Eric Nolting of Springfield, Ill., proudly sits atop the masses of do-it-yourself auto body repair aficionados who are masters of duct tape, plastic cable ties and garbage bags. Nolting was awarded $500 Sept. 2 as the winner of the Don’t Quit Your Day Job contest sponsored by Zara’s Collision Center, Brad Zara, owner of Zara’s Collision Center, announced.
Nolting’s winning entry was a 1999 Mercury Villager on which he had rigged the wipers to control them with shoestrings.
“The idea for the contest originated because we’re continually in awe of the effort people put into the temporary fixes of their damaged vehicles,” Zara said. “The larger issue we want to emphasize is that improper repairs pose a safety concern. Professional repairs using the right parts are essential to keep all of us safe on the road.”
The contest ran during July and was open to anyone with a do-it-yourself vehicle repair job of which he or she was particularly proud. A digital photo of the vehicle was submitted through Zara’s Web site. Online voting was open to the public to select its favorite creative repair.
“Everybody had a good time seeing the patch jobs submitted – things we’ve probably all attempted on our own at some point,” said Zara. “The entries were reassurance that there will always be a market for duct tape.”
Zara’s Collision Center, now in its 23rd year of business, is located at 3117 Wide Track Drive in Springfield, Ill. Visit www.zarascollision.com for more information. 
