Hi Trevor I understand your point of view looking at older photos of the car from before the 1980s rebuild the matt finish suited it well but towards the end of its first life it was getting a little trashed like most of the cars of that era.
I have the original boot lid from the first build of the car on my dining room wall that I have only cleaned enough to get rid of the damage done from sitting under a hedge for many years I have resisted the urge to polish it up or redo the original paint that is a more muted red than what the car wears now although that could just be 40 plus years of age.
Ralph Smith did a wonderful job of bringing the car back to life and the new panels and polish put his mark on the car so really the polish can be seen as a trademark of its new life. Name: IMG_20230316_135734.jpg Views: 368 Size: 52.6 KB