Allow me to introduce myself; I’m Jason Courtney, the founder, owner and
operator of Dream Car Chicago. I specialize in selling, restoring, and maintaining
classic Rolls Royce & Bentley cars as well as other assorted exotic and unique
foreign and domestic brands. Dream Car Chicago exists for those of you who
have always desired the driving experience and ownership of an exotic “dream”
car. Yet, it also exists because these cars are in my blood…and my bloodline!
My entire life has quite literally been spent with the Rolls Royce & Bentley brands
– I grew up with them. I’m proud to say I’m a third generation Rolls Royce
service craftsman as well as a lifelong owner of these cars. I follow in the
footsteps of both my father and grandfather, who both spent their lives working
for Rolls Royce on Crewe built vehicles, and passed on to me not only their skills,
but their love and appreciation for the quality and beauty of these “proper motor
cars”.
It began with my grandfather, Lawrence Courtney, who started the family
tradition as a technician and craftsman working for Rolls Royce at the Crewe
factory in England. In the late 1950’s, Lawrence was chosen by Crewe
management to relocate to the U.S. market and help educate the Americans on
the evolution from the 6 cylinder motor to the then-new 8 cylinder version.
Lawrence moved his family to America, settled in the Chicago area and began his
career working at Evanston Rolls Royce. There he quickly brought the dealership
and technicians up to speed on the new 6.75 liter, and solidly established himself
in the community as a Rolls Royce expert. As time moved on, so did Lawrence,
and the lure of entrepreneurship found him starting his own independent
business servicing RR & Bentley cars. He would soon be joined by his son Julian
(my father) who chose to carry on the family tradition as a Rolls Royce craftsman
and enjoyed a long career working with Lawrence and various other Rolls Royce
dealers in Chicagoland.
As a young boy, my father and grandfather taught me not only how to love and
appreciate the quality of these cars, but also how to care for and service them.
Though I “officially” began working on cars in their shop at the young age of 15,
the skills had already been developed earlier and by 17 I was in it fulltime. After
working with family for a few years, I ventured out on my own as many young
people do and continued developing my skills working at a Bentley dealership in
the Chicago area. I quickly evolved from servicing to selling new Bentley’s as my
employers recognized a talent in me beyond what I could do with my hands. Yet I
remained unfulfilled, as I still had a strong love for the older cars, and a desire to
do more. Thus, the seeds of entrepreneurship were planted as they were with
my grandfather, new ideas blossomed into reality and off I went on my own path
– alas, Dream Car Chicago was born in 2013. Today, along with my wife Anna as
my partner, I keep the old Crewe cars alive and offer both sales and service to
continue the family tradition.
SALES
The main focus at Dream Car Chicago is on post-war Rolls-Royce & Bentley cars
that were hand built at the Crewe factory through 1999. They have a level of
craftsmanship, quality and attention to detail that no longer exists in today’s
automotive world and represent the end of an era. It’s my love for these cars that
compels me to act as caretaker by continuing to keep them on the road and
finding new custodians. To accomplish that, I search out and find the nicest
examples to prepare and offer for sale here at Dream Car Chicago. As a member
of The Rolls Royce Owner’s Club, I’m active in various regional clubs and as a
result many of my cars are sourced through longtime members, which of course
often have the best maintained cars. As you review my website, you’ll notice
other interesting and exotic vehicles for sale as well. I’ve sold Aston Martin,
Ferrari, Jaguar, Land Rover, DeLorean, and BMW, just to name a few. If it’s a car
you’ve dreamed about, we’ve probably had it and sold it.
SERVICE
Finding qualified people to care for and work on these older Rolls-Royce &
Bentley cars is becoming difficult, as most of the technicians have by now retired
and the new car dealerships refuse to work on the older cars, preferring instead
to service the post 2000 BMW/VW produced Rolls & Bentleys. I offer full service
on most all postwar models of Crewe built cars through the SZ era, and will also
provide various restoration work. If you read the section about me, you already
know I’ve been working on these cars since I was a young boy and am equipped
to handle most any service need. When you buy a Rolls Royce or Bentley from
me, you can be confident that I will commit to servicing your car at my facility and
make you a priority. All mechanical service is done in-house by me and other
personally trained technicians I have developed. We also have some very
qualified outside specialists to assist in some of the restorative work, such as
paint and wood refinishing. All service is by appointment and must be scheduled
in advance as we are always very busy and in-demand!
