It’s that time for the Annual Pledge Drive, but here’s a review of the happenings you followed on Tomyang.net this last year.

The year always seems to begin with a trip to Palm Beach to attend the Cavallino Classic, celebrating Ferrari and track events, driving tours, and a car show of some of the best Ferraris in the world. This year I was involved with showing a few cars, and to say it was hectic getting all the cars ready, detailed, shipped, and set in place in time to be judged, would be an understatement!

Back at the shop, the usual line of engine work was completed. This engine was just installed a couple of weeks ago, but was patiently waiting for some parts to arrive earlier this year.

We seemed to have a run of 330s in the shop this year, and this one came in for brakes and an engine detailing. It was a lot of work stripping the brake system, rebuilding it, and fixing and correcting issues we found on the car. You were able to follow all the work throughout this year.

A third (or was that fourth?) 330 came into the shop this Spring for a clutch and brake job. Eventually, the owner decided to have our upholsterer re-do the leather in the interior. This is another project very close to going home that you were able to follow on this website.

On the side, I’ve been learning how to rebuild Brake boosters all year. It all started with the MasterVac systems, but I’ve also been learning how to build the Bendix systems found on the 250 Ferraris. We’re losing a lot of old timers to retirement, and their skills are going with them. I feel like it’s a race against time to learn their tricks and techniques before it’s too late to ask them for help. Every year I have at least two or three cars in my shop that require this kind of work, but if the current rebuilders close their shops, we’ll have no one to turn to. I’ve taken upon myself to spend the time to learn, spending money on flights and taking time off.  I just hope I learn enough before it’s too late!

The month of May brought in my annual car show I host with Radcliffe Motorcars in Maryland. As usual, this show brought out some spectacular cars and lots real car guys! We’ll be doing it again this year, so look to this website for more details!

Work continued at the shop making old parts new again!

I managed to find time to join my Chump Car Team for a few days of race laps around Watkin’s Glen. I hope to do more for 2016!

We may be restoring old Ferraris, but we also service a lot of Ferraris for regular use. One upgrade I’ve been doing a lot of this year was the change over to high-torque starters from the original Marelli units. The old ones will go in a box to save with the car, but the more dependable and efficient modern starter does the day to day work.

We had a massive gathering of GTEs in Monterey this year and I sent my 330 America out there to join in the fun. Tom Wilson revealed his car for the first time in many years along with a couple of other freshly restored cars. I have to say, the 250GTE crowd really has a sense of community, and I believe it’s due to the efforts of Tom Wilson and David Wheeler. I’m glad to be a part of the GTE Registry and look forward to future events. You don’t have to be an owner of a GTE to participate, and I think the information and support of this Registry can help anyone with a Vintage Ferrari. Contact David Wheeler for more information about subscribing to the newsletter, and check out Ferrari250GTE.com

Monterey week was also the time for my Annual Cocktail party I host at Quail Lodge on Thursday night before the big shows. This party has grown over the years and I’m proud to have a meeting place for owners, restorers, and enthusiasts to meet and talk about our favorite subjects. This year’s gathering was made extra special because of all the GTE owners that were in town from all over the world!

Back at the shop, assembly began on a 275GTS that Francois and I are doing a full restoration. This car will be a large part of 2016 as I hope to be showing her publicly when she’s done!

I will always make time for a Ferrari gathering, and Michael Greenspan wanted to celebrate his winning of a Platinum Preservation Award at the FCA National show that we brought home from Monererey! It was nice Fall day in Connecticut when fans of tomyang.net and the Northeast Ferrari Club members came out for nice lunch provided by the Greenspans. Good friends, food, and conversation, what’s not to like?

A leaking fuel tank was resolved by getting a used one from my friend and fellow mechanic Zac Dugger in CA. The challenges of working on these old cars is not necessarily the work, but knowing the resources!

The Year ended in a new project with the Keno Brothers. I’m proud to be a part of a new auction that had its debut in NYC in November. We have our lessons to learn from our first auction, but I look forward to helping them grow this project into something great. Look for us in Hershey next June!

I want to take this moment and thank all my friends in the Vintage Ferrari business that help me throughout the year. I couldn’t succeed without their help and support. The help is mutual, and I wouldn’t think twice of doing the same for my colleagues. In turn, I also try my best to help all the owners who reach out looking for assistance on their own cars or need a little advice to help their personal mechanic get over a particular problem. I believe in good karma, and good things usually come back from good deeds.

This pledge drive is part of your help to support this community. We all can contribute to the greater good and find our way to keep this place strong and dependable. I often tell people running this website takes an inordinately large amount of time, but I enjoy sharing my car adventures with everyone watching my career/hobby unfold. Despite the love of this site, there are mechanics that operate in the background that many of you do not see that keeps this site running. Inevitably, problems arise at the worst times, and I find I have to drop what I’m doing to fix it. It’s times like these when I think of the donations I receive from the pledge drive that reminds me that people appreciate my work, and I want to continue to provide a service that largely free to the world.

Please show me your appreciation for this website, and the community it serves and hosts. Thank you and I look forward to another year!

For those who prefer to send a check through the mail, my mailing address is:

Tomyang.net LLC

P.O. Box 36

Hollowville, NY 12530

Thanks!