Ultimate Restomod Test! Kimera vs Cyan vs Totem vs Amos ｜ 4K

Restomods, they are a cult these days, but they're not straightforward. Allow me to explain. What an epic lineup of cars. But nothing is quite what it seems here, not least the very changeable weather up here in the Italian mountains. So this is not a straight four-car Restomod group test. Instead, think of it as a guide to in four parts. Excuse me while I step over this puddle. And part one is this, the Automobili Amos Lancia Delta Integrale Futurista. Only 20 are being built, each costing around £350,000. This isn't one of them, but the original development prototype, the car that's done all the work so the customer cars don't have to. This then is stage one of Restomodding, developing the car. This one has lived a life and you can see it. There are chips in the paintwork, scuffs, scratches, and it generally looks a bit battered and bruised. And it's the same story inside. Look, you've got some frayed carpet down here and the driver's seat bolster has entirely collapsed. The steering wheel, the Alcantara has been polished smooth. And look at this key. Look, it won't stay up. It flips up and down. Then you've got this blank panel of instruments down here, which is clearly unfinished. But my favourite detail of all is the handbrake here. Look at the frayed ends where it's all started peeling. That's obviously because they've had to pull it so much during testing. Fully approve of that. I think it's just been caned to within an inch of its life for every single one of the 11,000 kilometres it has done. Nothing wrong with the engine, which is nice and smooth and well run in now. The rest of it, it's a bit lumpy. It's having a couple of issues. It doesn't like idling that much. The gearbox has obviously had a little bit of a life. It's sort of hiccuping a bit and the lever down here is pretty loose and wobbly. And the amount of size in that throw at the moment. There's the rattling from the door locks and generally bits of trim. The brakes get a bit squeaky. But this is what a restomod needs to go through. It's what all cars need to go through. But for restomods, they're built in such limited numbers that it's very difficult for these small companies to build something and get all of the niggles out of its system. But if you look at the quality of the work that Amos do elsewhere, you know, this is not a true indication of their cars. They don't have the money to build and sacrifice umpteen prototypes. In fact, depending on their funding, the money only really comes in if they can persuade people to pay chunky deposits that will help support car development. Very few manage to iron out every single niggle. They've been trying different calibrations for the suspension, so the damping at the moment is a bit hoppy in this one. And of course, because it's been abused already, I don't mind adding a bit more to it. Actually, it's one of those things, when you're just cruising it, it feels a bit out of sorts. When you start ragging it, you think, oh yeah, this is what it's used to doing. It's not perfect, that's for sure. So that is stage one of restomodding, getting the development done. Before we move on to stage two, let's answer a question. What exactly is a restomod? Put simply, it's a restored modified classic that someone thinks there's a buck or two of profit in. There are no rules here, but basically the aim is to recapture the essence of an iconic old car and give it a modern twist. Where did it start? Well, most people blame Singer, the Californian outfit that emerged over a decade ago with its reimagined Porsche 911. But although they are the north star that everyone tries to follow, restomodding has been going on since way before the word itself was invented. Although typically it was more about restoration than modification. So here's the next point to consider. How much old car is carried over? That varies. At this point, we need to move on to stage two, demonstrated here by Totem's glorious Alfa Romeo GTA. I just think this is one of the prettiest cars I have ever seen. The stance and proportion of it is stunning. And then you get into all these details from the fuel cap, the window surrounds, the mirror housing, all in this lovely nickel finish. And the quality of it as you touch it, it's just beautiful. My favourite are these slender door handles. However, however, it's not finished. It's cosmetically gorgeous. I mean, the detailing and everything is just wonderful. You get into it and think, well, that is it. That is done. That is ready to go. And then you drive it and you realise that it's not close to being ready to go. The steering's not too bad. That actually goes where you point the car. But the problem is, is that the suspension has other ideas and does not go where you point it at all. So the damping is the thing. And they've said this is what they've tried to hone and get right. But this is a work in progress. This is early development for the dynamics. And there's just