Post
by MarkE » Thu Nov 05, 2009 10:14 am
You?re absolutely right Larry, the E Type is a lot more affordable in the US, and there is still a much bigger choice of E Types in the US as nearly 70% of the cars went there. So it?s only reasonable that some come back home!!
There seems to be a growing paranoia about laying up cars and subsequent reliability. This is good from one point of view?.a well restored car laid up for 10 years and needing re-commissioning can be had for a bargain price, due partially to the built up urban myth.
I re-commissioned one of my cars this year that had been unused for 12 years. It was started up maybe twice a year during the lay-up, and stored in a dry environment. It took a weekend to go through the brake and clutch hydraulics, and another weekend to sort out the fuel and ignition, replacing bits as required. I?ve used it regularly since May for shopping, touring and generally blasting about, covering just under 5000 miles, and it?s never missed a beat. And why should it? If a car is in good shape when it?s stored, it only needs a ?big? service to get it back to where it was. Of course, if it?s stored outside in all weathers, or it?s a rough old nail to begin with, it won?t improve with storage! Total cost to re-commission was about ?50, plus my time, tyres and a battery. And it?s a 40 year old Lotus, supposedly one of the most unreliable cars ever made?another pub-myth.
So Tony, I would definitely look at a car that?s had a lot of money (well) spent on it that needs re-commissioning, so long as it?s been stored well. A lot of folks, after spending thousands on the perfect bodywork, can?t stand the thought of using the car in case they gat a stone chip?.they must be a good target!!
Back to originality for a moment. For sure, a car is only original until it?s restored, by definition. But a car can be restored to an authentic original look, and it takes a lot more effort. Most cars are a now restored using 2k paint system which, out of the gun, gives a horrible plastic appearance. The application of a clear coat makes this even worse. A good restorer will rub down the final coat within a few hours of it?s application, leave it for a couple of weeks then polish the paintwork with wax. The finish is very close to the original synthetic or cellulose, and the difference is quite marked. One is bright and brash and shiny, the other looks polished but slightly understated?as it was originally.
The other sin is the use of plastic coating for everything, which makes components look bright and polished that were never like that. Get it plastic coated for protection, but then get it painted. And painted pretty roughly on suspension, steering and under body components. It sounds daft, but when it all comes together, the car looks right. OK, it does for me at least.
My inspiration was a book called ?Corvette Restoration ? State of the Art? by Michael Antonick. Like me, he despised the Pebble Beach concourse restorations, where every component is ?perfect? and totally unlike those that came out of the factory. When all these components are assembled into a car, it looks like a dressed up Danny La Rue version of itself.
Michael decided to visit every junkyard he could find, and many owners of original un-restored Corvettes, and determine what they really looked like coming out of the factory. He then went about replicating what he found, orange peel, runs and all. The result is a restored car that looks like it hasn?t been restored, but just come out of the showroom?.absolute perfection. Not original, but as close as you can get?the next best thing.
Most of us can?t justify spending ?125k on that original untouched car, but we can create something that closely approaches it with a bit of detailed work and for some, an unorthodox approach to restoration.
Perhaps it?s me who?s the heretic!
I Love it 
no I did not win the lottery yesterday