What Would You Wish For?

[bandit.93]

Now I know we all have cars we wish would be made into models so list which ones you wish were kitted. Mine are the Nissan GT-R, 2007 Chevy Silverado 1500, 2007 Chevy Silverado 2500HD, 90's Callaway Twin Turbo Corvette, and the Porsche 911 GT2.

[CAL]

Now I know we all have cars we wish would be made into models so list which ones you wish were kitted. Mine are the Nissan GT-R, 2007 Chevy Silverado 1500, 2007 Chevy Silverado 2500HD, 90's Callaway Twin Turbo Corvette, and the Porsche 911 GT2.

The Porsche 911 GT2 has been kitted.

However, the 550 hasn't at least in the main stream. I sure like to see that one kitted. It's probably one of the sexiest cars ever.

[MrObsessive]

Well lessee..............

You all know that I'm more into the vintage stuff................but there's some new iron out there I would LOVE to see in kit form.

How 'bout........

2008 Cadillac CTS

2006 to current Pontiac Soltstice, or 2007-08 Saturn Sky

Current Cadillac Escalade

2007 Ford Interceptor Concept Car

2008 Pontiac G8 (top line version)

As far as vintage iron.............

1968-70 Mustang Shelby GT350-GT500KR Convertible

1957-58 Studebaker Golden Hawk (Long Shot! )

1959 Corvette Stingray Racer

1964-65 Shelby Daytona Coupe

1970 Plymouth Barracuda coupe and convertible (a CORRECT one!)

I'm sure there are some others.............I just can't think that straight this time of day--------I'm suffering from a "turkey" hangover of sorts.

[Modelmartin]

I am still jonesing for a 51 Studebaker Starlight coupe!

[mikemodeler]

I would like to see some new truck kits (light and medium duty) along with re-issues of kits from the '70's. This would allow me to build some kits I screwed up in my younger years.

Mike

[LDO]

1/24 Lola T70 coupe. I think there's one in resin. Not sure about that.

2008 model domestic full-size pickup. I don't even care if it's Ford, Dodge, or Chevy. I want to use the cab to make a model of a box truck for the business I want to own in a few years. I have a box truck model in progress, but it's based on the '99 Chevy Silverado. (No, I'm not going to wish for a model of a box truck LOL)

An all-new tool Duesenberg. If not that, then a new body for Monogram's old Duesenberg kit. I don't even care which Duesy it would be.

Multi-media superdetail kit for Tamiya's 1/12 Lola T-70. I've heard that one is in the works.

[MrObsessive]

Multi-media superdetail kit for Tamiya's 1/12 Lola T-70. I've heard that one is in the works.

Really??!! That would be great 'cuz I've got that kit!

I just hope it's not $500 like the superdetail set from Scale Motorsports for the 1/12 Porsche.

[Rob Hall]

The Porsche 911 GT2 has been kitted.

Really...I know Tamiya did a late '90s GT3..haven't seen a GT2 kitted. I'd like to see and of the current 997 generation 911s kitted...

I'd love to see some current BMWs (M3, M5, M6, 545, etc), Mercs (CLS, SL, S-class, etc), Audis (TT, RS6, S5, etc) kitted... from Japan, I'd love to see the new G37, GT-R, and Prius kitted..

As far as the domestics, at the top of my list would be the '08 CTS (I love the new Caddy, may buy one for next daily driver), followed by the new G8 and the new Bullitt Mustang....I'd also love to see a current Crown Vic, and the '03-04 Marauder kitted, and a current Grand Cherokee (esp. the SRT8).

As far as the oldies go, I'd love to see some subjects that were never kitted before, like a '68-69 Mercury Cyclone, a '69-70 Mercury Marauder, a '70 Plymouth Sport Fury GT, a '67 Pontiac 2+2, '71 Caddy Coupe de Ville, '71 Buick Centurion convertible, '73 Chevelle SS, '73 Buick Gran Sport, '73 Grand Am, '85-86 Mustang GT, '87 Grand Prix 2+2, etc..

Edited November 23, 2007 by Rob Hall

[CAL]

Really...I know Tamiya did a late '90s GT3..haven't seen a GT2 kitted. I'd like to see and of the current 997 generation 911s kitted...

