Car-O-Liner Southwest’s Tim Curran Retires, but His Legacy Lives On

by Alana Quartuccio

Anyone familiar with Car-O-Liner Southwest is well aware of the dedication, experience and excellence that defines this company known for delivering the highest quality equipment, training and support.

And none of that would be possible without Tim Curran’s lifelong commitment to the organization that he and his wife and business partner, Shelley, and family have built in the state of Texas and throughout the southwest region.

Tim officially retired this past September, but his legacy with Car-O-Liner Southwest will never falter as it’s been left in great hands. A lengthy search into finding the right people to succeed their business brought the Currans to Jim Karol and Nick Feinman, who share the same commitment to excellence and are poised to continue to see the business grow as intended. 

Family has always played a huge role in Tim’s career which eventually led him to Car-O-Liner. “My second cousin, Pat Dorman, was my mentor and brought me into the business,” Tim reflects. His early days in Florida in the late 1970s consisted of working part-time during high school, his interest sparked by a love for hot rods and classic cars. 

That was when he was first introduced to Car-O-Liner. “It was a very, very young company. A Swedish company, they had no headquarters set up in the US at the time. It actually originated in 1975 or 1976, and the distribution was brought to the US in 1979 or 1980. I was just one of a handful of technicians who knew Car-O-Liner. The shop I worked for purchased one through Metropolitan Car-O-Liner, owned by Dave Demarest, who was the only distributor in the country at the time. He came down to Florida to train us. 

“I very quickly learned that there was more to fixing cars and turning wrenches,” he recalls. “I put my name out there, stating that I would move to anywhere in the US where Car-O-Liner was being distributed to represent and showcase all aspects of it.” In 1981, Tim was hired by Mark McDonald and Bob Moore of Car-O-Liner Texas and made the move to Texas to serve as a tech representative for Car-O-Liner at a distribution center that had recently opened. After 10 years, Tim was offered the opportunity to move into a sales position. 

“It was a big move for me because I started out as somewhat of an introvert. Over the years, I had come out of my shell and learned some things. The company provided me with great sales training, and this was a good opportunity and a promotion.” 

The early 1990s was a challenging time for the industry, with “peaks and valleys and other ups and downs,” Tim remembers. There were other US companies leading in frame equipment, while “this little Swedish company was peddling the Car-O-Liner system, and it didn’t move as quickly. When the direct operation at Car-O-Liner was changed back to a distributor network in 1993, I was offered distribution. Of course, I was not going to decline as I had already invested 12 years of my life. So, I took over the distribution.”

With limited capital, he still achieved success and made a decent living for his family, earning 100 percent commission, but it was nothing to cheer about just yet. From there, he asked his wife Shelley to join him in the business. “I was a sales rep at the time, and I realized that while I could run a business or sell and handle distribution, I couldn’t do it all at once on my own, so I asked her to join me.”

“We converted our garage into an office where I had a typewriter and a fax machine. I wound up being full time for over 30 years,” shares Shelley, who retired about a year prior to Tim, shortly after they sold the business. 

“It’s kind of funny. What I remember most from the beginning was not knowing what our expenses were when the CPA asked me,” she reflects. “I didn’t know what the expenses were or what our income was. I had absolutely no accounting experience. I would type invoices on the typewriter and keep things in a ledger. Back then, everything was done manually.” 

“We put our office all together in one weekend with help from my brother, Chris Curran,” Tim reflects. “Shelley manned the phones, and I hit the road, and that’s how we started.” They kept inventory on hand in “two small mini storage units so that if we had a buyer, we could immediately deliver.” 

At the time, they had two small children. “Shelley was multitasking to say the least,” Tim notes, “trying to run the business for me and at the same time caring for the kids.”

It took about a year, but the Currans grew the business out of their garage into leased office space a couple miles down the road. This is where Car-O-Liner Southwest’s footprint began to grow. A big part of their growth early on resulted from their first distributor, Barry Addison, based in Louisiana “who had already been with the team prior to me taking over. He’d do anything I asked him to do in Louisiana. So, he anchored that state and did very, very well.” Soon after, they were responsible for the product line in Oklahoma as well, expanding to three states. 

Their first installer, Jeff Goffeney, started from a temp agency in 1999 and was hired full time in 2000. After 25 years, Jeff is still with the team today. As the main installer, he is known for his attention to detail. Customers and distributors alike know that when Jeff does an installation, it will be perfect.

The success of Car-O-Liner Southwest goes back to its roots where Tim first learned about the company’s niche of service and training that goes beyond selling products, something competing companies didn’t focus on. “That philosophy I learned back in 1981 was really the foundation that we built the business on,” he believes. 

More substantial growth came from investing and taking risks. In 2003, they were given the opportunity to take on more territory which was exciting but also challenging in they had to do what was needed to “keep our sanity while trying to run all over the Southwest part of the country to satisfy customers and continue to sell. We took steps to make sure we had the product on hand. We took some risks, and it was an investment. 

“I recall telling Shelley that we needed to buy more benches to which she suggested we didn’t have space for, plus we already had plenty of inventory. But with a new distributor in Oklahoma and the chance of distributors in all three states making sales, we needed to have more product on hand, so we didn’t run out. That was the way we built the business. We took risks and put ourselves out there.” 

Being active with local associations over the years also proved to be a fruitful move in their success and toward “becoming a leader in the industry,” according to Tim. He recalls committing to sizable booth space at one of the very first ABAT Texas Auto Body Trade Shows as a smart move; not only did he want to show Car-O-Liner’s commitment to the show, he wanted to set an example and draw competitors to the event.

