The Incredible Workshops of Maranello’s Master Craftsmen. By Petrolicious Productions. August 26, 2015. By Tad Orlowski.
Every day, a tiny city in the north of Italy is shaken by the noise of freshly-tested vehicles straight from the factory: Ferrari’s. The majority of the people from Maranello live with the spirit of the most famous car manufacturer in the world.
You can sense it in every corner and I doesn’t just mean the test cars with prova plates, cruising around the area from dusk ’til dawn. Ubiquitous stickers and flags in places like restaurants, hairdressers, hotels and even butchers tell you that you are in the Ferrari capitol of the world. It’s easy to understand why locals are so proud of this.
This very unique world, however, covers more than the city itself. In a radius of about 15 miles around town, you can find dozens of shops specializing in restoring and servicing the vehicles created in this “holy” area (Maserati, De Tomaso, Lamborghini). Among many such places, few are real pinnacles for automobiles aficionados.
Many of the people that work in those shops are ex-Ferrari workers from the golden age. Some of them even remember the times when Enzo himself was walking around the factory. Their knowledge and experience in Ferrari is priceless. That is why collector’s cars from all over the globe are sent here for proper treatment.
One of my favourite places that I visit each time I come to Maranello is Scuderia Toni, a family business. This tiny and modest shop is located by the main road of the city, in the villa right across from the Ferrari factory. It’s always full of great classics. A whole spectrum of models can be found here. There are always some Dinos around, 275 GTB/4 or 330 GTC waiting for a service. Apart from old-timer classics, cars like 288 GTO and F40 are no exceptions. The mechanics work on the whole range of Ferrari models, racing cars too. This workshop is well known for tuning engines like no other. And they know cars!
Founder Franco Toni used to work in the Ferrari racing department back in the ’50s. With this kind of heritage, you don’t need to prove your knowledge. The workshop seems tiny but it gives a family feeling to it.
Truth is that you can find a lot of professional workshops like this all over the world, but there are small details that make a difference and make you want to come back. The Italian spirit is what it’s all about, I think. It’s easy to spot it too: small espresso cups next to Ferrari gearboxes, tools and car parts all over the place and workers hustling around. This place may look like it’s in chaos, but Italians are very well “blended in” and understand this way of work like no one else. It works perfectly for them and their products.
At 12 o’clock, the streets of Maranello around the factory reminds me of rush hour at New York’s Grand Central. Tons of Ferrari workers are going to the local bars for a sip of their favourite espresso coffee. This itself is a sight to behold. I have been to many car manufacturers, but this experience is unique.
Toni Auto is a garage situated in Maranello specialized in the restoration of cars that bear the famous brands of the land of engines.
The company was founded by Franco Toni, who gained his experience working in his youth into Ferrari racing department and Francorchamps in Belgium. The expertise gained by the son Silvano in the racing department of the victorious Ferrari sports-prototypes has also contributed to the professional growth of the company.
Today, Toni Auto is a reality recognized for reliability and quality that characterize it and proposes itself for routine maintenance or for the total recovery of those that are the jewels of the prancing horse, the trident and the bull.
Silvano Toni.
Silvano and his sons Davide and Andrea, supported by valid employees, lead the business with passion and constant commitment to tradition, without neglecting the importance of having a look on the future.
The history of the garage is the following. We are in the 50s and 60s, ..... Franco Toni works in the Ferrari racing department. The sports scene is dominated by drivers like Lucien Bianchi, Alfonso de Portago, Olivier Gendebien, ... Wolfgang von Trips, ... Mike Hawthorn, Juan Manuel Fangio.
In '54 Franco and his wife Antonietta move to Belgium. The new environment of Garage Francorchamps, founded by Jacques Swaters, adds experience to the experience and the adventure continues for about 2 years.
Back in Italy, Franco opened a small workshop and made available his knowledge to ensure fans a hassle-free maintenance of their vehicles, taking care of the best brands in the land of engines .... In this period a young Silvano took his first steps into the real world of engines.
At the turn of the 70s there is a brief interruption, a period when Franco moved to Stanguellini’s to collaborate on the project of the "MOMO" and Silvano was working at Ferrari's racing department.
Unfortunately, the economy limps a little because of the energy crisis and then the whole thing is a bit slow, including the project of the new supercar.
In '75 what had started as a sole proprietorship becomes the Toni Auto, with headquarters in Maranello as we know it today. At the time, Silvano is 25 years old and works with his father absorbing all the passion and the experience.
These are the years of Arturo Merzario, Carlos Reutemann, Jacky Ickx, Niki Lauda, ... these are the years of the great challenges and great victories that make dreaming. The workshop is not only a place where people work but a space where ideas are exchanged, experimented and, above all, the same passion for engines, typical of our land, is shared. Here great friendships and relationships that still resist despite the passage of time are grown.
Towards the end of the '80s, both in Italy and abroad, a special interest for the recovery and restoration of classic cars develops. The prestigious and famous cars strike the collective imagination because of their rarity and beauty, but also for their value. It is a phenomenon that is still in process of expansion and, during the years, Toni Auto also has specialized in this area. Silvano and Franco now have a lot of experience in the mechanical sector and, using valid external collaborators, are able to restore the original luster of the cars and ensure their perfect functioning, also building unobtainable parts of cars out of production.
Andrea Toni.
That was the atmosphere when Davide and then the youngest Andrea take part to the company founded by his grandfather.
Davide Toni and his father Silvano.
Both have studied at IPSIA A. Ferrari and both have developed the same interest in cars that distinguishes the family.
Their contribution is absolutely essential with regard to the new software required for the maintenance of the supercars produced from the 90s onwards. Years are characterized by significant changes that impact on the electronics, the design and performance.
In 2009 Franco died. Everyone remembers him for the seriousness, the constancy and commitment that has put towards work and family. About him a priceless experience handed down remains and the desire of perfection, of transparency, that can be observed today in cars that "come out" from the workshop.
Today Silvano, Davide and Andrea, armed with an history of 40 years, continue the path with the help of valuable employees. An example above all is Vincenzo, that joined the company when he was very young and is now specialized in all aspects that make a car complete.
The workshop also collaborates with the Institute IPSIA A. Ferrari in internship programs that offer the chance to Italian and foreign students to have a first contact with the world of work.
Davide and Andrea are the future. Both passionate and knowledgeable, play different roles in the workshop but they share the same experience handed down over time. They are the guardians of the most important and valuable aspect that has always made Toni Auto one of the most prestigious in this field: the historical memory.
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