Tamiya 24181 Sogo Keibi Porsche GT2 and 24175 Taisan Starcard Porsche GT2

[Rob Hall]

Tamiya 24181 Sogo Keibi Porsche GT2 and 24175 Taisan Starcard Porsche GT2

Those were race cars, though...no street GT2 kits that I know of..

Edited November 23, 2007 by Rob Hall

[Brendan]

My list of cars I would like to see are mainly race cars.

Accura Spice, Cadillac CTS-V, Calloway Corvette C5R, Spiker GT2, Momo Nissan GTP, Toyota Eagles GTP (early and late versions), Porsche RS Spyder, Zytek, Creation CA06, Acura ARX-01.

[CAL]

Those were race cars, though...no street GT2 kits that I know of..

didn't specify that...

24247 is the road version or Club Racer.

I am sure there will be a 997 GT2, probably just too new yet since it's only been out this year.

[CAL]

My list of cars I would like to see are mainly race cars.

Accura Spice, Cadillac CTS-V, Calloway Corvette C5R, Spiker GT2, Momo Nissan GTP, Toyota Eagles GTP (early and late versions), Porsche RS Spyder, Zytek, Creation CA06, Acura ARX-01.

Yeah, I would like to see a Penske/Porsche RS Spyder too.

Edited November 23, 2007 by CAL

[crispy]

I would love to see:

Aston Martin Vanquish

McLaren F1 road car

Trucks:

2007 Chevy Tahoe/Suburban

New Escalade

Vintage:

Re-Pop the MPC annuals of the Firebird/Trans Am's.

That's all, thanks!

Chris

[ramonesblues]

I'd like to see a '46-48 Plymouth coupe and two door sedan.A'57 Olds would be great too.

[James W]

I'm looking for a 54 Olds or Buick 2 door post. Would not mind seeing a new Dodge short bed/regular cab either. An interesting twist on the pick-ups, issue them as either Two or Four wheel drive. That's a 2-n-1 I'd like to see.

[Dave]

I wouldn't mind a '75 Plymouth Gran Fury, a 93 Cadillac Alante..with a decent Northstar engine represented. Of the more recent vintage a really like the looks of the current Honda Civic..but thats just me.

[Aaronw]

Current

A 1 ton truck from Chevy, Dodge, Ford or GMC, even better if it included a diesel engine.

A full size van, preferably an extended body Ford but I wouldn't complain about a Chevy, Dodge or GMC

Older

80's Dodge Diplomat

80's Ford Crown Vic

80's Ford "Baby" LTD

Older yet

Too many to list but I'd start with a '42-47 Ford pickup

More medium duty trucks from any period

[kurth]

The only thing I can think of is 1970s subjects...

I was excited to see the trumpeter monte carlo, but it seems they have abandoned cars at this point

If I ran a model company and was willing to take risks here's what I would try:

All new tools, with option parts to build different trim levels, not just the highest performance version:

1972 torino

1973 Buick Century

1977 Olds Cutlass Supreme

and then the cash cow would be an all new tool, up to contemporary standards 1978 corvette tooled in a manner to also make the 1980-82 style

70s and early 80s subjects are really under served.

[jbwelda]

>Multi-media superdetail kit for Tamiya's 1/12 Lola T-70. I've heard that one is in the works.

i would buy one of those!

heres a couple things i would like to see kitted, but im sure im close to the only one:

nissan figaro:

maserati typo 60 aka birdcage:

lotus elise/exege:

toyota land cruiser FJ 60 wagon (choice of insurgents worldwide):

(if you look close you might notice the fuel injected 327 insignia on the side)

brabus smart car:

those would keep me happy for the year. oh, tamiya quality please.

Edited November 24, 2007 by jbwelda

[dub]

You definitely have some eclectic tastes, Bill. That's not a bad thing though! I can say I share in your interest of this one.....

nissan figaro:

This one I'd like to see someone else build!

maserati typo 60 aka birdcage:

I'm really surprised Tamiya or Fujimi hasn't jumped on this one...... I wonder if its licensing rights or something.....

lotus elise/exege:

....and this one is a really cool car as well. I have seen it before but I forget what powers it.

brabus smart car:

As for what I would like to see kitted is actually only one subject I can come up with being fairly new to the hobby. I know there are other people who would buy more than one of them, too. How about Fujimi or Tamiya kits an 82-88 VW Scirocco? That's a pretty obscure one but I know I'm not alone in the desire.

