The launch of the ‘2500 HOURS – Italian excellence for the restoration of a dream’ project kicks off.
“A car must first be dreamed”… these are the words of Enzo Ferrari, who made us dream with his prestigious cars, whether driven on ordinary roads or on race circuits.
When talking about Ferrari, whether it is a lucky owner or a simple enthusiast, what they all have in common is the same enormous, sincere, boundless admiration they feel for these cars. Ferrari cars can be considered true works of art, especially the ones that are more than 50 years old, which unlike a painting or a sculpture, are complex three-dimensional structures. The spirit of their builder lives on in the materials they are made of… steel, leather, rubber, glass…All elements that cannot escape the aging process, which sees the necessity to instill a new spark into them, to preserve and make eternal the original spirit. Followed by the craftsmanship process: no spare parts exist for these creations. They are unique… handcrafted… only a true artisan can put his hand to them…with his own feelings, thoughts but acting and delivering like his predecessor.
His objective? To completely restore the Ferrari car to its original state, when it left the workshops in Modena or Maranello. No less… no more. A huge task, requiring humility as much as audacity, respect as much as imagination. 2,500 hours of hard work used to completely restore a classic Ferrari: bodywork, car frame, engine, steering, interior, wheels, paintwork. A similar process that led to the creation of the first Ferrari more than 50 years ago… when the various artisans were working side by side, sharing problems and solutions to guarantee the perfect result.
Nowadays a new issue arises… nothing is new anymore, everything has more than half a century of history behind it. Passionate artisans continue to pass on the knowledge and tricks of their work, along their skills to the new generation, which focuses on electronic practice and digital age. These modern masters are not less worthy than the original artisans. And as in the past, the old and modern masters’ names, their faces, their stories or their backgrounds, remain unknown to the crowd.
Nevertherless, they all represent Enzo Ferrari’s dreams, but also the dreams of millions of fans of this world’s famous and historic brand…and the ‘2500 ORE – Italian excellence for the restoration of a dream’ is dedicated to them.
The work of these incredible artisans have been highlighted and followed from Mr.Erich Prinoth, a native citizen of the picturesque Gardena Valley in the South Tyrol region in north Italy. He is an entrepreneur and racing driver, who has been competing in the Ferrari Challenge, the world’s most important single-marque motorsport championship, for 20 years with his Ferrari 488. “My father was a racing driver and I was born with a Ferrari. A 250 GTO, which he sold for 12 million old lire, because he had to invest in a company. Today, that jewel has been sold at an auction for 38 million… Euros though.”
The TV pilot episode will be shot entirely in 4K format and broadcast in 4K by RAI Sat 4K. It will also be broadcasted in HD by RAI Alto Adige.