We know from experience that having an ill-organized, filthy, messy garage does not lend itself well to productivity. Having a place for everything, adequate lighting and elbow room makes for a much more pleasant wrenching experience. Thus, Jack Olsen, based out of Los Angeles, must really enjoy working on his 1972 Porsche 911. He recently sent us a couple photos and a video of his garage, along with the writeup below:

The garage is 20×22, and it was done pretty much all on the cheap and all DIY. The lighting is mostly CFL bulbs, some in $5 trouble-light housings, but also a couple of Ikea pendant lamps and even three pendant lamps that are made of aluminized steel cake pans. Everything in the place is home-made, second-hand or repurposed. The big cabinets are made by Strong Hold and are awesomely overbuilt.

Each shelf is rated to hold 1900 pounds. They’re expensive new but I picked them up used. There are some Vidmar cabinets in the center which I matched with an Ikea butcher block top to make a kind of center island bench. The free standing bench in the opening to the garage is home-made. I curved that steel piece myself and added a second-hand length of Maple butcher block.  I’ve got one table on the car side that folds down to hold my router table and miter saw. The steel table next to it folds down for welding. The sink area was made out of a Strong Hold cabinet that I cut into pieces and turned into two smaller cabinets, a counter-top and also those mailbox-style cabinets up above it.

The lift is a second-hand Vestil hydraulic table that I paid $455 for. I submerged it 8″ under the surface of the garage on an 8″ reinforce pad that I poured. It’s flush with the floor now and I was able to tile it to match.

The car is also a mutt/mix. It’s a 1972 911 flared like the 73 RSR. It’s got brakes from an 86 Turbo, a magnesium transaxle from a 1977 model, an engine from a 1995 993, and a mostly custom suspension. It’s a street car that also gets tracked eight or so times a year. All the body panels except the roof are fiberglass.  All the windows except the windshield and the roll-ups are Lexan.  It was featured in Excellence six years ago.

Now, while we dream about those jumbo-sized garages that always appear in coffee table books, just like every other car guy, Jack’s garage contains plenty of inspiration for those of us who will never have much more than a two-car to mess around with. Thanks, Jack!