A CHANGE IS AS GOOD AS A RESTO

Marc Abdelahad obviously has remarkable mechanical abilities. But his project is not a “restoration” but a “creation” of something that is a Z in name badge only.

I would suggest that the result completely dilutes the time and place experience of an original Z. That is why I stick with my 24,000k, black over red, 5 spd, 280ZX Targa. Brian Trevan Via email

ED Strictly speaking, you make a very good point there, Brian. However, as you can see from this year’s Resto of the Year, the whole restoration process is a very broad church. And we love that. Restoring to factory specification is the purist’s way, but we also have a lot of time for people who rescue a beater and, as you point out, create something altogether new and different. The automotive world was predicating on some character thinking he (or she) could do things better, throwing away the rule book, if you like. So we’d like to celebrate these creations. And for want of a better term, resto will have to do for now! Cheers.