[ROVERNET - UK] Originality (was Unique P6)

[Alan Gale]

Originality is a very vexed issue and is the topic which causes the most heat 
in car clubs.
The purists say that unless the car has the same body, chassis and respective 
parts with matching numbers as it had when first assembled, then it is not an 
original car.  
However it is getting increasingly difficult for me to find 1920s air for my 
Crossley's tires.
What happens then in the case of a chassis which began life with a saloon body 
in the 20s but is re-bodied with a sports tourer body in the 30s.  is it no 
longer original or has it become a special?
I understand there are now more bugattis on the road than were produced by the 
factory (some restorations have begun with half a gearbox).
What happens when someone takes an original 20s car and gets John Needham to 
install a more comfortable close ratio gearbox, making it much more driveable 
than the sometimes very awkward 20s ratios?  This is a modification which 
could have been performed in the 20s - is it therefore a special now?  What is 
the case of the car which has a major accident in the 20s and gets a new 
chassis? And what about those bentleys which are running around with laycock 
de normanville overdrives?  Or those rovers which have been converted to gas?
Is my Rover 10 now a special because it has been fitted with hardened seats 
and valves to run on unleaded?
The VSCC here in Melbourne adopts the attitude that if the car has a logn 
competitive pedigree in its current configuration, or is modified within the 
bounds of its original technology, then it is what they deem a "proper car" 
and eligible to compete in points events.  There are many exciting vintage 
specials in this club.
It is deemed a "club car" if modern technolgy is fitted (overdrives, etc) 
which give it an unfair advantage over its competitors and is not counted as 
a "points car".