5 days, 1 Ferrari, 150 pictures, La Bella Firma by Bella Macchina

[Slik560]

Thanks for the tech manual!! You really did the old 328 proud. The owner must be thrilled having a new car again. Plus, I am always glad to see someone that proudly displays Q-Tips as part of his arsenal!



Great work as always. I see a show on the Speed Channel coming.

 

[Boston Man]

Holy Jeebus!



I showed my dad this thread and guess what he said?



















"WOW! He must have charged a couple hundred bucks!"

 

[scaswell27]

man that is one great job

 

[jimmie jam]

WOW. stunning result Todd. :nervous2::wow: thanks again for the outstanding documentation. i learn something new and helpfull every time.:bow:bow

 

[imported_Moutee]

Fantastic job! :2thumbs: I wish I would have stopped by in person when it was finished.

 

[fergnation]

The level of attention to detail is amazing. Even the most experienced detailers can learn from write-ups like this. Everytime I read one of your posts it makes me go back to a car and detail the place I never even thought about reaching. Thankfully I am no where even close to Florida so i don't have to worry about competing with you.

 

[Todd@RUPES]

Todd, I'd like you to come work on my 328 for 5 days How much should I be expecting to pay you for such an extreme detail? Thanks.



Nice job, BTW

Sounds great Tom,5 bucks!

Another brilliant detail Todd! Keep supplying the writeups and I'll keep reading and enjoying them!

Thanks Denzil, I'll do my best!

Fantastic work as always Todd!



How did you correct the 'dip' in the doors near the handle? Did you do that by hand? Sorry if I missed it in the write up. I skimmed through it as I'm studying for an exam



Is the world going to be seeing another Todd Helme in a few years now that you are showing your son the ropes? lol :chuckle:

Thanks Kaval, yes I used M105 by hand in the door 'dips'.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Auto detailing is the practice of performing an extremely thorough cleaning, polishing and waxing of an automobile, both inside and out, to produce a show-quality level of detail. It can be practiced for personal satisfaction, and it is also performed to prepare a car for a Concours d'Elegance (often shortened to just Concours), a car show that features the appearance of cars. Elements of exterior detailing include claying, polishing, paint defect correction, and waxing. Interior detailing involves the cleaning of the interior of a vehicle using vacuums, liquid cleaners, and brushes. Engine detailing involves cleaning the engine bay area of dirt and grease by using degreasers and all-purpose cleaners



i don't even think wikipedia understands the level that you truly take a car to! todd, amazing as always. i wonder if the inside of tool bag where the tools fits in were polished? lol im kidding your attention to detail truley amazes me. outstanding!!!!! keep up the incredible work!

Wow Barry, thanks for the awesome words!!! I really appericate it!!

Great work Todd!





Is that little flex really at little? it looks cute.



do you have a pic comparing it to the normal sized one?

Yes it is that little! I will get a pic for you asap!

Sick work Amigo!

Thanks J!!!

wow. completely in awe. thanx for the write-up

Thanks Mutt!

Stunning work as always Todd!!

Thanks Nick!!!

Hey Todd,



What do you recommend for leather/jean dye transfer on Lexus leather? I've tried the LTT products but they didn't help. How much cleaning power does the Rejuv. have?



Awesome work by the way, truly inspiring. You've got me almost convinced to brave the 0C weather and have at it!



Paco

Rejuv is good but maybe not the best for that application!

great write up as always. great work!

Thanks Phil!

Absolutely amazing work Todd!



You'll have to come up to Mass. this year so we do a couple cars together and hang out.

Sounds like a plan Ryan!!

A properly covered (wrapped in towels) steam head, along with some common sense and a little experience allows for practical use of a steamer in automotive leather cleaning IMO.



I use it fairly regularly and it works fantastically well. I have also played with it to see how and when it can remove the finish, and create issues. Obviously, you can't always know how each new vehicle will react, but you can be reasonably sure. If it does cause damage, (never has in my experience) I would simply notify the owners and ask them what they wanted me to do about it (I always use test spots, so if it did it would be minor and not in a highly visible location...they may not even care, or they may want me to pay for the re-finish- in which case I would :doh )



Either way, I like the steamer as a leather cleaning tool in my arsenal, and I won't be leaving it at home anytime soon, so to speak. :bigups

Do I even need to say, "amazing work, Todd!"?



You're the man. Enough said.

Thanks Casey!!

The paint looks like liquid. You rehab'd this workhorse into a full stallion. Andrea Pininfarina would be very pleased.



Bravissimo Bello!

Molte grazie mille David! Vi si ritrovano presto!

Thanks for the tech manual!! You really did the old 328 proud. The owner must be thrilled having a new car again. Plus, I am always glad to see someone that proudly displays Q-Tips as part of his arsenal!



Great work as always. I see a show on the Speed Channel coming.

I don't know about Speed Channel but there should be an article in autoweek

Holy Jeebus!



I showed my dad this thread and guess what he said?



















"WOW! He must have charged a couple hundred bucks!"

Nah I don't charge that much

man that is one great job

Thanks Scaswell!

WOW. stunning result Todd. :nervous2::wow: thanks again for the outstanding documentation. i learn something new and helpfull every time.:bow:bow

Thanks Jimmie, I'm truly glad to help out!!

Fantastic job! :2thumbs: I wish I would have stopped by in person when it was finished.

Marc you are the man. Thanks for your help on day one. I was SO busy getting this one wrapped up that it totally slipped my mind that I was done. Thanks again buddy!

The level of attention to detail is amazing. Even the most experienced detailers can learn from write-ups like this. Everytime I read one of your posts it makes me go back to a car and detail the place I never even thought about reaching. Thankfully I am no where even close to Florida so i don't have to worry about competing with you.

