What appears to be a nice Amphi on eBay states "This car has gone

thru a complete frame off restoration" How do ya s'pose they did

that when the frame is integral to the hull? Must have been a tough

job!! He should have stated it has had a complete nut/bolt resto or

similar instead. Nice mildly customized Amphicar with only a couple

of errors from what I could see.



Yes, this is another example of mis-used or mis-understood terms in

the car resto hobby. Why is it so hard to get it right? The over-

used term of "restoration" for customization and NOS or "original"

for reproduction parts and the list goes on. These are terms that

are specific and not interchangable.



If you were not the exact same company that built the parts for the

factory, you are not OEM and unless the parts were produced at the

time of the vehicle's production by the OEM manufacturer, they are

NOT NOS. If the car is not as it came from the factory it is NOT

restored it is custom. There is nothing wrong with a custom car or

reproduction parts. Just use the correct (and legal) terms so you

are not mis-leading anyone. That would also be called FRAUD if you

are aware of the correct definition.



I see so many cars described as "restored", but I have yet to see a

1934 Terraplane that came factory equipped with a 502 Chevy engine!

(yes, there was a '34 w/502 described as "restored") This is

certainly a bigger issue than it seems. Would you rather pay

millions for an original Mona Lisa or a reproduction?



John "Mild custom" Bevins