Our Story

Back in 2016, Wayside Performance was founded by myself, Chris. 

Fuelled with nothing else but a genuine passion for tuning cars, it started with fitting various parts on axle stands in my parents garage for other members of car forums (before Facebook groups were a thing.)

For the first couple of years we were primarily a VXR specialist but quickly added Ford into the mix thanks to my experience as a technician at a Ford main dealer. We built a TimeAttack car and competed in a few rounds, but it’s a damn expensive hobby, and I ultimately decided that I wanted to pursue the business dream instead.

After quitting my job as a Ford technician and finding a used dyno for sale, I was lucky enough to be able to convert an old farm building and install our first rolling road and a 2 post ramp.

 

Then on my birthday in 2017 we were finally open for business on our new 2WD DynoDynamics rolling road 🥳

 

 Tuning just got busier and busier, I’d love to know how many VXR’s and Focus ST’s we’ve tuned over the years. It seemed like a never ending stream of them every week.

It quickly grew to the point where I needed some help, and over the following 4 years we grew from just myself to a 4 man strong team.

We converted another farm building next door and we had the workshop I thought would only be a dream, more ramps, more room and more equipment.

We were lucky enough to be a part of some incredible projects over the years, 450hp+ VXR’s, 600hp+ Focus ST’s and 400hp+ on an Astra 1.9CDTI…. Yes we did it. Check our YouTube here.

 

 

  

Then COVID hit. A strange time for everyone. This impacted us in a huge way, we had projects on the go, engine blocks at the machine shop and then everyone shut. Our machine shop didn’t re-open for 6 months. We had clients builds just sitting, doing absolutely nothing for months.

Then when everything finally started to re-open, I’m sure that everyone in the motor trade can agree with me on this one, nobody had any parts. 

Stocks had been depleted everywhere while factories were closed and I remember at one point Focus ST crank bearings had a 12 month backorder 😳.  

At this point we needed to pivot, we just could not continue building projects the way we were, parts were absolutely sky-rocketing in price, machine work was backed up for months and we needed to keep the bills paid.

So with help from a friend we redesigned the website and began uploading all the same parts that we’d been fitting for years onto our website and eBay.

Things grew quickly, faster than I expected and within the space of 6 months it was a significant part of the business. 

In 2022, situations changed and the workshop just wasn’t viable for us anymore. I had to make the difficult decision to close down all of our mechanical service so that we could focus on the online and tuning side.

This really wasn't easy after the years of genuine blood, sweat and tears that had gone into that workshop. So many ups and downs, amazing people and projects but it had to be done.

 

Still determined, the next dream was always a proper 4WD dyno set up. Our 2WD had been absolutely faultless for years, but it was in an awkward position inside the building and there was a lot I would improve on if I was to build a dyno room again.

So we took the final building in our yard and started work. Now this was definitely our biggest project yet, the building needed extending out, the pit installed and we also wanted a waiting area with dyno viewing and an office for myself.

Except for the electrics and the brick work, everything was done by my dad and myself and after 12 months of building, concreting, sound-deadening, replacing ceilings, roofs, carpets and lighting, it was finally done.

In we dropped a 4WD version of the same DynoDynamics 2WD we’d had previously and we were back open again for business.

We’ve had all sorts on the dyno since we’ve installed it, from Lancias to Ferraris, BMW GT4 race cars, old school Mercedes Benz, full blown drag cars and everything in between. I still get excited over the cars we get in.

 

We truly offer an expert tuning service for almost every car on the road now, all carried out in a safe, cool and repeatable environment. 7 years of non-stop tuning cars has given me massive amounts of experience with all sorts of makes, models and ECU types.

The online side has been our main focus though, we’ve grown our presence online massively and I am super proud to work with, and offer parts from some of the very best manufacturers in the world.

Our main goal is to provide the best service that we possibly can.

We offer the highest level of customer service and support, and as we keep more and more parts in stock, we can offer the fastest delivery as well.

All parts that we offer have been curated by myself, we don’t offer anything that I wouldn’t fit to my own car, and don’t work with any manufacturer that wouldn't give us the same level of support that we would give to a client.

We are still only a 2 person team and we are now a genuine family run business, between my sister, Laura, and myself we manage everything, all the day to day runnings, questions, tuning, admin, website, eBay and more. (Although now we are getting busier, other family members are being roped in to help with dispatch.)

So that’s us, the story of Wayside Performance. 

7 years in this game, constant development, changing and evolving and I’m just as excited, if not more excited for what the future holds than ever before. 

Please don't hesitate to get in touch for anything at all, we'd love nothing more than to help with your project.

Oh, and make sure to follow us on socials for the latest updates! 👇

Thank you,

Chris