Breathing life into vintage autos

The business is geared toward breathing new life into vintage automobiles through repair and restoration.

Its 6,000-square-foot facility on East 22nd Street buzzed with activity on a recent weekday afternoon.

A 1966 Corvette in the showroom awaited minor upgrades to raise its technical inspection score with the National Corvette Restorers Society.

Another Corvette, a 1979 model, sat parked at a work station for a custom paint job and full interior replacement.

Out back, in the shop's fenced-in lot, a 1937 black Ford truck sat balanced on a hydraulic lift.

The truck, once part of the Truly Nolen showcar fleet, was in an accident that crumpled the front fender.

"We'll reshape it," said Andrew Papanikolas, who owns the business with his dad, Michael Papanikolas. "You can get fiberglass replacements, but the owner wants the original sheet-metal fender repaired."

The Papanikolas family took over Saguaro a little more than a year ago.

Andrew Papanikolas, 34, lived in Phoenix for 11 years, but he grew up in Tucson. He went to St. Gregory College Preparatory School and has a degree in geophysics from the University of Arizona.

Papanikolas was working as an IT expert in Phoenix when the owner of Saguaro, a friend of the family, mentioned he might want to sell the business.

A self-proclaimed car nut, Papanikolas thought the move into mechanics would be a good change of pace.

"I got to the point in my career where it wasn't fun anymore," he said. "I was working really hard, but wasn't producing anything."

Today, Papanikolas manages a team of five, three full-time mechanics in the main facility and two specialists — a metal fabricator and a painter — in a second building at North Alvernon Way and East Ajo Way.

The shops bring cars back from the dead. But they also do general automotive work, from oil changes to collision repair.

Papanikolas' wife, Claudine Villardito divides her time between running her vintage clothing store, Black Cat Vintage at East Broadway and North Tucson Boulevard, and working as the office manager for Saguaro.

Villardito met Papanikolas at a party 15 years ago. The two have been married for the last six.

She grew up in Tucson, but had mixed emotions about coming back, especially under such unique circumstances.

"I was horrified," she said. "It was 180 degrees from where we were. I didn't have any doubts Andrew could do it. It was just such a big shift in gears."

Villardito said she is glad they decided to come home.

"We are not only having fun, but we are doing so well," she said. "Andrew is so capable. The industry he is in now is different, but the concept is the same. He is quite good at what he does."

Saguaro currently has 14 restoration projects at different levels of completion. Patience is a virtue in the restoration world. Some projects can take up to 18 months to finish, Papanikolas said.

It also doesn't hurt to have money in the bank.

Restorations, he added, can run into tens of thousands of dollars.

The shop gets a mix of auto enthusiasts. Some want to revive the old family automobile that has been wasting away in the garage. Others buy the car of their dreams on eBay or at auction, then come to Saguaro for repairs.

Papanikolas said the economic downturn has weeded out those looking to turn a quick buck selling vintage cars. Most of Saguaro's customers are doing it for the love of the vehicle.

"To have someone coming in and getting into the project is pretty cool," he added.

What Papanikolas enjoys the most is seeing young people revive cars that are older than they are.

He remembered a woman in her mid-20s who came in recently looking to restore a 1940 Plymouth Coupe.

"We are such a disposable society," he said. "You lease your car for three or four years, then you throw it away and get another one. It is nice to see people wanting to get into something that is old and that has a sense of history and style."

Saguaro Automotive Group

Saguaro Automotive Group is located at 5728 E. 22nd St. Call 747-6800 to learn more.