Transport & Motoring | Manukau Auto and Tyre Centre
Let the guru give your wheels a once over Manukau Auto and Tyre Centre started with just one man and his passion. Now, as the company prepares to celebrate 30 years in business next year, Auckland Today looks at the drivers behind this innovative automotive firm. In 1986 Nigel Stickland – also known as the Mag Wheel Guru – recognised the opportunity to open an automotive repair shop in the growing area of Manukau, finding the perfect spot on the corner of Cavendish and Lambie Drives. Before long he opened up a tyre store next door and says together the two shops “took off, feeding off one another”. “We’re a little unusual in that most tyre businesses are standalone and don’t do well at mechanical work, and many automotive repair places don’t do tyres properly. Effectively we operate as two standalone businesses from one premises, but with specialist teams in each area, ensuring both sides of the business are at the absolute top of their game.” Nigel, an engineer by trade with a background in teaching engineering, has also been involved in mag wheel repairs for the past 15 years. A highly specialised field working on some of the country’s most valuable classic cars, this
No man stands alone Manukau Auto and Tyre Centre’s success wouldn’t be possible without strong support from a wide range of suppliers. Autolign – New Zealand’s largest specialised steering and suspension importers and distributors – and YHI (New Zealand) Ltd – a leading distributor of automotive and power products, are two of the companies which have made this possible and Manukau Auto and Tyre Centre thanks them for their support.
area involves a high level of trust and many of the company’s classic car following simply wouldn’t consider going anywhere else. The team of 15 that work across what is now four neighbouring buildings, are all selfprofessed petrol heads, involved in various forms of motorsport and classic cars in their own time, as much as during the working day. In fact, as we talk, the workshop manager drives past in a classic Jag, preparing to repair the wire wheels. Nigel is a proud E Type Jag owner himself. “I’ve always been an automotive person from day one,” he says. “I’ve owned some interesting cars over the years. That we get to work on some of these extremely valuable vehicles is a real feather in our cap. Most simply don’t get the opportunity to work on vehicles of this calibre because these owners won’t trust just anybody.” It’s this strong attention to a quality job which has seen the Manukau Auto and Tyre Centre build such a strong reputation during the years. Even the tyre repairs side of the business – an industry represented by a high number of flyby-nighters and cheap products – has made quality its focus, ensuring access to a wide range of product suitable to meet customer needs. “I believe it’s about the right tyres for the needs of the customer,” he says. “That doesn’t mean they have to be hugely expensive European tyres that wear out quickly. We have the ability to source product, often for half the price, product that lasts twice as long. Our product knowledge gives our customers real value for money.”
In the mag wheel repair department – which has earned Nigel the moniker of the ‘Mag Wheel Guru’ – they have recently installed a state of the art spray booth for painting wheels, New Zealand made and designed in the company’s own machine shop. “Productivity has gone up significantly as a result; it’s very busy in that department.” Thirty years in any industry is an impressive feat, for the automotive industry this is even more so and, as a result, Manukau Auto and Tyre Centre has a level of credibility seldom seen. The company, which also has the franchise for The Shock Shop (providing specialist service and technical suspension expertise), receives a large amount of referral work. “We also get sent a large amount of work others have had issues with, problems that haven’t been
solved elsewhere. With our level of knowledge and experience, there hasn’t been a problem we haven’t been able to solve,” he says. The automotive passion runs in the Stickland family and earlier this year Nigel’s son Dan, along with Te Ariki (AKA TUX) Gardiner, who has worked for the firm for 16 years, have bought into the business. “I’m so immensely proud,” Nigel says. AT Manukau Auto & Tyre Centre 32 Lambie Drive Manukau City Auckland T (09) 261 1500 0800 MAGWHEELS E sales@magsandtyres.co.nz www.magsandtyres.co.nz — Advertising Feature
NZ’S WIDEST RANGE OF STEERING AND SUSPENSION Phone:
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Unit 5, 99 Carbine Road, Auckland | www.autolign.co.nz
www.aucklandtoday.net.nz August 2015 | 63