This Roadster is a very special automobile. It was a complete, riginal black-tag California car purchased by the current owner when the original owner died. As original as the car was - paint, ngine, ransmission, oor panels, ood and deck lids, indshield, rim and chrome - the first idea was to preserve the car, ixing only what was necessary to make it a rolling tribute to the few of these cars produced.

Sadly, ven though the odometer showed 52,486 miles (374 since restoration) - which may be correct given the last service records and the condition of the car - more rust than anticipated showed itself, specially in the floorpans, ash (it was a convertible after all), nd longitudinals. So it was decided to perform a total restoration, eeping every aspect of the car as original as possible.

The meticulous professional rotisserie restoration performed by 356 Unlimited of Melbourne, lorida, as photo-documented, ith hundreds of detailed pictures. No expense was spared to ensure, ither the original parts on the car were restored, r correct ones found and re-conditioned – this included the fasteners. There are very few reproduction parts on the car. Even the wiring harness and wheels are original.

Only the very best vendors were used for all reconditioning work. Vic Skirmants of 356 Enterprises rebuilt the transmission to his meticulous standards. Autos International took the original top frame, econditioned it and installed a new black convertible top. They also provided a new red leatherette interior as per the Certificate of Authenticity(CoA) and Kardex, ed leather seats (a bit of an owner indulgence), nd the correct red carpet kit.

Competition Engineering performed all of the machine work on the engine components, ncluding a 1720 "kit" bringing the horsepower up from the original 75hp to an estimated 110 - 120hp, hile leaving the appearance correct. The instruments were all sent to North Hollywood Speedometer for complete refurbishment. The original carburetors and distributor were completely rebuilt by 356 Carburetor Rescue. Although the windshield was original to the car, t had numerous scratches from the windshield wipers, nd during polishing it was broken, ecessitating replacement. The door windows, owever, ere in great condition and were not replaced. One of the amazing things about the restoration was that almost all of the trim pieces were saved and re-chromed or polished back to original condition. The spears on both sides of the car are original, s are the rocker trim. Three of the bumper guards are original to the car, nd the replaced one was a reconditioned correct piece. The owner even found a set of period-correct Continental tires - no longer manufactured but in pristine condition - to match the COA and Kardex. The car includes a complete authentic set of documentation – no reproductions, nd a complete authentic tool kit with no reproductions.

The original paint color - Aetna Blue - while still on the car, as quite faded and rubbed through to primer in many places. Roadsters don't have glove boxes, o the hinge covers were used for paint matching, ince they see very little sunlight and element exposure. The conventional code, 003 spray-outs from Wilhoit and PPG did not match perfectly, nd ultimately a hinge cover was sent to the PPG labs in Cleveland, hio, o get the exact match.

The result of all of these detailed efforts is one of the finest examples of a well-documented restored T-5 Roadster that exists – true to its heritage in every possible way. A recognized expert on the 356 advised on the restoration and authenticity of the process. He was Head Judge for the PCA Parade Concours four years running, nd Head Judge at the Winter Park Concours and many others around the country.

The advisor, he restorer and his metal, aint and body guy are available to discuss all aspects of the process, nd there is a fantastic scrapbook put together by the owner’s wife documenting in pictures and text all phases of the restoration that will accompany the car to its new owner. Plus there are hundreds of additional pictures of the car before restoration, uring disassembly, uring restoration and following restoration.

Three months after the restoration was complete, he Roadster was invited to participate in the Winter Park Concours de Elegance, here it took First in Class/Gold. The Gold designation signifies that the car received at least 98 out of 100 possible points. It received 99.