Are you kidding me?! I'M lucky your notdown here!!



Thanks for the compliments buddy!

 

[blk45]

Great work as usual bro! Just when I think you have covered every square inch of a car and there is nothing left, you find something else to do. Bravo, well done! Yeah, you were right, the 328s are growing on me.

 

[stig-zzz]

Todd WOW OH WOW truly AMAZING you are one insanely gifted artisan of a detail the level of perfection you put into your work speaks for it's self simply breathtaking :bow:bow:bow

 

[Kevin Brown]

Looks like another swell detail and thorough write-up... :goodjob



Keep up the great work. Florida seems to have some pretty hard core detailers... :nervous2:

Judging by your clientele, it is apparent that you are in the top percentile.



You're drawing so much attention to the area that detailers are moving closer to you (rydawg)!

Just kidding about the reason, but it does seem as though Florida is the exotic car detailing capital of the world!



California still gets the nod as the car capital, though...:xyxthumbs

 

[Showroom Shine]

Excellent Work. Todd!

Thank You for taking the time to show all the steps,list the products and the picks.

Great Work!

 

[gmblack3]

Great work as always my friend.

 

[vincewchan]

Wow... people should call you The God of detailers.

 

[Rickrack]

Todd,

What can I say that hasn't already been said??



The car looks absolutely amazing!



I think it's so cool you had your son help you out.



People really have no idea how much time and effort go into a restoration like this. All I can say is that you really earned your $$$ on this one! I love the variety of products you used too.



You're the man!! :2thumbs::2thumbs::2thumbs::2thumbs:

 

[imported_Picus]

How stupid am I that I just saw this thread. My brain had me thinking it was your old La Bella Firma thread. This one is even better since the car started in a much more used condition. Your attention to detail is just silly-awesome; the paintwork is something else but it's the little things, polishing the metal trim on the badges, the toolkit, the pedal plate...

 

[gamby]

As for the cracks, if the coating is damaged then yes I would recommend refinishing. If the coating isn't damaged then you need to clean the dirt and grime out of them. Either way, cleaning with a Scotch Brite delicate duty scrub pad should get all of the junk out of the cracks. It won't eliminate the cracks, but it will lessen their appearance.

That is a fantastic tip. Thanks. I'll have to remember that.



As for the OP--amazing.



I'm pretty sure there's no market for that level of detailing in my area. I wish there were. Your network astounds me.

 

[Todd@RUPES]

Great work as usual bro! Just when I think you have covered every square inch of a car and there is nothing left, you find something else to do. Bravo, well done! Yeah, you were right, the 328s are growing on me.

Thanks Eric. I'm glad to here about the 328's, they are stunning cars, and IMO on of the most striking designs ever. I really think transitioned from modern to classic while never looking old.

Todd WOW OH WOW truly AMAZING you are one insanely gifted artisan of a detail the level of perfection you put into your work speaks for it's self simply breathtaking :bow:bow:bow

Thanks stig-zzz!

Looks like another swell detail and thorough write-up... :goodjob



Keep up the great work. Florida seems to have some pretty hard core detailers... :nervous2:

Judging by your clientele, it is apparent that you are in the top percentile.



You're drawing so much attention to the area that detailers are moving closer to you (rydawg)!

Just kidding about the reason, but it does seem as though Florida is the exotic car detailing capital of the world!



California still gets the nod as the car capital, though...:xyxthumbs

Thanks for the compiments Kevin, they mean a lot comming from somebody as obsessed as you are! I saw quite a few exotics on vacation in Beverly Hills so think you guys are doing pretty good. I have never seen so many Bentleys and Rolls-Royces in my life, although they are where all parked next to Priuses in the driveways.

Excellent Work. Todd!

Thank You for taking the time to show all the steps,list the products and the picks.

Great Work!

Thanks buddy, thanks taking the time for the reply. It was a pleasure on my end!

Great work as always my friend.

Thanks Bryan!

Wow... people should call you The God of detailers.

Not too sure about that, but thank you for the compliment. I'll stick with I'm pretty good at what I do.

Todd,

What can I say that hasn't already been said??



The car looks absolutely amazing!



I think it's so cool you had your son help you out.



People really have no idea how much time and effort go into a restoration like this. All I can say is that you really earned your $$$ on this one! I love the variety of products you used too.



You're the man!! :2thumbs::2thumbs::2thumbs::2thumbs:

Thanks Rick, I love having the little guy around. He is a great helper and already a huge fan of Ferraris. He HAD to help. He will be 5 in a couple months and then we will get him started on a rotary

How stupid am I that I just saw this thread. My brain had me thinking it was your old La Bella Firma thread. This one is even better since the car started in a much more used condition. Your attention to detail is just silly-awesome; the paintwork is something else but it's the little things, polishing the metal trim on the badges, the toolkit, the pedal plate...

Thanks Kevin! I am trying to improve with each detail and learn everything I can. I think I'm getting a little obessive!

That is a fantastic tip. Thanks. I'll have to remember that.



As for the OP--amazing.



I'm pretty sure there's no market for that level of detailing in my area. I wish there were. Your network astounds me.

Thanks gamby!

 

[imported_kwiker]

Freakin nice job man, amazing!!!

 

[Alexia]

I love the work you do and I love the look of this Ferrari! I never knew they came with tool sets and that is awesome you even restored that portion of the vehicle.



However, I cringe when I see the Fram oil filter installed on that engine. Why would some one install the worst oil filter made on a performance engine?

 

[ShineTech]

Great job as expected. Looks like everything was covered. :2thumbs: