I was looking through my posts and realised that I have yet to carry out the promise of reviewing on my Tomica Limited Vintage diecast vehicles. I hope this changes that with this white 1:64 1984 Carina 1600 GT-R, my very first piece from this line of products.
(Disclosure: Kinja did a "Za Warudo" and sent my post flying back into my draft.)
Why a Carina? Well, you see back in the '90s numerous taxis that looked like this roamed the streets of Singapore. Although they were Toyota Corona instead, the design was very similar. These taxis were phased out a couple of decades ago and I still think of them fondly, I wouldn't mind hooning about in one. Haha!
I think the taxis were diesel-powered so I guess that earns extra Jalop points.
When I received news of this particular model being released, I hopped over to Hobbylink Japan and grabbed one for myself!
Despite there're many pictures of it circulating around the internet, nothing could prepare me for the amount of details Tomytec have stuffed into this. No matter how little or unknown a car it can be, you can trust that it will be in its best form released in the TLV series.
The quality is top-notch, I looked and felt the glasshouse for any gaps or looseness; there was none. Rolling it about, the wheels are more than compliant and doesn't feel like it will break off while while doing so. TLV models are all built like display models but their toy-ness isn't at all compromised; this one even has working suspension!
The Carina is not at all a very big car, so in true 1:64 scale it is a tad smaller than your average Hot Wheels. But did not stop TLV from slapping on these factory split 4-spoke wheels to match the sporty name. Being able to see the lug nuts and center caps is quite a treat.
The rear lights are separate plastic lenses, one each side; different colors are injected to signify the tail lights needed on a road car. The tail light section and window frames are painted blank without a hint of overspray, I wonder how do they do that...
You gett a better look of the tail lights from this angle. No gaps were visible between the plasic pieces and the metal body, I remember being able to pry out these parts with my fingernails on other brands - not with this.
Tomytec did a tremendous job with badges and decals, the key holes for the front doors and trunk lid almost too small to detect but somehow they're there. The stripes and worded decals are spot on too.
Like the tail lights, the headlights are made from individual plastic lenses which really kick up the realism a few notches. The indicators and bumper lights are painted on with utmost precision. The car gets a slightly menacing look from the thin chrome trim pieces on the front grill. That GT-R badge has to got mean something, right?
The excellent craftsmanship carries on to the interior, although there is no opening parts, one could that steering wheels is a different color with the dashboard. The seats aren't just a flat piece of plastic as you would get in cars typical of this scale.
The color separaion continues in the back seat, it's nothing a place we look at often but Tomytec ensures nothing is neglected.
That about wraps up my review on this Carina (GT-R!!!), TLV has a wide variety of reto J-tin and the occasional foreign cars. They have recently ventured into modern cars with the IDx concept and announced that the Nissan GT-R Nismo and Nismo N-Attack will join the Neo line in February 2015.
This particular brand going from strengths to strengths, that's all sort of good news for 1:64 collectors. I highly recommending getting one and see to yourself how meticulously each of them is crafted. Tip: Get them when a model is just released, prices start to climb when supplies run scarce. Happy collecting!