Edited November 24, 2007 by dub

[CAL]

This one I'd like to see someone else build!

maserati typo 60 aka birdcage:

A Birdcage Maserati would be cool.

[Modelmartin]

A Birdcage Maserati would be cool.

HMMMMM!!!!!!! Like this?

Edited November 24, 2007 by Modelmartin

[Aaronw]

I could go for a Lotus Elise, TLC FJ60 and I always liked the Scirocco. Even better would be a TLC FJ55,

I would have put it on my list but its hard to find the FJ40 which is a much more popular vehicle and I'm not that optimistic even on a wish list.

[Luc Janssens]

Hello all,

Wanna make a difference in the hobby try the following, cuz this tread is turning into a another huge list of subjects.

Either post your proposal here (so all the member can debate, and add to it) or send it to the manufacturer of your choice.

And don't be intimidated by the long read....

Thanks, and keep on supporting this great hobby!

Luc Janssens

Belgium

The $250,000 Question

So the bank agreed to loan you $250,000 to spend on an all new 1/25 Car tool. If the investment is paid back in the agreed time, let’s say 3 years, an extra $500,000 is coming your way for further releases. If you fail, say goodbye to the extra $500 000, and say hello to your new best friend, the repo man! (Insert crazy laugh here)

If you accept the challenge, then read the introduction, guidelines and pilot project below, and you will be all set.

Introduction:

What is the $250,000 or 250K question and where does this number come from?

The 250K question is a one of kind survey, which, with the help of friends, yours truly fired up in 2001. Its purpose is to find out what you, the Spotlight Hobbies board participant would do, when given a budget to create an all new model kit and make a profit from that venture. The number was taken from a statement made by a former ERTL president in the late 1990s as to how much it costs to tool up an all-new car model kit. The number went South shortly after product development went East, joining the already relocated production facilities, but word on the street is, that it’s on the rise again, and almost on par with North American counterparts.

After a two year absence I felt that the time was ripe to start it up again, mainly due to the doom and gloom that is surrounding today’s hobby industry and the frustration it creates amongst many modelers, as seen on Tom’s canvas (as well as on several others boards).

Now this little essay is more than listing dozens upon dozens of possible new subjects, but don’t let this scare you a way, because this is so much more rewarding, and lets the manufacturers and distributors who often lurk these pages see in a positive way, what you the modelers want and how.

So hop on board and turn these bad vibes into positive energy, by creating your 250K proposal.

To help you on your way I created some guidelines and with the help of our very own Tom Sheehy wrote a pilot entry, so I’m very certain that when you’re finished reading all this, the ink will steadily flow out of your pen or drive you spouse nuts when you’re constantly hammering the keyboard of your home computer.

Guidelines:

1) Select the type of customer you wish to reach. This will help you define the skill level, parts count, breakdown and price range.

- Youth (parents- grandparents of)

- Weekend (Novice) modeler

- Enthusiast modeler

2) Choice of subject matter:

You’ve selected your customer, now we need to find out what they want.

- What’s the current or expected long term automotive trend in the group you selected (Racing, Muscle, exotic, drag...)?

- Which yesteryears kits are (or were always) strong sellers and could benefit from a complete redo? (Amt vs Revell '64 Impala for example)

- Are there still “missing links†in a successful series? (where's the '66 Impala for example)

- And last but not least do you think they’re willing to pay extra copyright & trademark fees (not only from OEM but also from 3rd parties like tire, wheel and speed equipment companies, also racing sponsors, and media groups) because it can add up quickly when you go all the way.

3) Design of the kit & tool:

Now that you have chosen the subject matter for the target group selected, one can start designing the kit. It must not only meet the skill level (easy, moderate, challenging) of the target customer, helping (not fighting) him or her to create something they can be proud of.

