About Longtail Engineering in Charleston, SC
Turn to Longtail Engineering for All of Your Classic Porsche and Vintage European Repair and Vehicle Maintenance Needs
Longtail Engineering was born out of both passion for classic Porsches and a need in the lowcountry for a quality service center that specializes on classic European vehicles. LTE plans to provide top-of-the-line service and quality repairs while staying fully transparent to their clients. We offer full concierge-level service, we can transport your vehicle to and from your residence without the client having to lift a finger, as well as providing a digital inspection report with pictures and videos for your records. We are focusing on quality over quantity.
The shop was started by John Jovaneli, who also owns Wright Auto Works off Clements Ferry. Wright Auto focuses on vehicles that are OBD2 and newer (1995 and up), but had many clients asking where to take their classic euros. John decided to open a smaller, more bespoke shop that treated each client with the upmost attention to detail. John teamed up with Michael Baldino, who is an accomplished technician from the south Florida area. John moved Michael to the Charleston area to start up LTE. Michael's background includes working with companies such as 9automotion in West Palm, where he cut his teeth restoring Gbody Porsches and fell in love with working on the classics. Michael was heavily involved in multiple high-level restorations, including a 1970 911T Sports Purpose and later a 1974 IROC Tribute car.
Michael gained an in-depth understanding of CIS, flat-6 aircooled engine tuning and repairs, as well as Targa top adjustments and 356 carburetor tuning. Michael decided to shift his focus into the racing side of the industry, then going to work for the legendary 901 Shop as a fly-in technician for their track-side support. Michael also worked with Greg Dilion at Eurosport Motorwerks performing side-work when he was not at the racetrack with 901 Shop, and assisted Concept GT with some of their shop cars. At Concept GT, Michael found a love with dash-out repairs on several Ferraris, including a Testerossa and 1972 Ferrari 365 GTC. He even was able to assist with some gauge cluster repairs on a Ferrari F40, as well as a dash-out repair on a Lamborghini Countach. Michael is very familiar with working on high-end classic cars and hopes to continue to support the Charleston market with their classic exotic needs!
While LTE will focus on classic Porsches, we also will work on other classic European vehicles. If you have any questions about what we are willing to work on, please do not hesitate to call us at 854-275-4802, or email us