The Paddock Closes its Doors After 40 Years

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The Paddock, the go-to location for muscle car restorers and performance enthusiasts for more than 40 years has closed its doors and will be selling off all of it's remaining assets this July 29th at an auction at the Avon, Indiana company headquarters, a 60,000 sq/ft facility full of parts, cars, equipment, and a spanning showroom.



Unfortunately, the economic downturn has taken a massive bite out of the automotive restoration industry, and sadly, the Paddock is only one of several companies to have suffered a fatal blow. Started in Knightstown, Indiana back in 1965, The Paddock was a "true American success story," starting as a small single-counter restoration shop and eventually growing to include wide line of parts, to the point of offering several catalogs for a vast array of classic American cars.

The original press release:
The down economy has claimed another victim—The Paddock, a mainstay in the muscle car parts business for over 40 years. Indianapolis-based Key Auctioneers (www.KeyAuctioneers.com) announced today that it will auction the company’s parts inventory, showroom items, collectibles, vehicles, and equipment at the company’s 60,000-square-foot Knightstown facility.
The July 29 auction is expected to draw thousands of muscle car enthusiasts from the Midwest and beyond.

The Paddock has been a leading supplier of muscle car parts for several decades. Its thirteen parts lines represent some of America’s most popular muscle cars, including Mustang, Corvette, GTO, and Camaro.

Company founder Jim O’Neil started The Paddock in 1965, restoring muscle cars in a small shop in Knightstown. By 1979, the company was manufacturing Mustang steel patch panels. The company’s first Mustang catalog was printed soon thereafter and the company started to grow by word of mouth. In 1980, the first Camaro catalog was printed. In 1998, Wes Watts, a former parts manager for the local Chevrolet dealership, purchased the company from O’Neil.

Over the years the company added Firebird, GTO, Chevelle, Nova, Cutlass, Impala and other catalogs to its muscle car line. In 2001, Watts built a state-of-the art 60,000-square-foot facility to accommodate his growing business.

According the Watts, the economic downturn of the last three years, along with the credit crisis, contributed to the company’s demise.

Key Auctioneers Senior Vice President Tim Boeglin said the company’s intellectual property was garnering a high degree of interest. Included in the intellectual property are the company’s name and trademarks, million-name customer list, websites, catalogs, and phone numbers.




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