Restoration Design Tour!

A Trip to Restoration Design: Where Vintage Porsches Get a New Lease on Life 

Written By: Eric Shea

Check out the bottom of this page for an awesome video of the tour!

Hey, vintage Porsche fans! Buckle up for a recap of my recent whirlwind trip to Guelph, Ontario, to visit our friends at Restoration Design. This wasn’t just a business trip, it was a deep dive into the heart of vintage Porsche restoration, filled with sheet metal, wiring harnesses, and a whole lot of passion for keeping these classic cars alive.

On June 22nd, I hopped on a flight from Salt Lake City to Toronto, landing at 4:44 PM. The bustling Toronto airport was alive with energy, and I was greeted by PK (Peter Koncandrle), who heads up Restoration Design’s Wiring Department. Our plan? Grab dinner with Peter DeJonge, connect with Ian Karr (of YouTube 914 fame, check him out at: youtube.com/@IanKarr), who was flying in from New York at 8:44 PM, and then make the 50-minute trek west to Guelph. By 10:30–11:00 PM, we were checked into our hotel, ready to crash before a big day at Restoration Design. Peter DeJonge (and his trusty dog, Sunny) would be picking us up bright and early at 8:30 AM.

The next morning, we hit the ground running with a short drive to Restoration Design’s massive 50,000-square-foot facility. Our goals for the day were clear: knock out some business, tour their impressive setup, and shoot video footage of the trip, including Ian’s wiring harness for his 914-6 project being crafted. If you’re not familiar, Restoration Design is a powerhouse in the vintage Porsche world, stamping all their sheet metal in-house for our beloved classics. Their facility is a gearhead’s dream—multiple presses for small, medium, and large parts, with a colossal press on the way capable of stamping entire hoods and larger panels. The warehouse is packed with inventory, manufacturing operations, and even complete 356 Speedster bodies being built on-site. It’s a sight to behold!

 

 

What makes this place extra special to me? Restoration Design’s roots trace back to my hometown of Eaton Rapids, Michigan. Back when Bill owned the business, I visited the old facility, where it could take months to get parts stamped—like the 911 door post I once waited six months for, holding up our shop flow. Enter Mike DeJonge, who swooped in, bought the business, presses and all, and relocated it to Guelph. During the tour, I watched one of those original Eaton Rapids presses in action—a full-circle moment that gave me chills. Four degrees of separation? Maybe!

Now, let’s talk about the star of the show: Ian’s 914-6 wiring harness. For those who don’t know, Ian will be documenting his 914-6 restoration on YouTube, and it will be a must-watch for any Porsche enthusiast. Last May, Ian and I flew to Shreveport, Louisiana, to pick up a rare 914-6 (learn more at: porsche.com/usa/accessoriesandservices/classic/models/914/914-6/). This car was a gem—relatively rust-free but with some front-end accident damage. We hauled it back to Utah, where our PMB Performance crew disassembled it in a single day (stay tuned for that video!). Using our 914 frame jig, we restored the tub to a “perfect” rust-free state, ready for paint. Now, it was time to tackle the wiring harness.

Ian's Harness looking Incredible!

At PMB Performance, we “never” build a car without a new harness. With 50+year-old cars, you’re gambling with degraded copper, hacked-in lamp cords from old stereo installs, or even Romex house wiring for alarms (yep, we’ve seen it all). Stripping original wires can mean digging 4–6 inches to find unoxidized copper. A new harness, though not cheap at around $3,000.00, saves hours of troubleshooting and ensures reliability. It’s the lifeblood of your car and a non-negotiable part of any "dream build".

At Restoration Design’s Wiring Department, PK gave us an up-close look at Ian’s new 914-6 harness, laid out on their harness board, nearly complete. The attention to detail was jaw-dropping. They source wires to exact factory specs and colors—crucial for future servicing when techs need to trace a wire. We geeked out over their automated wire stripper (with a cheeky nickname we’ll let you guess) and crimpers. Every wire is stripped to the perfect length for a flawless crimp, using either an automated crimper with a ribbon connector feed for bulk work or a high-end hand crimper for those critical one-off connections. It’s precision engineering at its finest.

The tour wrapped with a peek at some stunning cars in their shop, followed by an amazing lunch in downtown Guelph. Peter (and Sunny, of course) drove us back to the Toronto airport, where Ian and I took our flight back to Salt Lake City.

This trip was a celebration of shared passion and history. PMB Performance is proud to mark our 20th year in business, while Restoration Design (under the DeJonge family’s ownership) celebrates 15 years. We have every product they manufacture listed on our website here at pmbperformance.com, and their sheet metal is the backbone of our world-class restorations. Check them out at restoration-design.com and see why we trust them to keep vintage Porsches on the road.

Here’s to smooth skies, perfect crimps, and the timeless roar of a Porsche engine. Stay tuned for more from PMB Performance!

-Thanks Peter, Peter, Alex and Sunny!