If you don’t know him personally, allow me to tell you that John Benton is an incredibly kind person, a deeply devout Porsche enthusiast, and has built some incredible cars since kicking off in 1986. While the shop is perhaps best known for building some of the best 912 and 356 flat fours in the country, John will be quick to tell you that they work on all kinds of Porsches, and even a few non-Porsches.
Bad things sometimes happen to good people.
Last week the Benton warehouse, just one building over from the main shop, went up in smoke. A nearby building caught fire and spread to the warehouse quickly late at night. Thankfully the main shop was preserved, but every spare part, stacks of engines and transmissions. It’s a crying shame, because these are things that are completely irreplaceable. It’s a good thing that nobody was hurt in the fire, but the Porsche community will be feeling this destruction for years to come.
Here is the full caption from the Benton Performance instagram post acknowledging the fire:
Dear Friends, Clients, and Porsche Community, late Wednesday, October 30th, Benton Performance and the Benton family experienced a devasting event when a neighboring facility caught on fire and this industrial fire spread rapidly to our buildings. Anaheim Fire Department responded swiftly, saving our main shop and offices. However, our warehouse and its contents were destroyed. Among the client and personal belongings lost were irreplaceable cars, matching number drivetrains, tools, and Porsche memorabilia collected over a lifetime.
As I stand in front of the burned-out warehouse, I can’t help feeling the shock and pain of a lifetime of work gone up in flames, but I am so thankful that no one was hurt. I am so thankful for friends, clients and members of the Porsche community who reached out and who continue to call and text with well wishes, prayers, and offers of assistance. It is at these times that I am reminded of how truly grateful I am for all of you. Your encouragement gives me the strength and determination to walk into my business on this daunting Monday morning with the energy to rebuild.
And so, the process of working with insurance companies and starting the huge undertaking of re-building begins. I am also happy to report that we are still open for business and are doing everything we can to serve the Porsche community that we hold so dear.
Benton Performance was established in 1986 and this fire is not going to stop my 33 years of dedicated effort. I am focused on rebuilding to be better and stronger for the next 30 years and beyond.
All additional inquires can be directed to John Benton at john@bentonperformance.com
If you want to help support a great member of the community in this awful tragedy, perhaps consider purchasing a hat or t-shirt.