considerable amount of slightly curious noises coming from it. All those clanks and things that you hear are from the rear differential sort of tightening and loosening and as it comes in and out of corners. But there's a bigger elephant in the room here, and that's the fact that this is electric. Now, now, this is not right for me. The Totem, they do it with a 2.6 litre twin turbo V6 entirely bespoke to them, which I think would be a wonderful, wonderful thing. In fact, they're going to do it with a 3.2 litre V6. The 2.6 has got 640 brake and the 3.2 is going to have 800 odd, which in a car that weighs 1,350 kilos is more than anyone needs. This one, however, doesn't weigh 1,350 kilos. This one weighs 1,500, which isn't bad for an electric car, as you'll know. But it's electric. And the whole experience of this car, this gorgeous cosmetics of it and everything else. And then you've just got so little charisma and character to the driving experience. There's the philosophical question of what is a Restomod? Of course, your car, you can modify it however you want. But for me, they lose all charisma with an electric powertrain. And it's not just the silence and smoothness that's so out of keeping with what the car once represented. It's that the added weight blunts the dynamics. It's that without a manual gearbox, there's less interaction. Developing cars is like playing whack-a-mole because you sold one issue, you smack it down and another one immediately pops up somewhere else. And it's not just the damping that's up the swanny on this. You turn tightly and the wheels catch on the arches. It's all this sort of stuff. This takes time to do. When you're a small team with not much funding, it's really difficult to get all of these details done. But of all the cars for Totem to pick, they have picked the Alfa Romeo GTA. And there's another company out there already doing astonishing work with the dynamics and handling of these cars. I think perhaps the finest handling Restomod is Alfa Holic's GTA. If you combine that with this, you really might be onto something. If Totem can get the chassis sorted to the same level as the aesthetics, this stands to be a truly wonderful car. But still one I'd rather have with a V6. But now it's time to move on. Yes, we've driven Scion Racing's P1800 before. This very car, in fact. But now it's been repurposed. No longer a track car, it's now more of a GT. So this is stage three. Refining your idea. Getting your ideas to align with those of your buyers. Scion is a six-time world touring car champion, so it's hardly surprising they stuck to what they knew when they first developed the P1800. But what they found is that the typical buyer the P1800 appeals to is, well, a little more senior and didn't necessarily want a hardcore track charger. So now, with a reduced roll cage, detuned engines and suspension, it's calmer, friendlier. But I know what you're thinking. How much calmer can it possibly be if he's still wearing a harness? Well, yeah, the GT1s will get normal seatbelts. The development car still makes do with a five-pointer. And some other flaws as well. It's just, it feels very much like a halfway house at the moment. Yeah, the ride's definitely more forgiving and the steering's nicer around the straight ahead as well. But the engine just isn't that charismatic, this two-litre turbo four. You forgive it for the power it delivers when you've got it up and going properly. But you want it to sort of be nice to listen to when you're just cruising around. And it's just a bit, it's just a bit nothing-y, really. It's just a bit of a droney, droney thing. And what's lovely about it, as with so many of these Restomods, is their size and their weight. Because this is the problem with modern cars. And yet up here on these tiny little single track roads, you've still got room to manoeuvre in these cars. You've got space and the car feels light in your hands and just turns nicely around these corners. So I don't think Scion has lost anything from the experience of the P1800 by backing it off a bit. But it still feels just a bit raw. But a GT version of the P1800 makes so much more sense to me. The original never raced back in period, so why should it now be a track car? And I do like this Scion, I'm just not quite sure who the customer is. Because surely you want to aim it to the sort of people who lusted after P1800s back in the 60s. But that's 60 years ago, those people are getting on. And I think they will find this a bit wearing to drive. And I wonder if, as a design, it's maybe a fraction undercooked. Like it hasn't quite gone far enough down the Restomodding path. It still feels a little bit classic, not only outside, but inside as well. And there are some neat features here. There's a button here that's a labelled radio that is just a Bluetooth connection to your phone. And the seats, I have to say, I think are fabulous. They're really nice and snug. The key here, I think, is to stay true to the original formula. Pick a