Jim Stokes Workshops Ltd (the JSW Group) (www.jswl.co.uk) has grown steadily since its origins more than 30 years ago as a backyard business; it now occupies several units on an industrial estate in Waterlooville, Hampshire, and employs 50 people, many of whom are specialist technicians in one of the most rarefied sectors of automotive engineering.

When he started the business, Mr Stokes was probably regarded as rather an eccentric; that was in the years before classic cars had become ‘collectibles’ for billionaires and repositories for global capital.

His obsession at that time was the Alfa Romeo 8C, which was in production from 1931 to 1939. The straight-eight engine and the chassis were configured in various guises for road and track over the years, and the 8C was driven by some of the most famous names in motor racing in some of the best-known events.

What no one knew when Mr Stokes began his fettling and restoration activities was that the 8C’s scarcity and history would eventually make it one of the most sought-after vintage cars in the world.

In the intervening years, the JSW Group has built up a world-wide reputation for its 8C expertise, as well as its in-depth knowledge of similarly rare and exotic Aston Martins, Ferraris, Jaguars, Lancias, Mercedes and Rolls-Royces, which pass through for repairs, pre- and post-race TLC and — occasionally — full restoration.

The company has also built six recreations of Lancia D50s, plus a diminutive yellow Ferrari 156 Sharknose. The authenticity of these cars is such that they qualify for FIA passports, allowing them to compete in events for thoroughbred classic cars.

Today, the JSW Group has four divisions. One of these is Triple M, which uses three Haas CNC (www.haascnc.com) vertical machining centres — a VF-2, a VF-5 and a VF-6 — to produce one-offs or batches of better-than-new components such as cylinder heads, cylinder blocks, valves, crankcases, carburettors, oil and water pumps and plenty more besides.

Parts — some of them no longer available — are also produced for the Classics by JSW division, which restores, repairs and rebuilds ‘more affordable’ cars, including Porsche 911s, MGs and even Morris Minors.

Mr Stokes says: “I like the American engineering, and I like the way Haas machines work. They have proven themselves as hard-working, reliable machines, and they have allowed us to bring much of our part manufacturing back in-house.

“I can take a job, put it on any of the Haas machines and get the same result every time in terms of quality and repeatability. In addition, the CNC system of each machine is exactly the same as the others, so if you use one Haas machine, you can use them all.”