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Il ne cesse jamais de restaurer cette voiture classique.

Il ne cesse jamais de restaurer cette voiture classique.
He never stops restoring this classic car.
From Lesson 272:Verbs followed by de (de + infinitive)·French

Questions & Answers about Il ne cesse jamais de restaurer cette voiture classique.

Why is there a de before restaurer?
The verb cesser (to stop or cease) is part of a group of verbs that require the preposition de before a following action. To say 'to stop doing something', you must use cesser de followed by an infinitive.
Why does the English translation use 'restoring' while the French uses the infinitive restaurer?
English often uses the '-ing' form after verbs like 'stop'. French, however, almost always uses the infinitive (the basic, unconjugated form) after a preposition like de. Because of this rule, de restaurer translates naturally to 'restoring' in this context.
Why is there no pas in this negative sentence?
The negative structure ne ... jamais means 'never'. In French, specific negative words like jamais (never), rien (nothing), and personne (nobody) take the place of pas. You simply wrap ne and jamais around the conjugated verb just like you would with ne ... pas.
Could I use arrêter instead of cesser to say he never stops?
Absolutely. Arrêter de also means 'to stop doing something' and follows the exact same grammatical rule, requiring de before the next infinitive verb. Cesser sounds slightly more formal or literary, whereas arrêter is the most common choice in everyday spoken French.

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