History

Customers are quite often surprised to see a familiar face when attending local musical events. The first response is usually “Aren’t you my mechanic?”, followed by “You’re kidding, right?!”

Glenn is also actively involved in the community as a professional musician. Since 1985 he has been the Principal Trombonist of the Tampa Bay Symphony first under the direction of Dr. Jack Heller, and currently Mark Sforzini. He also is a busy free-lance artist, playing for many local jazz bands, big bands, dinner theaters, and church groups.

Glenn plays on Monday nights at the Blue Parrot Restaurant in St. Pete Beach with the 17-piece Tomkats Jazz Band. He can also be heard playing with Late Night Brass, and Dick Ramores Jazz Cellar Orchestra and Bob Boyd’s 42nd Street Orchestra.

Glenn A. Lenhard began working in the automobile industry in 1973, shortly after graduating from Olympia High School in Rochester, N.Y. He has worked at independent repair shops and new car dealerships in Rochester and St. Petersburg, Florida. In 1979 he opened Bay Imports in St. Petersburg and continued with that business until late 1991.

Glenn’s MG Repair is based on a comment he made to John Twist, owner of the well known MG repair facility. University Motors several years ago. While still operating Bay Imports, Glenn lamented to John that he wished he could specialize just in the MG repair field. John’s reply was “Why not?”. Why not, indeed!

After a business turn-down during the Gulf War days caused Glenn to relinquish his business to his partner, he contributed his skills for several years at Wayne Purdy European Motors, a well known and established business in nearby Clearwater. When it came time to re-open his own business, the comment from John Twist came back to him. Finding that the building where Bay Imports was born in 1979 was available, Glenn was off and running.