The Frawley Company is not most people’s idea of a garage. The work done there is limited to two models of cars: Rolls-Royce and Bentley, and only those built before 1980. It’s strictly a mechanical shop where we service the cars, repair them or perform complete, ground-up restorations. We don’t do body work, paint or upholstery, which makes sense when you consider that until after WWII, Rolls-Royce, Ltd. supplied only the chassis of each car, that is, the engine, frame, wheels, and all mechanical systems. Bodies were added by coachbuilders who had evolved from the carriage fabricators of the nineteenth century. Since many of the cars were built before the second World War, new parts are often not available and the old ones must be rebuilt or new ones machined.

Not dependant upon a prominent location to attract customers, the operation is tucked away in a small town in Chester County, Pennsylvania, where, when we road test cars we often share the roads with Amish buggies. Set well back from the street on a tree-line acre in a residential neighborhood, the 5400-square foot building is low and rambling. It’s divided into separate sections: car shop, machine shop, parts area and storage. The shop cats rule the office but are not permitted in the car shop. Although as you can see from the picture, Barney (known to book fans as Maurice) managed to sneak in one day and discover that the Flying Lady mascot is perfect for chin scratching.

When Judith asked for volunteers to test her theory, the staff went into hiding under vintage headlamps that had been stripped and smoothed prior to being re-chromed. Despite their appearances in this photograph, all the shop employees have at least one master’s degree in a subject totally unrelated to auto mechanics.