Concours restoration has been at the heart of Steve’s Auto Restorations since its inception nearly 50 years ago. Steve began his business restoring Model A Fords in a modest two-car garage working alongside a single employee with a vision of grand aspirations yet to be realized. As the business evolved over the decades the rise in popularity of street rods and customs built out with modern performance have worked their way center-stage. Still, concours-level, factory-correct restorations are a cornerstone of our foundation and will always have a place at Steve’s Auto Restorations.

Our award-winning concours restorations have earned top honors at the nation’s most prestigious concours events, a testament to our unwavering dedication to accuracy and authenticity. Working with rare and historically significant vehicles, we specialize in restoring and recreating parts that are no longer available. With a deep well of knowledge and experience, we bring life back to vehicles that often lack available factory documentation, relying on traditional coachbuilding techniques and old-world hand craftsmanship. Each restoration is a tribute to how these cars were originally built to perform and feel when they first left the showroom. To sit behind the wheel of one of these vehicles is to step back in time- a chance to rediscover the roots of modern automotive engineering.

Concours Restorations

Our most recent concours restoration

1967 l71 corvette

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received "best in class" at forest grove concours de elegance june 2024

Butch Busse’s 1967 Tri-Power 427 Corvette convertible has lived many lives since it first rolled off the showroom floor. Over the years, it was transformed into a track car, enduring the wear and tear that comes with high-performance use. The fiberglass body required extensive repairs, both to correct racing damage and to reverse non-factory modifications. At one point, the original engine was removed in favor of track performance, leaving the numbers-matching powerplant separated from the car for many years.

For this restoration, that original engine was painstakingly located and reunited with the chassis to return the car to true numbers-matching condition. Every nut and bolt was selected to match exactly what GM used in 1967. The restoration process took years, with an obsessive focus on sourcing new old stock parts- even down to the correct new-old stock screwdriver in the tire change kit.

Special attention was given to preserving authentic factory details, including subtle touches like the green overspray around the rockers and the marks left where the painter’s air hose would have dragged across the undercoating. This wasn’t just a restoration- it was a revival of factory-correct originality.

The goal with this meticulous concours restoration was to bring home the coveted Duntov Mark of Excellence Award presented by the NCRS- National Corvette Restorers Society. A rigorous multistep process takes into consideration all aspects of the car including original functionality.

Zora Arkus-Duntov, considered the "father" of corvette performance, worked at g.m. from 1953 to 1974.

First time shown to NCRS was at Lone Star Regionals October of 2024. With a score of 98 out of 100, the car was judged to be correct and original, taking reduced points purposefully for a more refined paint job than came out of the factory per the owner's request. This score moved the car on the next qualifying round. For a frame of refence to the rigors of this award a score below 97 is a fail.

The next judging in the multi step process was at the Show Me Regional in St. Louis , MO in July of 2024. Competing for the first time, this performance verification (touching on 135 items) was passed with a score of 100%.

Coming up in September of 2025 is the final step of the process at the Las Vegas National Convention. This judged showing also incorporates a drivability test which is required to receive the Duntov Award.

Update- This restoration has received the Dontov Mark of Excellence Award- more details to follow...

Zora Arkus-Duntov, often referred to as the “Father of the Corvette,” was instrumental in transforming the Chevrolet Corvette from a stylish cruiser into a true American performance icon. A Belgian-born engineer and former racing driver, Duntov joined General Motors in the mid-1950s and quickly recognized the Corvette’s untapped potential. He championed the introduction of high-performance upgrades, including fuel injection, four-speed transmissions, and eventually the legendary small-block V8 engines. Duntov also pushed the boundaries of what the Corvette could be, developing concept cars like the Corvette Grand Sport and lobbying for independent rear suspension. His relentless pursuit of speed and innovation laid the foundation for Corvette’s dominance on the track and its reputation as a world-class sports car. Without Duntov’s vision and engineering genius, the Corvette might never have become the performance powerhouse it is today.

here is a selection of our past concours restorations