Frequently Asked Questions:
Customer Service:
Customer service questions should be directed to Info@BavRest.com
Please include your vehicle information and equipment condition in your inquiry. If you are outside the USA, please specify in your initial email.
Because we work part time and would like to utilize our time as efficiently as possible to reduce lead times, please contact us via email only. We are very quick to respond to emails, usually same day. This also allows us to provide you detailed instructions, technical advice, and photos in our replies.
We do not have a phone number for you to contact. If you require phone support, I can provide in depth technical support or troubleshooting for an additional fee. Any calls made to our private numbers without prior authorization will require payment of a $200 fee prior to any work performed or the fee added to the work invoice.
Do you have a location to visit? What is your address?
We do not have a retail location to visit and we operate by mail order only.
For shipping purposes you can send to the following:
Bavarian Restoration
2415 San Pablo Dam Rd
Suite 106, Box 225
San Pablo CA 94806
What are your prices?
Please see our Master Price Sheet page for current pricing.
What are your typical lead times?
How do I get started if I want my product serviced/repaired/customized?
Do we stock any instrument clusters ready to purchase?
We are primarily a service shop meaning you will have to send your parts to us to be repaired/refurbished/customized.
However, we occasionally do stock custom clusters available for purchase on our Ebay account, BavRest. We also offer for sale on our Facebook and Instagram accounts. We will advertise our cluster sales on our social medias.
We also recommend contacting Guten Parts and Service www.GutenParts.com to inquire if they have any of our clusters in stock available for immediate purchase.
Feel free to email me current part/cluster availability. Often, if a cluster is purchased at full price, we can expedite it so you can receive it quickly.
Do we stock any Air Flow Meters ready for purchase?
We list all current stock of AFM units between our store and ebay listing under name BavRest. Please note E30 325i AFM's sell out extremely quick and are rarely in stock. We occasionally have them in stock so if you would like one, please consider to pre-purchase one and we will ship as soon as its available.
Do we stock any SI boards ready for purchase?
SI boards are usually in stock but not always, we list all current stock of SI boards in our store and ebay listing under name BavRest. You may pre-purchase and we will ship as soon as available. Lead time on an SI board purchase is usually 1 week.
What does your repair warranty entail?
At Bavarian Restoration, we do our best to provide a high quality product and service. Most of our work is hand crafted with an extremely careful attention to detail. However, vintage complex electronics and electro-mechanical devices can often exhibit intermittent operation and require troubleshooting. We will honor a repair warranty on your equipment, regardless of who purchased it, as long as the equipment is within the warranty window.
You must send your equipment back to us to be evaluated. We will perform diagnostics and if we find our workmanship or supplies parts are defective, we will cover the cost of return shipping (domestic to USA only). Please note, that if you refuse to send your parts back for evaluation, no warranty or refunds or exchanges will be honored. International customers are responsible for all shipping costs for all instances and all purposes.
What are your return policies?
We do not offer returns on any products or services with the exception of the following:
What are your exchange policies?
What are your shipping and handling policies?
We use the following shipping services (unless another service is requested in your initial email):
Shipping insurance and signatures:
Handling times (for products in stock):
Packaging Specifications for our products and services:
Do you guys work on other clusters besides BMW?
Currently we are only able to test the following clusters:
-BMW E30
-BMW E28
-BMW E24
-BMW E23
-BMW E36
-BMW E10
However, we can test all speedometers.
Although we cannot test other clusters, we have lots of experience repairing, rebuilding, customizing BMW E21, BMW 2002, and E34 clusters. We can also perform repairs/rebuild/customizing of other instrument clusters but cannot test them.
I placed an order but would like to change my shipping address, how?
We use Paypal to process our payments. Paypal has inherent protections for both the consumer and seller. In order for these protections to remain valid, we can only ship to the shipping address that you specify during your transaction checkout.
