There's nothing wrong with restoring a car and returning it to 'like new' condition. I think the issue is that a lot of the U.K. cars have been restored several times and are a bit like grand ads axe.
If you start with an original car that hasn't been messed with before - you have all the correct parts and you can photograph the restoration showing the original car bieng repaired.
In the UK you can legally replace the body shell if it is damaged or rusty and I think this was an accepted practice in the mini community however I think this has changed and people want the original shell and will go to some pretty extreme lengths to save it.
In Australia Cooper S's have been increasing in price since the late 80's and each time the price rises people say how crazy it is - I doubt many owners have sold a Cooper S for less than they paid for it.