RC ERTL Toyota Supra (tFatF version)

Here's the review I promised for the 1995 Toyota Supra (the Fast and the Furious version).





PAINT
The paint is rather good by ERTL's standards. The coverage is complete although there are a few roughly painted areas and uneven areas. The graphics and brand logos are applied by tampo-paintings instead of cheaper stickers. However, some of the brand logos are missing and the nose of the car should have a different logo, not the Toyota logo.
6/8

EXTERIOR

Again by ERTL's standards the exterior is quite good but it could be much improved. The model is to scale and proportionate. A sizeable amount of metal is used and this is reflected by its surprisingly heavy weight of around 830 grams. The panel gaps are tight and the doors have handles. The lights are passable although the headlights could look a bit more realistic and the front indicators and side repeaters have clearly visible mounting posts. The central tail light is applied by paint not a plastic piece. The rear wing is a single piece as it doesn't have two separate elements. The front air intakes are not perforated and only paint was used to simulate the opening and no effort was made to simulate the rear air intake to cooling the rear brakes. The intercooler is reasonably well simulated but it should be metallic, not black. The vents on the hood are simulated by thatched plastic. A nice touch with the model is that it has a detachable roof panel.
4/8

INTERIOR

The interior is a bit of a let down in all honesty. There is no carpet detail or seat texturing but at least the colours in the interior are correct. The seat belts are moulded in to the seats and although the dashboard and centre console are well moulded there is no paint application so they lack definition.

The woofers and the nitrous oxide canisters in the trunk are well defined as is the rollcage, although the rollcage sits slightly too far forward.
4/8

WHEELS & BRAKES
The wheels are quite nicely replicated and although the tyres are unbranded, the tread is quite good. The brake discs and calipers are reasonably well detailed. However the discs and calipers are fixed so the discs do not rotate with the wheels.
4/6

ENGINE & UNDERCARRIAGE DETAIL

Although there are plenty of fine mouldings, the engine isn't very detailed. There is too much use of chrome plastic and the engine bay doesn't really resemble that of the real car. The undercarriage detail is a lot better though. The engine, gearbox, differential are all separate pieces and the suspension is very nicely simulated.
4/8

COMPETITION
ERTL paid for exclusive rights to make the cars from "the Fast and the Furious" and "2 Fast 2 Furious" so their model cannot possibly have direct competition. Kyosho did, however, make the standard version of the Toyota Supra.
6/6

DESIRABILITY
The quality and detail are certainly questionable and because ERTL paid a hefty fee for exclusive rights to make the cars from the FatF movies as models, they would have to be sold in large numbers to make up for this fee so the model is anything but rare.
4/6

OVERALL
The model is a bit of a let down and it should have been a lot better. However by ERTL's standards, this model is a step forward. It costs slightly more than the average ERTL model too but it is worth the premium and the model (along with the other FatF models) will have the distinction of being amongst the most easily recognised models in almost any collection by a collector's friends.

Total Score - 32/50

Thanks to http://www.modelcarexpo.com for the use of their pictures

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