If you require us to ship to a new address, contact me via email. I will send you a new invoice for your purchase and you must pay the invoice with the new shipping address specified. Once paid, I will then refund your original transaction with the incorrect address.
If you or your client pay for a transaction and input an incorrect shipping address and you do not notify us of the incorrect address before we ship your product, then we will not responsible for any lost products. It is up to the purchaser to verify correct shipping address at the time of placing an order or to notify us of correct shipping address prior to us shipping. We sometimes ship products without any notification so it is important to verify correct address at the time of payment.
More info about our cluster repair/rebuilt/customize process:
When you make a purchase to have your cluster, cluster part, or AFM repaired, rebuilt, or customized, most of the time you are purchasing a "service" from us. This does not apply to the purchase of a product from us directly (ie. purchasing a cluster we supply.)
We take your original equipment and restore/rebuild/customize it. We will not take your parts and swap them with parts from our inventory with the exception of small components used during the rebuild process such as capacitors, transistors, batteries, etc.
Because you are purchasing a service from us, and not a product, there will be zero exchanges or replacements sent to you in the event of a failure. Your repair warranty will entail you to send the part back to us for evaluation and repair. If your purchase a part from us, see return/exchange policy above.
Additionally, vintage instrumentation can be very complex and tricky to restore. Sometimes a component is permanently failed but is not obvious. Unfortunately, most of the time, the only way to tell if a part can be repaired, is to attempt repair to it. Therefore, you are purchasing a service for us to attempt repair. If in the event that we attempt repair and your hardware fails our final testing. You will be responsible for providing a new core to refurbish and paying another refurbish fee. We will do our best to inspect your hardware prior to refurbishment to ensure it will make a good salvageable part. However we will not guarantee we can 100% repair your hardware, only do our best to attempt repair.
If you require a 100% repairable part, then it is recommend to buy your cluster from us directly instead of paying for a service of your parts. In this way, we will refurbish our inventory until a 100% working part is found and shipped to you. In addition, using this way, your purchase will come with a replacement warranty.
Last note is about instrument cluster clear covers. Most of these clear covers are no longer in production and not available "new" anywhere. We will do our best to remove and polish these covers without cracking them. However, occasionally, there may be covers with non-visible cracks that spread or the plastic is simply too brittle from decades of UV damage and age. We will not be liable for any cracked cover replacements unless blatantly cracked by mishandling or shipping to the customer.
By paying our invoice, you agree to all terms set forth on this page and listed on the invoice itself. Please email me with any questions.
Customer service questions should be directed to Info@BavRest.com
Please include your vehicle information and equipment condition in your inquiry. If you are outside the USA, please specify in your initial email.
Because we work part time and would like to utilize our time as efficiently as possible to reduce lead times, please contact us via email only. We are very quick to respond to emails, usually same day. This also allows us to provide you detailed instructions, technical advice, and photos in our replies.
We do not have a phone number for you to contact. If you require phone support, I can provide in depth technical support or troubleshooting for an additional fee. Any calls made to our private numbers without prior authorization will require payment of a $200 fee prior to any work performed or the fee added to the work invoice.
Do you have a location to visit? What is your address?
We do not have a retail location to visit and we operate by mail order only.
For shipping purposes you can send to the following:
Bavarian Restoration
2415 San Pablo Dam Rd
Suite 106, Box 225
San Pablo CA 94806
What are your prices?
Please see our Master Price Sheet page for current pricing.
What are your typical lead times?
- Air Flow Meter Refurbishment - 30-45 days not including shipping.
- Instrument Cluster repair (single gauge or circuit board) - 5-7 business days each, with appt.
- Full Cluster Restoration (E30) - 7-10 days by appointment.
- Full Cluster Restoration - 2 months without appointment (wait list system)
- Custom Instrument Cluster builds - 6-8 weeks, this can vary depending on our current work load and time of year. During summer time, lead time is typically 8-10 weeks.
- Custom Overlay Dials - 7-10 days
- We can offer expedited service for most jobs but it will require additional costs. Please email me for a quote on expedited service.
