It was with great sadness that the vintage racing community learned Tuesday (via the West Coast CSRG) of the death of Phil Reilly, a giant in the vintage race and collector car scene.

Reilly was a longtime engineer at Huffaker Engineering and, later, Griswold Company prior to opening his own Phil Reilly Company in the 1980s.

“Most importantly, Phil was one of the nicest, most caring individuals on earth,” expressed the collective CSRG team. “His mentoring was boundless, and he leaves behind so many who have him to thank for their training and success. His support and encouragement came with no strings attached.

“There have been few like him.”

“[Phil’s death] really knocked everyone back,” said Locke de Bretteville, long-time CSRG president who has known Phil and Kathy for more than 45 years. “In fact, when I first went to work at Huffaker’s, I stayed with the Reillys,” he added. “Phil truly helped everyone and he did it without making the recipient of the help feel indebted. It was a free of charge helping hand. Talk about paying it forward.”

“This is just the saddest news. What a great man and a dear friend,” said D. Randy Riggs, longtime editor of Vintage Motorsport magazine.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Phil’s partner in life, his wife Kathy.