A few months ago, I stumbled upon a 1/18 dealer edition Norev 2018 F90 M5 in Marina Bay Blue for sale at a local dealership. It was love at first sight. Shortly after that, I found a 1/18 dealer edition Paragon 2015 M4 in Black Sapphire over Sakhir Orange. Fast forward a month and I reached out to a BMW dealership in Tampa to see what they had in stock. To my surprise, they had a 1/18 dealer edition Kyosho G30 540i in Sophisto Grey over Ivory White with the M-Sport package. Although I loved the Bluestone Metallic, the Sophisto Grey one was more me than the former. A few minutes later and I had the car in my possession.
As far as the car itself, it’s sensational. Top notch compared to the Norev and Paragon, which is certainly saying something. I took the liberty of building the exact car and detailing out the options list from BMW just to have an idea of what I have. I’ve been in love with the G30 since it was unveiled in 2016. I found it a fitting replacement for the F10, which is a car I need to pick up in the near future. Since I’m a fan of lower tier models, I was thrilled to find that this is a semi-optioned 540i M-Sport sans sunroof and with the base LED headlights. Unlike the US models, this Euro-spec one has the front fender M badging, which is deleted as standard over here. The doors open with the small tool provided and close with a reassuring thunk like the real one. The interior is well detailed, but unlike the Norev F90, this one doesn’t have independent seatbelts. That’s but a minor complaint considering how meticulously detailed the rest of the car is. I particularly love the attention to detail in the Sophisto Grey paint itself. It sparkles more than any other scale model I’ve ever owned. I truly am happy with the car, but I do have one minor gripe; the hood won’t stay open 90% of the time.
Here are some pictures to help you guys understand how nice it is. When I was waiting for the car, I found this review that validated my choice in model. Is it worth the $115 BMW is asking for it from dealerships? Absolutely. Would I choose it over the M5? Surprisingly, yes.