“Tim Curran has been more than a supporter of ABAT; he’s been a true champion for our industry,” notes ABAT Executive Director Jill Tuggle. “Under his leadership, Car-O-Liner Southwest participated in every event, showed up as high-level sponsors and stood beside us as strong advocates for every initiative we pursued. Tim’s customers have always sung his praises, and for good reason. His integrity, dedication and passion set a standard we all admire. We wish Tim the happiest and most well-deserved retirement, but we miss him already!”

After many more years of growth and distribution, now in Arkansas, Mississippi and southern Alabama – and eventually New Mexico – it came time to invest internally at the operation. Tim hired Pete McDowell, a partner with his sister’s consulting firm, Action Coach, to help streamline the front and back ends of the business. This wound up opening the door to a need for someone to help build up the service department. That’s when the Currans’ oldest daughter, Kayla, came on board.

“At the time, our techs were getting calls directly from customers, and they couldn’t keep up with the demand, so we needed structure,” reports Tim. “Kayla had just graduated college and was not able to find work in the field she studied. So, we asked her to come in and build a service department and she did very well putting together some internal systems that were easy to follow.”

Tim didn’t intend for her to stay in this particular role, so he insisted she build the role in such a way that someone else could take over. “I told Kayla I’d have her selling Car-O-Liner in 12 months in my old territory in east Texas, taking over for a rep who was about to retire. I mentored her, and here we are 10 years later, and she is doing very well. She has a passion for the business just like I had. I see how passionate she is about making sure customers have everything they need to be profitable with our product.” 

Their daughter-in-law, Briana Curran, started part time in 2016 helping Shelley in the front end. It was a perfect opportunity for her to move full time into the position that Kayla started and develop it from there. She currently heads up the service and training department, which includes a total of eight trainers/technicians.

When Tim and Shelley began to give serious thought to stepping into retirement, they approached Kayla about taking over, but she opted to keep her current role – which she loves – and the opportunity to focus on raising her family instead of heading up the entire operation. 

It took almost two years to find Karol and Feinman, and Tim vows, “It was a blessing because we talked to about 20 companies that wanted to acquire us, and Jim and Nick kept coming back. They had done very well for themselves financially, were in their early thirties and had been in pursuit of a business for about a year. What was unique is that they wanted to meet for lunch before they looked at our finances. It turns out that what they found from their longtime search is they wanted to find business founders who were authentic. They wanted to know about how Shelley and I built the business, about our kids and our family and how it all intertwined.”

In March 2024, they officially closed on the business with Feinman and Karol taking the majority of ownership. Tim still has a hand in the business he founded, serving on the Board of Directors. He agreed to remain active for 18 months in a coaching/consulting role before officially entering into retirement. Now, he still checks in weekly to help mentor his replacement, Jeff Horsman, who leads up operations.

“Jim and Nick had to find someone to fill every role I did, which was sales, tech, and operations.” Horsman took on the majority of the operations responsibilities, while Kyle Hollingshead took over sales, and Jimmy Combs maintains the high level technical side. 

“I needed those 18 months,” Tim admits. “They gave me time to begin to say goodbye to my customers and let them know how grateful I am for the years of business they trusted me with. And I also needed that time culturally to build a foundation for Jim and Nick so they could see me in action with my team.

“It’s incredible what they’ve done,” adds Tim. “They’ve taken what we built and expanded it with ideas and investments.” He cites various improvements such as building a better fleet of vehicles, expanding staff, implementing service software and getting on track to expand from the existing 10,000-square-foot to a 24,000-square-foot facility.

“Initially, Jim and I weren’t sure what type of business we were going to acquire,” shares Feinman. “We knew nothing about the auto body industry, but when we met Tim and Shelley who are just so honest, sincere and passionate about what they built, it gave us a lot of confidence that we’d have real partners in this venture to lean on and get us up to speed. That has absolutely been the case.” 

“Tim’s passion for this industry is just incredible,” adds Karol. “Some of the most impressive people are those who are deeply invested and knowledgeable and that is Tim with collision and structural repair.“ 

“We’re extremely thankful for the partnership we’ve enjoyed with Tim over this period of time and going forward because he’s still an owner in our company and someone we lean on a lot,” states Feinman. 

“He’s mentored a great team and we are proud to have promoted people internally who worked with him for decades and now have been given more opportunity,” adds Karol. 

With the acquisition behind them, Tim and Shelley have time to travel and enjoy more time with their grandchildren.

Days after Tim’s official last day, the couple celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary with a 17-day trip to Europe. “That really helped Tim unplug and get away from the computer and the phones,” Shelley says.

Tim’s passion for classic cars, which first sparked his interest in the business, never wandered, and he now plans to devote time to restoration. 

“I never had the time to do a hands-on restoration. So, one of the first things I bought was two rare model Mustangs – not one, but two. I couldn’t make a decision, so I bought them both. When Shelley and I moved to McKinney, part of the criteria in finding the right place was that I wanted space for my own shop. So, that’s what I plan to do now in my spare time.”

Looking back on his career, Tim has a long list of mentors he’s learned from, but his drive and determination mainly stems from what his father taught him. 

“My dad worked for a retail giant. He was a vice president in the retail world. He always encouraged me to go out and do my own thing. In fact, my siblings and I all have our own businesses today, and that’s mostly because he built the dream by telling us to not do what he did and work for someone else. He told us to go build our own.” 

And that he did! Tim built a business to be proud of and his legacy is sure to live on for decades to come.

Want more? Check out the November 2025 issue of Texas Automotive!