Generally speaking, car care has evolved from general service shops focused on the fundamental mechanics of auto repair to state-of-the-art service centers complete with modern diagnostic equipment and teams of specialized automotive technicians designed to handle the latest in automotive technology. There’s no denying “state-of-the art” is what’s required to handle today’s homogenized and computer controlled daily drivers. This is why when I stopped to shoot a couple of shots of a 1964 Ford Galaxie outside of Val Halla’s Auto Service in Reno, NV this week, I was excited to have been invited inside by independent shop owner Dan Olsen.
In a way, a tour around his shop was a step back in time to how a general service shop probably once appeared and operated. This doesn’t mean that Val Halla’s hasn’t evolved to handle modern automotive systems and repair, but it was clear that Dan still had a finger in the past while maintaining his modern clientele. At Val Halla’s it was pleasing to see that the shop owner had allocated one lift to his own project… a 1949 Mercury. Let’s take look around.
The Val Halla signage sends a dual message of general auto repair and restoration services. Pretty rare these days.
This is the 64 Galaxie I spotted out front of Val Halla’s. A popular model here on FM. I wasn’t looking for any more than a few shots to share in the Galaxie Forums when Dan Olsen introduced himself.
A shot of the front.
And a shot of the Galaxie’s interior for those of you keen to these cars.
In the back of the shop, Dan showed me the 1949 Mercury he considers his lifelong project.
We shared commonality in that he intends to drive this thing rather than just show it.
The front clip for the Mercury is from a mid-70’s camaro. A popular set-up for intermediate level dirt track cars.
The grill was 1957 Corvette.
And the motor? Big Block Mopar. A 440. You can say Dan was not particular about any one domestic make.
This old flathead was resting in the corner of the shop.
Out back sat somebody’s treasure. You can tell me what it is.
Finally, Dan let me know he was a member of the Pharoahs car club… this explained the ’49 Merc for all you American Graffitti fans.
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