Hi all, I'm looking to re-trim the interior of my '83 BBi, and I'm hoping some of you who have done this can point me in the right direction. I've looked into Worlduph a bit. They sent me a sample of 3218 (beige / saddle); which was Autolux. I asked about Vaumol, which they said they could acquire from "the tannery in England". Any idea if this is UK Hides? That sample is on the way. Worlduph lists the BBi seat kit on their website, but I was informed that the patterns were "lost in the move", so they'd only be able to provide the hides. Re-Originals also lists seat covers, but I haven't reached out to them yet. I've also seen HVL highly praised in the threads. Anyone with experiences here? Thanks in advance.
HVL is the go to especially for correct materials. He is expensive but that's quickly forgotten when you sit in the car. Luppi makes good work, compromises a bit on the materials but the pricing is fair. For my Dino I bought materials from HVL and UK hides and send the hole lot to Luppi for fabrication / installation. For my 512 I had Luppi recovering the dash using his own preferred leather and I was very happy with the result. I believe the seats kit sold by Mr Fiat is produced by Luppi, but I don't think they are made of leather from UK hide (Connolly branded). For my 308 I bought seat covers from US (GAHH) and installed them myself and I'm quite happy with the result and the quality of the covers. Best, Peter
Thanks Peter, that's helpful. Seems like you've used a few of the folks in the business. If you were going to recover your 512 seats, any particular route you'd go? Eg, source from UK hides and have Luppi do the work?
Good day Robert, I had looked at using Luppi to redo the interior of my 365 (GT4 2+2) a number of years ago and the price was reasonable given the materials (6 full hides) and efforts needed. However, the issue for me was the packaging/shipping of the entire interior ... from the seats (front/rear), to side panels, dash, etc (easily 20+ pieces)... all to Luppi and then return shipping of all the bits back. Given the number of pieces, the physical shipping size, and the need for a crate (to protect all the bits to/from), the logistics of it all was a lot. On top of this, there is risk that the items could get damaged/lost because of the shipping distance and multiple carriers that would be handling the shipment (previous bad experience with shipping something similar). Then there would be the documentation needed to/from, as the Euro side may think I was selling these goods... and on the return side Canada Customs may think I am buying all the bits and assess various importation taxes. Ultimately, I decided against and found an excellent local shop that could do all the work with the materials I sourced from HVL (Henk is fantastic and a pleasure to work with) and others. The cost was less with great results. Was the result as good as what Luppi could have done? I will simply not know, as a side by side comparison would need to be done. However, I am pleased at the results and did not have to deal with all of the logistics needed + no concerns with lost/damaged items that are mostly NLA. Cheers, Sam
Living where you do I would buy a complete set of seat covers from Luppi or Mr Fiat (Consider to let Luppi use the leather he prefer to work with. I remember him complaining over the thick connolly leather I showed up with) and install it locally. Either do the install yourself or send it out. It's actually not that completed a job unless the foam is damaged and needs to be repaired / replaced. This is a relatively cheap solution and I think it's "good enough" for a BBi if you know what I mean. If money is no issue send the whole lot to HVL, Luppi or some one else of the top Italien masters. This doesn't come cheap and it will not be a good business investment taking the value of a BBi into account. Best, Peter
Good day Peter, When I talked with Luppi (at the time... 2017 or so) they would only entertain doing the entire interior themselves... and so the only option was to send everything. Perhaps they now provide other options? Cheers, Sam
Hi Sam. He did my dash in 2019 as a single piece of work. I suspect he also sells the seat covers but only via Mr Fiat. Best, Peter Image Unavailable, Please Login
Thanks guys, this is very helpful. I'll reach out to Luppi and see what the latest offering is. I agree that sending the dash and seats internationally is something I'd prefer to avoid. I've had a few email exchanges with Henk; who has been very responsive. Side note, apparently he has a BBi with a blue interior. As you guys know, my car is not a concours car, but I still would like leather that matches the original (in color, feel, and quality). I see a lot of redone interiors with overstuffed / matte seats, and I just don't think that looks right.
Any of these guys stitch up the leather dash as a part that you can install, or, do you send him the dash (or the whole car) to do this job? I bought an original 308 dash cover from Ferrari, and it came as a perfectly cut black vinyl part that I could install, and it came out fantastic. Np question on the material being correct. I haven't tried to order an original Ferrari Boxer leather dash, but with some degree of confidence, expect it to be NLA many decades over. BTW: I bought the Boxer seat leather from GAHH, and it came beautifully stitched with excellent quality material. I've not seen anyone offering a dash all stitched up and ready to go.
My seats are good with GAHH, but now I'm focusing attention to the slight shrinkage by the glove box. I am playing the concours game right now. Subjective and you're at the whims of the judges. A few friends mentioned, the judges score your car in the first 60 seconds. Anyway, at the last event, I got nicked on the shrinkage, and it bugs me as well.
Would you be willing to share pictures of the GAHH seats? I'm guessing since they don't specifically mention Vaumol, it's a more modern vat dyed leather? I received my Vaumol sample from Worlduph yesterday (VM 3218). Honestly, it's such a small sample (1" x 2") that it's hard to really tell what it'd be like in the car. It does feel nicer than the Autolux, but it's also 2x the price.
Just for your info see pictures below of my 308 seats that I covered with a GAHH seat set. Very pleased with the outcome. The installation is now more than 10 years old and holding up fine. Best, Peter Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