How do I get started if I want my product serviced/repaired/customized?
- Email info@BavRest.com and please list all products and services you would like to order. If you are not located in USA, please specify. If you do not explicitly state that the return shipping will be international, we will assume it is domestic to the USA.
- We use Paypal to process invoices. You do not need to have a Paypal account to pay us, they will simply expedite the payment using many forms of payment including credit cards, debit cars, E-checks, and more.
- Provide us the email you would like us to invoice you to. If you do not receive an invoice from us within 2-3 business days, please email us again.
- Once paid, your information will enter our work queue and your place in line will be held.
- You may send your equipment to us at any time or the appointment time specified by us. If you do not send by the time we are ready to start, I will email you to notify you to send the parts. Even if you do not send your parts past the 2 month wait list, your place in line will still be held and your job will become priority once we receive it.
- Please follow preparation and shipping instructions HERE.
- NOTE: If you send us your product without contact information on the product or included in the box, we will not be responsible for lost items. Please make sure your contact info is very blatantly and easily visible inside the box or on the product itself. When we receive product that is sent to us without contact info, we will assume it is an item we purchased or friends sent to us to keep. No effort will be made to contact you even if there is a legible address on the shipping label. If you send us a part without contact info, and I do not contact you after a week of the package showing delivered, consider it lost. It is your responsibility for providing clear contact info on the part.
- IMPORTANT NOTE: Once invoice is paid for, the job order cannot be changed. If you must insist on a change to your job order after you paid for it, if it is within a few days, it will be OK. However, if its over a few days, you will be charged heavy labor fees to process, reverse the work, and re-perform it.
Do we stock any instrument clusters ready to purchase?
We are primarily a service shop meaning you will have to send your parts to us to be repaired/refurbished/customized.
However, we occasionally do stock custom clusters available for purchase on our Ebay account, BavRest. We also offer for sale on our Facebook and Instagram accounts. We will advertise our cluster sales on our social medias.
We also recommend contacting Guten Parts and Service www.GutenParts.com to inquire if they have any of our clusters in stock available for immediate purchase.
Feel free to email me current part/cluster availability. Often, if a cluster is purchased at full price, we can expedite it so you can receive it quickly.
Do we stock any Air Flow Meters ready for purchase?
We list all current stock of AFM units between our store and ebay listing under name BavRest. Please note E30 325i AFM's sell out extremely quick and are rarely in stock. We occasionally have them in stock so if you would like one, please consider to pre-purchase one and we will ship as soon as its available.
Do we stock any SI boards ready for purchase?
SI boards are usually in stock but not always, we list all current stock of SI boards in our store and ebay listing under name BavRest. You may pre-purchase and we will ship as soon as available. Lead time on an SI board purchase is usually 1 week.
What does your repair warranty entail?
At Bavarian Restoration, we do our best to provide a high quality product and service. Most of our work is hand crafted with an extremely careful attention to detail. However, vintage complex electronics and electro-mechanical devices can often exhibit intermittent operation and require troubleshooting. We will honor a repair warranty on your equipment, regardless of who purchased it, as long as the equipment is within the warranty window.
You must send your equipment back to us to be evaluated. We will perform diagnostics and if we find our workmanship or supplies parts are defective, we will cover the cost of return shipping (domestic to USA only). Please note, that if you refuse to send your parts back for evaluation, no warranty or refunds or exchanges will be honored. International customers are responsible for all shipping costs for all instances and all purposes.
- Air Flow Meters - 2 year repair warranty
- Instrument clusters and SI boards - 3 year repair warranty
- Engine cables - Lifetime warranty
- All other products and services have no warranty unless stated otherwise on your receipt or invoice. We are highly confident in our products and usually always provide significant warranty.
- If you purchase a product from us outright (not a service but a purchase) then your purchase will come with a replacement warranty as long as cores are available. If a core is not available, then only a repair warranty will apply. If the part is deemed irreparable, and under warranty, and no replacements can be found, a refund of your purchase can be issued or store credit.
