When does "restored" become "over-restored"?

[Mark Wilson]

I can admire cars that are taken to perfect but for me, owning one and not driving it would be highly frustrating.

[72targa]

IMHO, this is over-restored...

[LongRanger]

Another threade --- concerning an RS . . .
http://www.early911sregistry.org/for...-too-far/page3

[mrgreenjeans]

When I see no orange peel in the paint as it left the factory, with that heavy, kind of thick look to it as opposed to that finish that lays as flat and shiny as a mirror on it's back in the sun. The latter is over-restored.

Same with interior. If it has such a crisp sharp edge to it, with all painted items shiny and perfect, no evidence of wear or rubbing anywhere on high use surfaces, then it is over restored. Nothing lasting 50 years or more with even light use will look like this.

Engine detail ? Same goes here. The driven, the 'enjoyed' sports cars are supposed to have some 'look' to the metal. It's an engine. A working, mechanical device which uses, consumes, and sloshes around oil. Gets hot, and cools with a tink, tink. Bakes on even slight seepages. Oil on painted items become affected, raw aluminum becomes stained.

All about the patina on a surface of working metal, which takes on a qualified look.
Priceless.

[boxster03]

kill joys

[xpensivewino]

I am taking great care to refurbish my car and not re-invent it. I think it should look as it looked when it left Porsche for the most part, with exceptions being made for pressure fed tensioners etc.. I'm trying to re-use every original piece I can, only replacing items for safety or mechanical tolerance reasons i.e. stretch bolts or locking type washers. The paints, chemicals, and plating processes used when these cars were produced are no longer allowed or in existence, therefore many of the restored cars today appear way over restored. My goal is to have a car when finished, that looks like a very well maintained car from 1969, but not a garage queen that cannot be driven or enjoyed.

[Gearby]

For me over-restored can be:

- a soul-less 911 where new reproduction parts are used, modern badges, greyish modern leather on the seats, and most of the time, anachronistic parts..... you see lots of them at Essen. Personally, I'm not a fan.

To be honest, that description doesn't sound like a car that can be described as restored. Modified or molested comes to mind.

[mmusto]

Over-restored for me would be a "restored" trailer queen you wouldn't drive. These days dollar $igns have driven these restorations, and these cars never see the road or track. I don't think the good Doctor would approve.

[John Straub]

To me, "over-restored" is what we did to 911s back in the 70s. Chromed everything we could, polished everything we could, and just made them our own. I'm not really sure, that was all bad. I lost a lot of interest in 356 cars when they started to be restored and became clones of each other...

John

[doigthom]

IMHO, this is over-restored...

#12 above. What would this have looked like from the factory other than duller paint? See the 1972 911S you just posted by way of reference in for sale section.