Minichamps's 1/43 Mercedes Benz 450SEL 6.9

The Mercedes-Benz 450SEL 6.9 was a high-performance version of the S-Class luxury saloon. It was built on its own assembly line by Daimler-Benz in Stuttgart, Germany and based on the long-wheelbase version of the W116 chassis introduced in 1972. The model was generally referred to in the company's literature as the "6.9", to separate it from the regular 450SEL.

The 6.9 was first shown to the motoring press at the Geneva Auto Show in 1974, and produced between 1975 and 1981 in extremely limited numbers. It was billed as the flagship of the Mercedes-Benz car line, and the successor to Mercedes-Benz's original high-performance sedan, the 300SEL 6.3. The 6.9 also has the distinction of being among the first vehicles ever produced with optional electronically controlled anti-lock brakes, first introduced by Mercedes-Benz and Bosch in 1978. The 6.9's successor — the top of range 500 SEL — continued the 6.9's remarkable self-leveling hydropneumatic suspension as an extra-cost option.

The detail on this mode is incredibile from the 3-pointed star to the interior. This is the type of quality that you would well expect from Minichamps why these models are £40+ in price. I have to say it is a close call these days between AutoArt and Minichamps in terms of scale re-production. But this is a great model to have within the garage - albeit is is now retired to make way for newer additions.

I have its predecessor - the 300SEL 6.3 on display as well as AutoArt's W220 - which is one of my favourite Merc's of all time. So whilst it is not on show anymore, I am satisfied in the knowledge that I have it somewhere.

Why are Mattel not giving Matchbox a fighting chance (Pt 2)

Following on from my recent blog about the appalling way MB is marketed, here is yet more evidence that Mattel indeed couldn't give a monkey's toss about the Matchbox brand.

Can someone - preferably from Mattel - please explain as to why HW get's so much promo material and prominence and MB is reduced to some joke of an effort. You only have to look at matchbox.com and note that the 1-75 range is stuck in 2010! FFS !

Below are some snaps I got using my ipod phone thing in Weil am Rhien, DE on Saturday......

Here is the HW effort:



And here is the awesome MB effort !



Yes, exactly.

2012 Matchbox 1-120 listing finally out (in parts....)

Well, finally I took the initiative to create a posting on the MCCH board to detail the 1-120 listing for 2012.

What we have at the moment is available to view here.

What annoys me a great deal is this.

1. Why cannot Mattel get their arse into gear and produce this listing at the start of the year.

2. Why the so-called "MCCH MB Ambassador" has not taken the initiative to push forward for this - frankly he is as useful as a chocolate fireguard - no added value at all, and a title not worthy for the wearer of the cap.

3. Why has it taken a culmination of a handful of MCCH members to pull this listing to date together from the models that have been released?

BMW art

Some interesting "bodywork" by some famous artists as part of the BMW art collection.

I am really not sure why Warhol painted the M1......but then again, is it art? (No, looks like a fucking mess).

(Source: Metro 26/07/2012).

Bburago's 1/43 Nissan R35 GT-R

R35

So welcome to the first of my many blogs on the 1/43 Bburago range I have started to acquire/collect.

As mentioned before on previous blog, these are the closest thing I can find as a modern day equivalent of the Matchbox SuperKings – and great for re-creating some stunt work as well!

Most of the models represent the real life car crudely well – take for example the R35 Skyline GT-R below. There is just enough tampo-ing to keep it going on the respectable side, but the wheels are just shocking. The car might have looked better with just the standard Bburago wheels that have been seen on many.

This is not something I would have readily on display – far from it – I have got Ebbro’s filling up the Garage for that purpose. But as a toy and the price point of CHF3.90, it is goof VFM – you can’t really go wrong.

Has Toyota retained it's Crown?

Toyota's long lived workhorse the Crown Comfort must be approaching the end of its shelf life. One of my very first blogs was about this Asian transport carrier and how it was unique to this part of the world as is the LT1 to the United Kingdom.

The design is so Japanese and 80s it could be considered as a classic and is one of the first sites that you witness when you exit Changi Airport and into the Sauna known as Singapore.

