‘EVERY BIT OF THAT CAR IS A BIT OF ME’

Aged 25 in 2000, Jamie Shaw was king of the modifying scene. His business, Carisma Automotive, specialised in leather re-trims and created several cover cars. The combination of craftsmanship and creativity fed the scene, but it didn’t last…

‘When they asked me to come here I said, “Nah, I’m not interested.” And then I thought, “What would a Reunion be without my car?” It’s probably responsible for thousands of Renault 5 GT Turbos being butchered or scrapped!

‘It’s the only car I ever kept, and every bit of it is a bit of me. The design was in my head. I’d get styling foam from the boat-building industry, stick the blocks on, cut bits o , sand it, then fibreglass it. ‘Back in the day we’d charge £1500 for a basic leather re-trim, and we’d normally spend 12 weeks building a demo car, mainly me, and it’d probably be £50k if someone wanted something similar. ‘When the mag was going down we went in a di erent direction with VIP vehicles. I built cars for the Sultan of Brunei and another for Roman Abramovich, with a built-in oxygen supply. That business went pear-shaped, someone tried to sue me for a couple of million euros, nightmare. ‘Roman wanted a couple more cars, but I was winding the company up. I can’t tell you how gutted I was. I’d worked for 20 years to get to that point, and I was so proud of the interiors.

‘I now work at P&A Wood, the largest Rolls-Royce and Bentley heritage dealer in the world. I’m in charge of the trim shop, mostly working on cars worth more than £2m. I used to earn a little more when Carisma was at its peak, but the pressure… Now I’ve got no bills, no one to worry about, I’m happy.

‘I’ve spent £12k keeping my Renault 5 in dehumidified storage, and that’s my boy’s inheritance. I’m not saying it’s the best car in the world – it’s a Renault 5 GT Turbo – but it is the car that inspired thousands of people to join the scene.’