What are your return policies?
We do not offer returns on any products or services with the exception of the following:
- Non-custom made gauge overlay dials within 7 days, uninstalled and re-sellable condition.
- Engine cables within 30 days, uninstalled and re-sellable condition.
What are your exchange policies?
- Air Flow Meters - We can exchange your air flow meter if you feel it has failed prematurely or was damaged during transit. We will only exchange for compatible or same part number only. It is your responsibility to purchase the right AFM the first time. Please contact us for assistance with ordering if you need help.
- Instrument Clusters - There are no exchanges on whole instrument clusters, only individual components only. We will only exchange parts after we receive it back and confirm the parts are bad. This applies to cluster or cluster parts purchases not services.
- SI boards - We will exchange your SI board only after you return it to us for evaluation and we find it to be defective. This applies only to purchases, not services.
- Bavarian Restoration will not be liable to perform any repairs or replacements on equipment that has been mishandled, abused, damaged by improper shipping and packing to us, damaged by improper vehicle fusing, or physical abuse. If the parts are modified in any way, by someone other than Bavarian Restoration Staff, it may void your warranty.
What are your shipping and handling policies?
We use the following shipping services (unless another service is requested in your initial email):
- Air Flow Meters - USPS Priority flat rate medium box (5 lbs)
- Instrument Clusters - USPS typically, UPS occasionally. (8in. x 10in. x 18in, 6 lbs)
- SI boards - USPS Priority box (3in x 3in x 14in, 10oz)
- Engine Cables - USPS Priority flat rate envelope
- Instrument Dial Overlays - USPS Priority flat rate small box (5oz)
Shipping insurance and signatures:
- Most shipments of clusters, AFM's and SI boards will require signature to avoid potential mail theft. If you do not wish to have signature required on your order, please notify me in your initial email.
- Only highly custom clusters and rare AFM's ship with additional insurance added and will be included in your quote. If you require insurance on your order, notify me in your initial email. Do not assume we will insure your package, if you require insurance, it must state so on the invoice you pay.
Handling times (for products in stock):
- Outgoing shipments - We typically process orders every week and in the beginning of the week. \
- Incoming shipments - We check in our receiving every week usually on a Friday, weekend or Monday evening. All shipments are accepted by our mail agent, the UPS store in San Pablo CA. They do not accept drop offs and do not contact them for customer service requests. Once your package shows delivered, consider it secure. Please ensure the address is exactly like listed above, any deviation from the address and my mail agent may reject the package or it may be accidentally delivered to a different address or lost. If the address used to ship to us is not exactly like listed above, and we/ UPS store do not confirm that we have received it, assume it to be lost.
- We are based in California and because of this, we require all international customers to make a cash payment for parts or services. This is due to the fact that Paypal seller protections are not valid on international orders because signatures or deliveries cannot always be verified. Please email us your order info and we will issue you a Paypal money request. Once Payment has been received, we will email you a confirmation invoice for your order.
- All international customers will be responsible for purchasing and issuing us a return shipping label for your product purchase or service. This label must be USPS or UPS. Fedex and DHL can be used as well with prior permission from us via your email thread. Packaging specifications can be found in the next bullet below.
- You are responsible for any duties and taxes imposed by your destination countries, this applies to pre and post order confirmation.
- Lastly, if there are any exceptions, delays, lost packages or any issues that require contact with a shipping company, you will be responsible for any and all inquires. Bavarian Restoration staff will not spend any time contacting these companies unless additional labor fees are paid in advanced. This fee is typically $200. Once tracking history shows that the mail carrier has accepted and scanned the package, we will no longer provide assistance if the package is delayed, lost, or any other issues that arise. As purchaser of the label, you will be responsible for all inquires for lost, stolen, delayed shipments.
