Thought it was time to start a collection thread as I've been posting here for a while. I've been collecting models for well over 30 years, starting off with Matchbox toys in my younger days, then becoming interested in "grown-up" models through Minichamps' 1/43 F1 models in the mid 1990s, but for about the last 15 years I've collected 1/18s almost exclusively.
I've recently been focussing my collection on a British theme, which probably started with AutoArt and Kyosho's Andy Priaulx BMWs that won the World Touring Car Championship in 2005, 2006, and 2007, and most of my models are motorsport. So obviously, I'm starting my thread with a Japanese road car...
This is the AutoArt Toyota 86 GT Limited, Japanese specification. I bought this from DXer Shah (AutoIndulgence) in 2015, having ordered the real thing as my new road car. As it's Japanese it's right hand drive, but it lacks the headlight washers that all UK-spec GT86s have in 1:1. It's also the 2012 version whereas my 1:1 is a 2016MY, so the 1:1 has a sharkfin aerial that was standard on later GT86s. The other difference to my 1:1 is the interior - I have red seats but not a red steering wheel/gearshift/handbrake/door handles. Those are usually standard with the red seats, but as my car was built to order, I was able to get a non-standard spec. Anyway enough of that, here are some photos.
The exterior is nicely detailed, and the paint is very nice for a metallic - they can sometimes suffer from over-sized flakes but I have no complaints here. One thing the first photo highlights is the lack of a wheelarch liner at the back, leaving a strange gap inside the panels there.
Headlight and taillight detail is excellent and very realistic, with the front LED running lights and visible indicator bulb in the taillights and front indicators being especially nice.
Wheels and brakes are very impressive too, the brake discs in particular are very lifelike.
This is an old-school, opening die-cast, and where it really shines for me is the interior.
All of the vents, dials, and buttons are accurate to the 1:1, and I especially like that the touchscreen for the stereo is shiny (although the stereo buttons are missing). The pedals are drilled metal. In the second photo above, you can even see the three buttons to the right of the gauges that control the trip computer and dash display! The model features rubber-like floor mats with the "T" markings that feature in a number of places on the 1:1 - I guess this is true to Japanese spec, as UK cars have fabric floor mats. Underneath those, you can see that the interior is carpeted.
Some more nice details here - the "fender garnish" '86 logo is reproduced in full colour, and the interior has fabric seatbelts with PE buckles for all four seats. The red panels on the seats are textured, which feels like flocking. A really nice touch as it would be easy to paint a hard plastic.
The boot is carpeted but the doglegs and opening mechanism are not accurate to the 1:1; it doesn't open far enough either. That's a minor criticism though, and the real mechanism is a complex four-bar linkage that would be hard to reproduce accurately. The engine is much better detailed than many of AutoArt's recent efforts; nicely plumbed in and with colours in all the right places. It even has the "sound generator" pipe that connects the air intake to the cabin. Apparently it was added to the 1:1 as the engineers felt the car was too quiet.
This is a really solid model for the price, and one that I hadn't appreciated enough. For me, the real standout is the interior, which punches well above its weight.
I've recently been focussing my collection on a British theme, which probably started with AutoArt and Kyosho's Andy Priaulx BMWs that won the World Touring Car Championship in 2005, 2006, and 2007, and most of my models are motorsport. So obviously, I'm starting my thread with a Japanese road car...
This is the AutoArt Toyota 86 GT Limited, Japanese specification. I bought this from DXer Shah (AutoIndulgence) in 2015, having ordered the real thing as my new road car. As it's Japanese it's right hand drive, but it lacks the headlight washers that all UK-spec GT86s have in 1:1. It's also the 2012 version whereas my 1:1 is a 2016MY, so the 1:1 has a sharkfin aerial that was standard on later GT86s. The other difference to my 1:1 is the interior - I have red seats but not a red steering wheel/gearshift/handbrake/door handles. Those are usually standard with the red seats, but as my car was built to order, I was able to get a non-standard spec. Anyway enough of that, here are some photos.
The exterior is nicely detailed, and the paint is very nice for a metallic - they can sometimes suffer from over-sized flakes but I have no complaints here. One thing the first photo highlights is the lack of a wheelarch liner at the back, leaving a strange gap inside the panels there.
Headlight and taillight detail is excellent and very realistic, with the front LED running lights and visible indicator bulb in the taillights and front indicators being especially nice.
Wheels and brakes are very impressive too, the brake discs in particular are very lifelike.
This is an old-school, opening die-cast, and where it really shines for me is the interior.
All of the vents, dials, and buttons are accurate to the 1:1, and I especially like that the touchscreen for the stereo is shiny (although the stereo buttons are missing). The pedals are drilled metal. In the second photo above, you can even see the three buttons to the right of the gauges that control the trip computer and dash display! The model features rubber-like floor mats with the "T" markings that feature in a number of places on the 1:1 - I guess this is true to Japanese spec, as UK cars have fabric floor mats. Underneath those, you can see that the interior is carpeted.
Some more nice details here - the "fender garnish" '86 logo is reproduced in full colour, and the interior has fabric seatbelts with PE buckles for all four seats. The red panels on the seats are textured, which feels like flocking. A really nice touch as it would be easy to paint a hard plastic.
The boot is carpeted but the doglegs and opening mechanism are not accurate to the 1:1; it doesn't open far enough either. That's a minor criticism though, and the real mechanism is a complex four-bar linkage that would be hard to reproduce accurately. The engine is much better detailed than many of AutoArt's recent efforts; nicely plumbed in and with colours in all the right places. It even has the "sound generator" pipe that connects the air intake to the cabin. Apparently it was added to the 1:1 as the engineers felt the car was too quiet.
This is a really solid model for the price, and one that I hadn't appreciated enough. For me, the real standout is the interior, which punches well above its weight.