s tinkering – an offer that I politely decline for fear of taking off into the stratosphere.
TGCA photographically documented a recent job for The National: replacing a GT-R's under-car shield, as explained by Villegas. The company uses a specialised oven to bake carbon fibre on-site. "For this particular project, the original shield was already made out of carbon fibre, but it was completely old and we had to change the design, look and aerodynamics for the new design, which usually only GCC and European models have," Villegas says. "The OEM [original equipment manufacturer] price is a lot more expensive than ours – Dh3,500 to Dh4,500. LED lights were also added.
“The most difficult part of the process is wrapping, which requires a lot of patience and skills to place the wrap on certain parts. Sanding also requires a lot of patience, because you have to repeat the procedure several times until the surface and shape are perfect.”
Towards the end of last year, TGCA’s clientele was swelled by a personal appearance in Al Quoz from chart-topping American rapper Soulja Boy, who was interested on the services at the workshop, which opened in October.
At least in these spotless surrounds they don’t need to literally dust their shoulders off.
For more information, visit www.topgearcustomsauto.com
aworkman@thenational.ae