However, as blogged previously, this classic from Toyota is increasingly under threat from the likes of Hyundai's Sonata (i would not touch this car with a bargepole as a personal vehicle, but as a commercial workhorse, this car makes 100% sense) and possibly any other South Korean offering, seeing that Fuji Heavy Industries, Mitsubishi and Nissan - who did have the Crew saloon at one stage - seem to concentrate on other sectors. The Soluna by Toyota



simply doesn't cut it in terms of taxi - a standard family car that has been forced to become a working mule. And by the lack of them in Asian roads, you can see why this is not a popular choice of cab.

So now - having spent some time in Bali - sees Toyota's new kid on the block that may very well take over the Crown Comfort's mantle. Called simply 'Limo', and used mainly as a taxi, this would be seen as Toyota's new offering to the commercial market for this genre.



Based on the Vios,



and mainly with manual transmission this is just a standard 4-dr saloon with vinyl seats, and those infamous pepper pot steel rims. Electric windows are found at the back and the legroom is adequate. The dash is a one piece affair like most cars these days with integrated audio, and there are finger tip controls on the steering wheel. Interesting to note that the speedo and tacho as centre set rather than in the traditional driver side position.



We didn’t had the need to chuck anything in the boot, as most of our transfers had been via a Suzuki APV, but I suspect that the boot may well be on the small side. And if the car ever does make it to the likes of Hong Kong and Singapore and a LPG tank fitted, it could very well be game over. So it would be interesting to see how many would be converted to LPG from petrol.

The Limo is definitely not a classic in terms of design and aesthetics. It is indeed a commercially engineered version of the Vios and for the purposes of the roads in Bali, it does the job, plain and simple and with the number of Limo's on the road, seems to be the cab of choice. But the upstarts from China in the form of Geely may well make a dent in this market if price and reliability make an impact.

Whether it will be the new replacement for the Crown Comfort in Singapore and HK is yet to be seen. But for the time being: the Crown is dead! Long live the Crown!

Hot Wheels Pontiac GTO "Station Wagon" (Estate)

Matchbox have the Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser. Hot Wheels have this unusual estate version of the Pontiac GTO.

Mattel references to both brands are to the wee dog within the boot of the car. MB73 Mercury Commuter was one of the first models to do this way back in 1968 - so a little re-creation here of a bit of nostalgia.

It is a very unique model indeed. Not something I would buy in 1/43 scale, but I am quietly satisfied that I have it in 1/64.

Not for everyone's taste - the paint job has a lot to be desired, but an interesting casting nevertheless.

Vanguards 1/43 Ford Fiesta 1.1L

This for me is a very significant model release. Yes, there have been others such as the Minichamps version, but these were in LHD. Needless to say the quality and accuracy of the Minichamps model is 100% and is shown in the casting below:



I first learned to drive in a Mk1 Fiesta - it was nimble, quick (to a degree) - and got me from the nightclub at 01h00 to home.....well, you never knew if you were going to pull, so sacrificing getting wasted in the hope of pulling some bird was worth doing.....never happened). Venetian Red was the colour of my parents Fiesta - PLU 911W was the reg. And now Vanguards (or more to the point Hornby) have released their version of the car.



As ever I do have some niggles - I do expect the the wheels to reflect that as per the Minichamps edition. Again this narrowly misses the mark - satisfactory, not excellent. The car modelled here is meant to be a 1.1L, but I actually think that this is more of a GL version than an L version - normally the L version does not have overriders on the bumpers, and the petrol cap is the same colour as the body of the car - I don't have pictures of the car I used to drive, but this version shows some discrepancies.



I am not sure how Corgi/Hornby ensures accuracy, but it is a little worrying that such errors are making castings like this look a little dodgy.

In saying that it is a 1981 car, a W-reg, and tugs on the heart strings. Now firmly display within the garage.

Sexy Alfa

Alfas had a bad reputation for rust in the 70s and 80s - I mean the cars just fell apart after a while due to the lack of proper corrosion treatment.

Yet they produced some beautiful cars and the GTV - enhanced by James Bond giving it a good workout in Octopussy - is one of them.

Classic 80s cues, the wedge front and fast slope at the rear - superb, stunning and very sexy.

I am not a great fan of the Brera and modern stuff - OK, the 8C is the exception, but seeing one of these classics in the flesh and in such good nick is a wonderful thing.

Happy.

Pixar Cars 2 - Lewis Hamilton

I quite like the idea of real racing drivers making cameo appearances in animated movies - Schumacher did it in the original CARS film and Lewis Hamilton makes the guest appearance in CARS 2.

A nice casting.