great car and make it greater still. This then is stage four, putting it all together. The Camaro Evo 037 is the most expensive car here. Originally, Camaro charged 450,000 euros. But I reckon they realised pretty soon, when they all sold out very quickly, that they'd undercharged for the 37 they were building. So they built another series, each a tribute to a rally the car won. This one is San Remo, and it now costs 840,000 euros. Worth it for the startup procedure alone. Now, I don't know how an original Lancia 037 fired up, but I want to show you how cool the fire up procedure is for this Camaro, right? Here's the key. You press unlock, you stick it in here, give it a twist, and then you flick this little lever back, like that, which is the ignition, and then you pinch these buttons together. Camaro has done what all good restomod firms need to do, specialise in one particular model and do it well. But what a car to specialise in, the Lancia 037, rallying royalty. This, for me, is restomod perfection. This is where it all gels together, where you've got a car that was inaccessible to people back in the day, but is now available, looks, feels, and acts the part, and has all the drama you would ever want and need, and all the power. Very important to remember that, all the power, because this engine. The engine has more in common with another of Lancia's rally cars, the famous Group B Delta S4. It's a turbocharged and supercharged four-cylinder that develops 550 horsepower from a mere 2.1 litres. So much noise and drama from that engine, supercharger and turbocharger, oh yeah. So you've got good response, slow down, and then all the turbo takes over, and so you get the sort of moan of the supercharger, and then the way franticness of the turbocharger coming in. But you've got torque instantly, and then all power, lots of power. Oh, the quality of the damping, this steering, it's so delightful. You think it's going to understeer, because back in your head, Group B days, you needed four-wheel drive, and if you only had rear-wheel drive, it was a little bit snatchy and bitey. This doesn't actually feel like that. It feels friendly and so properly developed, and you and I will probably never understand that, what it means to drive a live Group B rally car on a stage. But this is what you can do. This is pretty close. What a thing. Good left foot brake. I'm going to do full Nicky Piazzi on Walter Hall. I feel you, boys. Wow. Good rest and mod should take you back in time to when it was new, give you that experience, but make it better than it ever was. Modernised, upgraded, the dynamics tightened and heightened. A car like this shouldn't necessarily be easy to drive. I like the fact there's a good bit of weight in the clutch, and that it does seem to want to bite you, bite at you sometimes. I think it's very valuable that they have got some various driving power modes down here. It's just one, two, and three. 350, 450, 550. It's not especially tuneful, this engine, but why should it be? It never was about that back in the day. It was about just creating as much thrust and momentum as quickly as it could. Oh, I love this. I genuinely think it's a really special car. It could have come from an OEM, that's the thing. Just the way it's been shot through, very impressive indeed. Everything about the experience of being in this car, the blue trim with the orange dials, I love that. Looking in the mirrors and just seeing that whacking great spoiler out the back. The thoughtfulness that actually means you've got a rear view camera so you can see some stuff behind you. The seats are fabulous. I mean, genuinely fabulous. And they look fantastic. And the controls, the weighting of them, the precision of them, all of that. I mean, this feels very expensively engineered and designed. And I love driving it, the experience of being in this fabulous cockpit, and knowing what it looks like from the outside, because it is sublime. Why have restomods become a thing? Well, they're a backlash against the big brands, who have got themselves into a pickle, developing cars with ever more power, more capability, and more complexity that has all driven weight up and involvement down. Against that, these light, compact, pretty classics that, let's not forget, dodge global new car safety regs, give us exactly what we want. They tug at our heartstrings. Because there's not just four stages of restomods, there's infinite stages to it. Every single thing they do and get to is difficult. It's complex for them. So whenever you're looking at them and thinking, oh, that one doesn't look very good, or I've heard bad things about that, just think about the teams behind them, these tiny teams, and what they have had to do to make it that far. I have no idea how many stages of restomod Chimera had to go through to get this car to here, but it was so worth it. Well done, boys. This one's a belter. Everyone else, if you can get to this level with your restomod, you're doing very well indeed.