Bburago's 1/43 Audi R8

You associate supercars with the likes of Porsche, Lambo and Ferrari, so sometimes the less obvious ones are totally overlooked. Bburago make inclusion for the Audi R8 here (as well as Maserati) - and thus VAG allow the of Lambo castings.

 I think that the R8 without the detail is a funny casting - in real life this one is a bit of a head-turner, but surprisingly this casting feels a bit uninspired. Not sure why, but it lacking something. Detailing is fine for this price point as with most cars within this range.

 And as I have said many a time before, the little person will see this as a toy and not a collectable. Which is the downfall of us collectors.

Summary (sort of) the Holiday Haul

Here is a tip before I start – if you have strict customs and you bring back a massive haul, you may get stung for VAT/MSWT/GST. So, I would recommend buying whatever abroad, and posting them back to avoid any nasty surprises, and the receipts under separate cover. And if you do get caught – like I did on Sunday arvo – then blag how much they are worth. Custom Officers like to think that they are quite smart, but in the realms of diecast they are the equivalent of the Village Idiot. So be prepared, and be smart.

OK, so it is going to take me a wee while to snap the masses of diecast that I brought back from Down Under, but here is a quick summary of what I got:


• Matchbox 1-75 – end batch of 2010 and 26 new models from the 1-100 US&A range for 2011.

• 2x 2010 Lesney editions (albeit these were bought over a year ago, and I only just got them off Jono this time!)

• Maisto 1/64’s from the All Stars, Custom Shop and Pro Rodz range

• Hot Wheels – normal range

• Welly 1/43 Toyota Corolla

• Bburago 1/43 models – which I think that they were the last batch actually made in Italy!

• Shelby Collectible Cars

• 4x Biante 1/64 Road Cars (3x Falcon’s and a VZ SS Commodore) - unfortunately, being a tool, I dropped one of these, but the worst was a cracked case.

I am aiming to blog about these models all throughout April, so there will be a few posted reviewing my buys. I am quite pleased with the haul this time – although at one stage the MB 1-75 was looking quite bad. If only Europe had as much stock and choice, then I would not need to constantly look to buy them from other countries…..

MB73 - Volkswagen Saveiro Cross (1-75 - 2011)

Born in Brazil, I was fairly pleased that for the 2011 range, MB were embracing models from all around the world, like they did back in the day of Lesney. This is what helped me learn about cars from a very early age.

OK, I only picked this up the other week, as the final batches of models for 2011 enters 2012 (go figure - Mattel have no idea about distribution).

I think that there could have been a little more detailing that would have gone on here, esp. with the front end. Just detracts from the model somewhat....which is a bit of a shame.

However, this is a good inclusion rather than the constant demands of Americana from certain members of the collecting community.

Quick view - Biante 1/64 catalogue from the archives...

Within one of the 1/64 Biante's that I picked up in Australia was this catalogue showcasing the range.

Ok, a little old (models going up to the BA Falcon!), but I think that this does well to show what was/is out there.




I think that Biante produced some great little models, but why has this not been translated to the 1/43 scene?

What do you think? 1/64 or 1/43?

Tokyo Drift - AutoArt Japanese additions

As regular readers may know, the Garage is split into different sections - namely Europe, Australia and Japan. (I have no time for US&A models unless they are in 1/64 or Americana from the late 1970s, early 1980s).

ModelZone has become of a bit of a bargain centre over the last few months - and this little haul was picked up from next to nothing there. (well about £9.99 if I remember).

The normal retail on these models is about £30-35 - so again, when possible I snap these up without hesitation.

They are all of the usual AutoArt standard - excellent tampo-ing, attention to detail and so on - for a little more money you can buy a Corgi Vanguard with half the detail and the flaws in casting, so these Fast 5 present excellent VFM.

I would like to think that multiple models could be bought up and be Code 3'd - decals are available on eBay, and I think would make them look very good - no paint touching needed as the fit and finish is already spot on.

Hmmm.....now this has got me thinking.....