Ferrari 458 detail

seriously, what is going on in Ferrari's paint shop? I can't tell you how many "brand new Ferrari with crap paint" threads I've seen in the last 6-12 months.

 

Japanese dealers have routinely been RE-painting delivered cars to meet Japanese expectations.

 

that is an awesome collection of photos

10x better than studio/professional shots

 

Very cool, great job on that.

How did the gas cap work? If it doesn't have one, how would the DMV test the seal? Do you know if all new cars going to have this type of cap, or is it just Ferrari?

Sorry to hijack..

 

Trust me ive never been a fan of ferrari paint jobs!! my stradale had some warrantied paintwork done too it as it was so poorly done from factory!!


that being said...i would imagine the 458's that are being shown at shows are all sprayed by hand as opposed to the robotic method that is now being used...Im guessing it takes some time to program into the computers all the dynamics involved in painting each car with its own particular curves etc...

Or...i could be wrong and it is just the same ole trash as seen in the past generation of cars...but i do believe the 430 cars were painted much better than the 360's.

Just my .02

 

I'm the toughest critic of paint I know and my 430 paint was flawless. Not even a swirl.

 

Nice to see the 'master detailer' working his magic on a 458! Thanks
CH

 

Took delivery of an 09 F430 a couple of months ago. Took it to get detailed and under the 3M sun gun, there were severe sanding marks where the factory painted, touched up and did not fix prior to delivery. Engine works nicely, paint is another story

 

I notice every squeak and rattle. I am a menace to society driving while contorting myself trying to hunt down a faint sound.

But I wouldn't know bad paint if it came out a donkey's rear. I think one obsession is enough

 

Jesse (the detailer who did the work) is top notch, as evidenced by the results of creating a truly swirl free high gloss finish. This is actually much more difficult to achieve when you don't use polishes that contain glazing oils (as typical in most/all bodyshops and dealerships).

Why are these 'glazing oils' used? Again because it takes a lot of skill and dedication to achieve a truly 'perfect' finish, and those who can are often too expensive for employement at a dealership. When you are paying close to minimum wage to have somebody polish a car, you are going to get close to minimum wage results (most of the time).

From my experience working on brand new Ferraris is that they arrive at the dealership in rather poor condition (this is normal). The dealership is then responsible for the finish of the vehicle (this is not uncommon to my knowledge, because a flawless finish would/could get ruined during transport anyways).

I believe Jesse works for a Ferrari dealership, which obviously says a lot about that particular dealership. Most do not hire the best guy but the best value. So you tend to get a Ferrari in three basic conditions depending on how much the dealership is willing to invest in prep.

1) The car looks great and you are happy with it.
2) The car looks great for a couple of weeks, then swirl marks and buffer trails magically appear.
3) The car looks terrible.

In the case of the 458 Italia in this thread, number 1 would be the case. You would buy that particular car and the finish would look great. What you are seeing is a very good dealership prep.

Number two is probably the most/more common. The dealership uses a guy who thinks he is good, but is really using glaze heavy products like 3M/Ardex/Auto Magic/Etc which makes the paint look great for several weeks. Enough to get you home and make you happy. The glaze oils wear off and you paint looks terrible.

Number three needs no explanation.

 

You dealership used a great prep guy. You are lucky. My experience is this is maybe the case in 1 of 20-30 dealerships.

 

sounds like the old saying.

good, fast and cheap, pick any two.

 

Best pics ive seen of the car yet.

Some of the angles are gorgeous...some not so much.

Overall I like it, but dont it.

 

I agree...I think?

: )

 

Damn fat fingers I got !

I like it...but dont love it

 

So I've got a 430 spider and the paint seems fine to me...eventually I will get the 458 spider...what do you do if the paint is no good...will a great detailer be able to work the imperfections out? do you repaint the car? I'm in New England and would love to know who the best detailer is and who do you get to repaint the car if you need to...

 

the guys at fone are excellent detailers and my new 360 had to have a front respray and that came out very nice as well...

 

Good question. So who's the best detailer in the U.K? Anyone have any experience?

 

I would personally recommend Rick Nelson from Unique Car Care. My recommendation is slightly biased as he is a friend, but his work is second to none. He was mentioned in Autoweek as one of the top nine detailers in the country last February.

Here are some links of cars he has detailed.

http://truthindetailing.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=321

http://truthindetailing.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=1173

Rick also employees Ryan Blanchette, who is another amazingly talented detailer. I had the pleasure of working with him first hand in this link.

http://truthindetailing.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=2473

Contact Information:

Rick Nelson, Unique Car Care
781 389 3913

There are a TON of very talented detailers in the UK. While it is unfair to recommend one, Jay from Gleaming Kleen: http://www.gleamingkleen.co.uk/index.html, The Crew at Polished Bliss: http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/, Matthew at OffYourMarks: http://www.offyourmarks.com/, or Paul Dalton at Miracle Detail http://miracledetail.co.uk/ are all exceptional. There are also many many more.

 

Thank you for that. While the paint has never been an issue on any of the F430s I've had the pleasure of it's good to know, just in case.

 

Jesse is a top notch detailer!

He has documented very well the boys in Italy and their finishing efforts for the Ferrari's, its less than stellar.

As a buyer of ANY car you need to demand the best finish possible, while they probably won't remove the orange peel, they should remove scratches. That said, MOST dealers don't hire detailers with the skill set that Jesse, Todd Helme, or myself SO if you want this level you will most likely have to seek it out. Todd or myself know many of the best detailers in the states, and world and would be happy to help with referrals.

The recommendation of Rick Nelson is dead on, he will amaze you!

I think Jesse has a youtube video of the 458 starting up, and it sounds deep.

As Todd pointed out, true paint detailing is an art form, and not just some product you can slap on the car.

Cheers,
GREG

 

Did I see some leather shrinkage on the dash already?!!!

 

You buy the engine, they still throw everything else in for free.

 

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