This 1989 Ferrari F40 Once Belonged to F1 Champ Nigel Mansell, and It's Getting a Complete Visual Restoration

The job went way, way beyond a simple wash. Much of the interior was taken apart, windows were removed, as were lights, badges, and trim pieces

A 1989 Ferrari F40 once owned by Formula 1 world champion Nigel Mansell has undergone a complete visual restoration by I Am Detailing, a prestige detailing house in the United Kingdom.

The detailing job, which was documented in a two-part video series, involved taking apart much of the interior, removing windows, lights, badges, and trim pieces, and dry ice and laser cleaning brakes, suspension, and chassis bits to remove surface rust.

The shop's two-week "Gold" signature detailing costs $4,550, while the "Platinum" package takes four weeks and costs $9,950.

British racing legend Nigel Mansell won the F1 driver's championship in 1992 in a Williams but spent the 1989 and 1990 seasons driving for Ferrari. That was when this very car was allegedly gifted to him by none other than Enzo Ferrari himself.

That story alone makes this car quite a cool piece of automotive history, and that's before you get to the magic that is the F40 itself. Powered by a twin-turbo V8 before that became the norm, it rocked 471 horsepower, a five-speed manual, and a shape that catapulted it into icon status… eventually.

For those too young enough to remember (yours truly included) the F40 didn't exactly debut to critical acclaim when it was new. Automobile and Car magazines both compared it unfavorably to the Porsche 959.

Gordon Murray, writing for Motor Trend at the time, panned it for using old technology and its generally slapdash construction. Some even saw it as a cynical cash grab, a speculator's special—and considering how much some went for, they may have had a point.

It may not have been as technically impressive as the 959 back in its day, but history was much kinder to the F40 than ’80s car pundits were. The driving experience is legendary, and on aesthetics alone, it stands as a holy grail automobile for many enthusiasts.

And a car like that deserves the best care money can buy.