At Restoration Design, we often get questions about the kind of steel we use.

We use galvanneal steel, which is used in a lot of industries, with the biggest being the automotive industry.

A lot of other restoration shops use mild steel because it’s more cost-effective, but we prefer galvanneal. It’s also better than galvanized steel because it goes one step further in the production process: after it’s coated, it’s heated at super high temperatures, resulting in a higher corrosion resistance than other kinds of steel. This also means it has a longer shelf-life.

The main reason we prefer galvanneal steel over galvanized steel is that galvanized steel’s coating will flake, and galvanneal will not rust when exposed to water.

Watch our video to find out more about the difference that using galvanneal steel makes, and see some examples of Porsche restorations we’ve used galvanneal steel on.

At Restoration Design, we specialize in restoring Porsches from almost all years and models. And while we’re experts experienced at this, we still learn lessons from every project we take on.

When we restored Mike’s 356 Speedster a couple of years ago, we learned a few things that have stayed with us and that we have applied to every project since.

Measure, Measure, Measure

The most important thing we found was to measure frequently, almost obsessively. Especially when it comes to sheet metal pieces, it’s not uncommon to do many trial fitments to get the right fit. When it comes to the doors, it’s important to have all of the rubber pieces in place as well, so you know everything fits as it should. This is true for any kind of automotive restoration.

356s were produced in two different production facilities, so some parts might differ – that’s why measuring is so important with these models.

Have a Camera on Hand

Keep it in the shop and take pictures throughout the dismantling, so you have something to refer to when you come to put it all back together.

Keep a Parts Catalogue

Go through and take note of the parts you think you need, and if you don’t need them you can cross them off.

Set a Restoration Quality

Before you even start on your vintage Porsche restoration, decide whether you want your Porsche to be concourse, show or driver-quality.

Check out the video for more information about the restoration, see the process and the finished product!

Porsche Parts|Restoration Design Mission

For Mike, Peter and Alex DeJonge, Porsches are their passion. That’s why they bought Restoration Design.

Restoration Design produces quality Porsche parts, filling a need for quality parts that actually fit.

Sure, it feeds our hobbies, but our main purpose is to create jobs and produce quality parts for the people who need them.

When we think about producing a new part, they we think about what our customers need, where there’s a void in the market or if there’s a part we can improve on.

We produce the correct parts for different models and years, making the value of the vintage Porsche after restoration that much greater for the owner.

Plus, cars that might have been discarded 20 years ago can now be restored.

Restoration Design ships parts all across the world, from Australia to South America and everywhere in between. It’s our passion to work on cars and provide parts to other passionate people.