photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World photo

The Selection has taken over the former Das Autohaus location at 1045 New Jersey St. and has opened a new auto service center.

If I had to work on Volkswagens all day, I’d need a scuba tank too. My brain would need all the oxygen it could get to understand the intricacies of German engineering. Dave Bach indeed has been working on German automobiles and messing around with scuba gear for years as owner of both Das Autohaus and The Scuba Shack in East Lawrence. But that combo is no more.

Bach in recent weeks has closed the longtime Das Autohaus shop after 25 years in business, but he told me The Scuba Shack business would reopen in about six months at a new rural location at 1753 East 980 Road. The reason Bach is closing one and leaving the other open is simple, he said.

“Diving is fun, and what do you want to do in retirement but have fun?” he said.

The new shop, which is under construction, will continue to sell a variety of scuba gear and accessories, and give lessons to people who are new to scuba or who want to brush up on their skills. The location won’t have its own pool, but Bach has arrangements to use outdoor and indoor pools in the area for lessons.

But one of the elements Bach is most excited about is the shop’s tour business. Bach and one other instructor have long arranged diving vacations for clients of the shop. They work out deals with resorts around the world, usually for seven-night stays that feature five days of diving, with each day including two to three dives.

“Now that I’m retired, it is going to give me a lot more chances to travel again,” Bach said.

And, oh, the places they go. Sometimes it is relatively nearby and well traveled, like Cozumel, Mexico, or Honduras. But other times it is more remote like Indonesia or Yap. I’ve been told to shut my yap many a times, but I’ve never been told to go to Yap. But I could. The Yap islands are about 500 miles southwest of Guam, and they have some great coral reef diving.

“Yap is about manta rays,” Bach said. “You are in water 15 feet deep and they are swimming right over your head, and some of them have 12- to 15-foot wingspans.”

Who knew that niche of the world existed? But, Bach has made a living out of understanding niches. His Das Auto Haus business focused on repairing and servicing German automobiles because, as any mechanic can tell you, there is something different about working on a German car.

“American manufacturers hate working on German cars,” Bach said. “They always have built a superior product, but you have to know the intricacies of them to do it right. They make them unique, and that gave me a niche in this town for a long time.”

The old Das Autohaus shop at 1045 New Jersey St. has been bought by The Selection, a used vehicle dealership that has its sales lot near Ninth and Iowa streets. General Manager Brandon Teal said the old Das Autohaus location has become the new service center for customers of The Selection, but he also said the location recently opened to the general public.

Like Das Autohaus, The Selection has mechanics on staff who understand the intricacies of German automobiles. The dealership specializes in selling luxury automobiles, and many of those are German machines like BMW, Porsche and Audi.

Teal said there are several independent mechanic shops in Lawrence that do good general maintenance work on German autos but bow out once a job requires major electrical, fiber optic or engine repair because those jobs usually take quite a few specialty tools and training. For many customers, that means a drive to the dealership, which in the case of several of the luxury brands means a trip to Kansas City.

“Really, our specialty is taking over when that customer can’t get it completed without going to the dealership, which can be really expensive,” Teal said. “We can do that work here.”

Teal has been busy remodeling the location for several weeks, including turning the old dive shop location into a new waiting room, complete with coffee bar, for people who bring their autos in for service.

Teal said the shop already is doing work for quite a few past Das Autohaus customers. Bach said he was pleased The Selection wanted to do that type of work because Bach said he’s not going to do any customer repair work on the side.

But that doesn’t mean he won’t be turning a wrench now and then.

“I own a bunch of convertibles that I need to finish because I never had time,” Bach said. “I said, I’m going to have to stop working and play with my own toys.”