Matt Wittmier – RW Auto Classics

I was visiting my son in Seattle last week and took the opportunity to visit Matt Wittmier at RW Auto Classics in nearby Snohomish, WA. I was not aware of this business until recently, when I got a hit on the internet for an obscure part I needed for the restoration of my 1963 Jaguar Etype coupe. In that particular case, it was for a quarter window hinge that was only used on the early cars. But as I started to look at their website, RWAutoClassics.com, I came to find that they carry an astounding number of used parts for Jaguar and other european marques. Matt had invited me to stop in if I was ever in the area so I did just that.

The facility is located in a very large barn. Although there were a few interesting cars, which I will mention below, most of the parts had been stripped from their donor cars, categorized, stored, and listed on their database. It appears that Matt and his crew have done a very good job of storing and organizing the parts, neatly hung, racked, or binned as required.

Matt also had some interesting car bodies. Here he is with an XK140 FHC and an E-Type.

One of the more interesting finds was a 1957 Arnolt Bristol sports car, which at one time was owned by General Curtis LeMay. General LeMay was instrumental in the early days of the SCCA, where he arranged to have military airfields in the US made available for weekend race meetings.

Another interesting find was this engine from a P-51 Mustang aircraft, probably repurposed to power an unlimited class hydroplane.

Matt said that they were expanding the business to perform restoration and general repair of European sports cars. Several were visible on the day I visited.

When asked, Matt stated that most of their inventory had been acquired from older gentlemen that were settling their affairs or having their estates settled for them by their heirs. It happens, we all buy stuff we may or may not need over the years, until eventually the years catch up with us. I would note, as evident in the above photo, Matt is still quite young. He allowed that mountain climbing was one of his hobbies and that he had climbed Mt. Ranier (El. 14,411′) as a day hike! I for one am glad to see a member of the next generation of car enthusiats getting involved in a big way with our hobby. Please keep RW Automotive in mind for parts and service.