The piston juggler

The piston juggler

“Do you know the feeling of flying with a novice pilot?” asks Dominik Stöger and answers his own question: “The constant fear of falling – I couldn’t stand that.” So the specialist, who was trained at the Federal College of Aviation Technology in Langenlebarn, went looking for a job and, 13 years ago, met Ernst Chalupa, who ran a vintage car workshop in Traiskirchen, Lower Austria. Friends of English and French automobiles from the 1930s in particular appreciate the expertise of the Chalupa house and entrust them with their valuable sheet metal treasures. In the spacious hall, several stately motor carriages from Bugatti, Lagonda, Jaguar and MG are currently waiting for maintenance and service work to make them fit for the coming spring trips. “My main activity is to tighten all the screws that have become loose,” smiles Stöger. But things are not as simple as it sounds. After a classic car rally season, everything that should move is stuck, and everything that should be tight moves. Getting the mostly completely dirty mechanics working again requires a lot of know-how and skilled hands.

After the death of her husband four years ago, Ingrid Chalupa continues to run the workshop together with her daughter Katharina. Dominik Stöger remained on board as a mechanic, Ingrid Chalupa takes care of the spare parts supply, Katharina takes care of customer contacts. An additional skilled worker would be welcome, but such a workforce is notoriously difficult to find today. So Dominik works alone on the powerful engines, some of which have been neatly dismantled into their individual parts and are waiting to be restored. “Every second spare part is no longer available and has to be specially made,” says Stöger. He produces screws and bolts on the lathe, sometimes with an accuracy of a thousandth of a millimeter. The synchronization of the carburettors with their linkages, which are redirected via many levers, also presents the specialists with repeated challenges. “Fortunately, we consistently have extremely pleasant customers,” says Ingrid Chalupa. “They appreciate good work.”