Railroad motorcars require routine maintenance and occasional repairs.

The amount of time and money required to keep these cars running varies greatly. Most of the motorcars available today are between 25 and 60 years old and require different levels of tender loving care. The amount of customization that has been done to the car also affects the amount of time that must be spent to maintain the car. Over the years many modifications were made by the original owners either to improve car function or to work around parts shortages. Later owners further modified these cars to add new bells and whistles.

Many parts required to maintain and repair motorcars can be obtained at local hardware and auto parts stores. Folks good in metal work can make some replacement parts. Other parts are simply too complicated for most home workshops. Most of the original manufacturers are no longer in business or no longer have inventories of motorcar parts. Some parts such as wheels are still available as they are still used on track maintenance equipment.

Fortunately several new businesses now provide many of the hard to make or find parts. One of the largest companies with a wide selection of spare parts was Les King Motor Cars in North Lawrence, Ohio.