Nowadays, “perfect” can be a little too good.

I’ve been in the restoration business since 1970, and over the years I’ve seen a lot of mistakes made on automobiles­—including a few of my own. Perhaps the thing I’ve seen most often is a lack of cohesiveness in the finished product, which tells me there’s a lack of consistency in decision making along the way.

Before you embark on a full restoration, or for that matter perform any restoration work at all, decide and commit to the desired end result. Then make every decision along the way to support this vision, resulting in consistent quality and appearance. Nothing’s worse than one part of the job shaming another—survivor chrome paired with new paint is a classic example.

Thankfully, achieving an original-quality appearance is now taking precedence over the “over-restored” look that ruled for many years, but to achieve it, you must be consistent in your treatment of all fits and finishes. It isn’t so much that you will opt for substandard plating or paintwork, but rather that you’ll make subtle choices along the way to avoid the jewel-like fit and finish that characterizes over-the-top projects.

In an ironic twist, it’s actually easier to make decisions if your goal is to over-restore a car. Then each time you need to choose between one quality level or another, you simply choose the best available, no matter how expensive. Result? Too perfect.

However, if you want to re-create a production car’s original quality and appearance—by including a little orange peel in the paint for example—it’s essential to keep an overall image of the finished car in mind. This is especially important when working on a well-preserved original vehicle. Nothing makes me crazier than a beautiful original car that has suffered a number of misguided “upgrades!”

Whether you’re servicing a survivor or completely restoring a car to showroom condition, always think about this: What did it look like when it was new? If you take out the engine for rebuilding, don’t finish everything in high-gloss enamel with every casting flaw puttied smooth. Every decision you make should be to achieve an appropriate, consistent appearance. I admit that one of the most difficult things to do is to honor the originality of a car, but it can be done, and many people are doing it beautifully these days.

Los Angeles-based restorer Bob Mosier’s projects include numerous Pebble Beach show winners.

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