All the Fixings: Distinctive Auto Works Edmonton

Third Western Canadian luxury car collision repair shop officially opens July 20 in Edmonton, Alberta with music, festivities.

You wouldn’t take a Stradivarius to your local guitar store for repairs, so why trust your luxury car to an ordinary body shop?

That’s the thinking behind Distinctive Auto Works in Edmonton, the third location of the collision repair chain first opened in 2008 and aimed at owners of Audi, BMW, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lexus, Porsche and other luxury vehicles.

Under the invitation title of All the Fixings, the grand opening celebration was held on July 20 on the shop’s spacious premises on the corner of 115A and 156 St. NW in Edmonton. More than 150 guests were treated to live music, sparkling beverages, and cuisine prepared by noted Westin Hotels & Resorts Executive Chef Geoffrey Caswell-Murphy.

With its 27,000 square feet of gleaming concrete floors and the very latest in high-tech paint booths and factory-certified repair benches operated by OEM factory-trained autobody technicians and painters, the Edmonton facility is DAW’s largest and most luxurious yet. For vehicle owners’ safety and peace of mind, it boasts many innovations. A computerized Naja laser measuring system
enables technicians to straighten damaged chassis to original factory specifications. Anti-static pre-paint and heated nitrogen spraypaint systems help return vehicle finishes to their original brilliant gleam – or better.

DAW Edmonton is the newest BMW Group Certified Collision Repair Centre (CCRC) in Edmonton, and also has certifications in progress with Audi, Porsche, Land Rover, Jaguar and Lexus.

The first Distinctive Auto Works opened in Calgary in 2008 and is the only Mercedes-Benz-certified collision repair centre in the city. The second opened in the Victoria suburb of Colwood in 2012, providing CCRC repairs to owners of BMW and Porsche.

Although relatively new to the collision repair industry, the three DAW shops are under the corporate umbrella of the well-known Craftsman Group, which owns Craftsman Collision, the largest independently owned and operated collision repair chain in Canada. The Craftsman Group is now in its 40th successful year, and has 40 locations including DAW.

“Opening Distinctive Auto Works was an evolutionary move for our company,” says Craftsman owner and founder Bill Hatswell. “The luxury brands, particularly European ones, are very particular about who gets to repair their vehicles, and in the case of Audi and BMW even mandate the use of their particular tools and techniques. Luckily we have the experience and the financial wherewithal to invest in their systems and training and earn their certifications. We want drivers of all vehicles – even the most elite and luxurious – to have access to the highest
levels of service and repair quality. Opening DAW has made this possible, and the new Edmonton location is the jewel in the crown.”

Distinctive Auto Works Edmonton is at 15535 115A Ave. NW, on the corner of 156 Street. Business hours are weekdays 8:00 a.m. until 5:30 p.m.