Packaging Specifications for our products and services:
- E30, E36, E10 Instrument clusters - Weight 6 lbs, Box dimensions 8in. x 10in. x 18in.
- E21, E23, E24, E28 Instrument clusters - Weight 6 lbs, Box dimensions 10in. x 12in. x 18in.
- Air flow meters - Weight 5lbs, Box dimensions 5in. x 7in. x 12in.
- Si boards E30 - Weight 10oz. Box dimensions 3in. x 3in. x 14in.
- For all other parts and services, please obtain specifications directly through email.
- Phone number to be used for international orders - 510-620-0192. Please note this is not our phone number but the number for our mail agent. No customer service inquires should be asked at the above number, please limit calls to shipping related inquires only. Bavarian Restoration staff shall be notified, via email, prior to making any calls.
Do you guys work on other clusters besides BMW?
Currently we are only able to test the following clusters:
-BMW E30
-BMW E28
-BMW E24
-BMW E23
-BMW E36
-BMW E10
However, we can test all speedometers.
Although we cannot test other clusters, we have lots of experience repairing, rebuilding, customizing BMW E21, BMW 2002, and E34 clusters. We can also perform repairs/rebuild/customizing of other instrument clusters but cannot test them.
I placed an order but would like to change my shipping address, how?
We use Paypal to process our payments. Paypal has inherent protections for both the consumer and seller. In order for these protections to remain valid, we can only ship to the shipping address that you specify during your transaction checkout.
If you require us to ship to a new address, contact me via email. I will send you a new invoice for your purchase and you must pay the invoice with the new shipping address specified. Once paid, I will then refund your original transaction with the incorrect address.
If you or your client pay for a transaction and input an incorrect shipping address and you do not notify us of the incorrect address before we ship your product, then we will not responsible for any lost products. It is up to the purchaser to verify correct shipping address at the time of placing an order or to notify us of correct shipping address prior to us shipping. We sometimes ship products without any notification so it is important to verify correct address at the time of payment.
More info about our cluster repair/rebuilt/customize process:
When you make a purchase to have your cluster, cluster part, or AFM repaired, rebuilt, or customized, most of the time you are purchasing a "service" from us. This does not apply to the purchase of a product from us directly (ie. purchasing a cluster we supply.)
We take your original equipment and restore/rebuild/customize it. We will not take your parts and swap them with parts from our inventory with the exception of small components used during the rebuild process such as capacitors, transistors, batteries, etc.
Because you are purchasing a service from us, and not a product, there will be zero exchanges or replacements sent to you in the event of a failure. Your repair warranty will entail you to send the part back to us for evaluation and repair. If your purchase a part from us, see return/exchange policy above.
Additionally, vintage instrumentation can be very complex and tricky to restore. Sometimes a component is permanently failed but is not obvious. Unfortunately, most of the time, the only way to tell if a part can be repaired, is to attempt repair to it. Therefore, you are purchasing a service for us to attempt repair. If in the event that we attempt repair and your hardware fails our final testing. You will be responsible for providing a new core to refurbish and paying another refurbish fee. We will do our best to inspect your hardware prior to refurbishment to ensure it will make a good salvageable part. However we will not guarantee we can 100% repair your hardware, only do our best to attempt repair.
If you require a 100% repairable part, then it is recommend to buy your cluster from us directly instead of paying for a service of your parts. In this way, we will refurbish our inventory until a 100% working part is found and shipped to you. In addition, using this way, your purchase will come with a replacement warranty.
Last note is about instrument cluster clear covers. Most of these clear covers are no longer in production and not available "new" anywhere. We will do our best to remove and polish these covers without cracking them. However, occasionally, there may be covers with non-visible cracks that spread or the plastic is simply too brittle from decades of UV damage and age. We will not be liable for any cracked cover replacements unless blatantly cracked by mishandling or shipping to the customer.
By paying our invoice, you agree to all terms set forth on this page and listed on the invoice itself. Please email me with any questions.