Aircooled VW South Africa

I asked the question recently on a post "Who Restored you Car ?", what the difference is between an "Original" and "Restored" vehicle was. This was as some members had mentioned that they preferred originals. The response was that an "original" was a vehicle that was left with all the scratches and dents, etc, ie. no work had been done on it.
Without trying to be controversial, I wanted to clear up where the line between these two is drawn. The dictionary meaning of "Restore" is "to return something to an original or former condition"
OK, this tells me that a restored vehicle is then an original ....YES / NO ??
So which one is it ???
Or is it just a term used by enthusiasts ?

All the flyfishermen can come out of their closets now !!

Would love to be at the "Bug Jam" in CPT to discuss over a beer, sadly have to be at a Conference !!

I'm no expert but would think original means as it came out of the factory.
You could maybe restore it to look original but would it really be original?

I think with our vehicles most being 35+ years old you'll be very privileged to say I have an original.

Paul, I have said this elsewhere before ... it's your car to do with as you wish.
If you want to restore a car by completely refurbing it from front to back so that it looks like a brand new car, then that's what you do.
If you want the car 'as is', and want to spray clear lacquer over it to 'conserve' its originality, then that's what you do.
If you want to chop and slam your car to within an inch of its life, fit suicide doors and whack a tri-turbo Studebaker engine where the back seat should be.... and I think you're starting to get the picture here .... then that's just what you do!

This forum is merely a place for people with a common love for aircooled VW's get together to assist one another, talk k@k and have the odd difference of opinion about arb cr@p. As far as I am concerned, nobody's opinion is always right (but my opinion is NEVER wrong.)

Just keep on Dubbin' brother!

For my 2c's worth....You have explained it in the heading. To me they are 2 different levels.
Original - would be as it came from the factory, nothing major replaced like paint, engine etc..
Restored - would be repairing the car back to it's original condition. It may be identical to how it left the factory but with parts that were not part of that individual car (re-sprayed, engine swop etc). Restoration would come in the varying degrees 100% being identical to original but not original. Taking a complete car, stripping it renovating it and putting the same parts back will be as close to Original as you can get, but still restored.
As Dixtoy said getting a +35 year car in Original condition is getting difficult, so the best we can aim for is restoration close to 100% of original. The reward is to get it as close as possible, if that is the aim.
I also agree in part with Stutz - it is your car do with it what makes you happy. All I would consider is the rarity of the car before making major changes because when it is greatly modified beyond restoration it would lose its charm to others, if you lost interest and wanted to get rid of it. e.g. hacking a 1972 beetle is far different from hacking a 1952 split due to the number in existence.

Hope this add to the confusion.....

PCee wrote: All the flyfishermen can come out of their closets now !!

What are you trying to say???

JamesD wrote:

PCee wrote: All the flyfishermen can come out of their closets now !!

What are you trying to say???

You have a bite Rafiki .... strike now!!

Bushpig wrote: e.g. hacking a 1972 beetle is far different from hacking a 1952 split due to the number in existence.

It is different yes, BUT, maybe one day they will be rarer than the '52's if the okes keep hacking them.. Ever thought about that?
I personally am not against modifying, but I NEVER do anything that can not be put back to standard without major surgery..

Just to define a definition.......
A car can only be original once.
Whether it is in mint condition, or whether it has been pulled through some young guys a$h, with contempt, it still is and will always be original.
As long as no repair work has been done to it.
Now an mint condition original will have more value then a beat up, dented, rusty smoking, noisy heap of abused metal, but both will still have value as they both are original.

But now if you buy that car, strip it down, rebuild it, and bring it back to showroom condition, then it has been restored.
Yes it has been restored back to showroom condition, but NO, never has it been restored back to original.
That is an impossibility,
Yes, restored back to "Original condition" but never back to Original.

Hope that helps.

Herman

Thanks guys for all your comments, as I mentioned in the post, I was more intersted in hearing different views on the subject, rather than trying to stir up a controversy. I am enlightened !!!
James, I'm a flyfisherman and always chuckle at the "purists" in that hobby, they never miss an opportunity for a "professional" opinion......and everyone is a pro. .
Just gonna keep on blowing air in my Bus !!

Where my whip is concerned, I guess I'd have to call it a resto/mod as it is being restored in the 'general' sense and modified to suit my needs.
The sticklers refer to original car as being 'preserved' with the emphasis on fitting original parts (manufactured at the time) to replace what has worn or broken, which is why they are so ruddy expensive.
'Restored' cars are vehicles that have been brought back to original condition using re-engineered or remanufactured components.
To be honest it's neither here nor there to me because I just want to be able to still see these cars around regardless of how they've managed to survive. Isn't that what we all want? Better still to have the opportunity to own one IMO?
Today's cookie cutter auto industry has lost the essence of what made it so special in the early years (in my view). It's all CAD & marketing and market segmentation; with very little in the way of pure automotive design.