A Concours d'Elegance is the top level of an automobile competition. Cars are judged with points being deducted for any deficiencies. A winning Concours car does not have to be completely original, but it should have only parts and accessories that were available when it was produced. The goal is to prepare your car to the peak of perfection. If the car appears to have just come from the factory, this may not be enough. The goal is to produce a car that looks the way it SHOULD have come from the factory, with perfect fit, finish, and functionality. This leads to a problem. Many mixed marque car shows that advertise a Concours competition actually use the term to mean 'good-looking, clean cars'. They usually do not have a judge knowledgeable about DeLoreans, so originality may not be as much an issue as it should be. But if it is a concours, the cars are judged by a group of judges. The alternative is a 'driver's choice' or 'people's choice' style of judging. Here, either the other entrants or the show attendees cast ballots. No rules on originality, just appearance. In a true Concours d'Elegance, since you do not have the Goodyear NCT radial tires that came with the car, you would lose a point for tires. If a headlight has been replaced, you could lose another point if the replacement is not a Sylvania. However, your DeLorean may not have had the DMC luggage rack installed when it was first sold, but if you added one, it would still be perfectly correct, since it was available when the car was produced. There is a Concours d'Elegance for DeLoreans at the DeLorean Owners Association Expo in St. Louis this coming weekend. The concours is sponsored by Stephen Wynne and DMC, Houston, so the quality of the judging should be very good. Hank Breer