It also sets the price bracket in which you will have to operate deciding on parts count, the choice as to parts breakdown depends not only on the skill level but the subject matter too. Here are two examples:

- Skill level: molded-in headlamps are out of place in a kit marketed towards enthusiasts

- Subject matter: Engines is very important in a drag racing car, but not in a Van where dress-up features are more desired.

To tackle this, it’s best to talk with fellow modelers (on or off Tom’s board), go through your stack of kits or display case(s) lined with built models and write down what features you liked or disliked when assembling them. If you have any, take a look at your (old) promos and die-casts too, because they were/are designed for easy and fast assembly by non-modelers on a production line.

I took the liberty of writing down some key elements which (for me at least) define the characteristics of an excellent kit, no matter what skill level:

- Ease of build, no matter how many parts.

- Parts break-down not only chosen in function of molding restrictions and possible future siblings, but also to avoid possible sink mark areas and optical distortions (on clear parts), the degree of detail you wish to incorporate, helping the painting process (like the separate grille inserts of the Amt (ex-MPC) ’74 Roadrunner/GTX) or the mating of various subassemblies and also by trying to make the assembly dummy proof, by carefully (again to avoid ghost sink marks) chosen (perimeter) ridges, holes and pins.

- Crispness of the molded parts, so clean-up is minimal and applying finishing materials like BMF becomes child’s play.

- Sprue attachments, designed not to damage the appearance of the parts when cut off the tree. This is especially important for plated parts.

- Ejection pins, is it possible to position them on hidden surfaces, or on the sprues, maybe by beefing up the affected part’s sprue attachment(s).

- Parting lines, be creative and don’t let them run too close to areas where they can affect the overall presence of the model, like too close to molded-in scripts, or try to hide by using the shape of the piece to its advantage, especially when dealing with plated parts.

Keep in mind that outright criticism of an existing kit’s flaws or shortcomings may not be appreciated by its manufacturer when reading your proposal. Try to use constructive criticism to avoid your proposal being sent straight to the shredder. Likewise, pointing out strong points of a model’s design or engineering aspects may facilitate the acceptance of your proposal. For us, this may be just a hobby, but for many it is a business and a way to make a living.

4) Packaging and support

How do you want to present your product? The design of the box is the first thing the buyer sees, and may make or break a decision to purchase the kit. Packaging of contents, as well as the layout of the instruction sheet are also issues that may reinforce the buyer’s decision of having bought the kit.

5) The bean counters have reviewed your proposal and it seems the kit you're proposing slightly exceeds the budget. Luckily you are still at the planning stage, so what aspect or parts of the kit do you lose, and why?

It may seem like a cruel question, but sometimes during the planning stages for whatever reason there’s something that goes over budget. What do you do?

6) Post a photo of the subject

Post a photo either from your collection or taken from the web (when doing the latter, remember to indicate who the picture is courtesy of). Please don’t post excessively large pictures. Not all people have a high-speed internet connection.

Pilot Entry: 1969 Dodge Polara CHP Cruiser by Tom Sheehy & Luc Janssens

1) Select the type of customer you wish to reach:

The enthusiast modeler,

As with big rig builders, police car modelers are rarely blessed with new subjects, and the few released were either simplified designs and retools or marketed towards youth, sometimes including questionable and costly extras.

Only one kit sticks out and then it’s an old tool whose current existential status is unknown, namely the old Jo-Han Plymouth Fury, which was on the market for decades.

I firmly believe that police car modelers will lay the green on the counter for a detailed cruiser because they almost always had to rely on aftermarket companies to make a convincing model.

2) Choice of subject matter:

The 1969 Dodge Polara is widely known as one of the all-time favorite cruisers amongst officers who were active during the 60s-70s. It is also listed as the fastest cruiser of the time, even surpassing the 94-96 Caprice LT1s. The 1969 Polara equipped with a 440 4bbl was officially clocked at 147mph in tests.

It was basically a 4 door muscle car, which sat on top of the food chain eating GTOs, Chargers, Challengers, ‘Cudas, Chevelles, Camaros and Mustangs for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Just the kit we need for keeping the tablecloths of America’s contest tables free from tire burns! In fact, anyone who collects and/or builds muscle car kits must have at least one, just to keep his collection intact.

3) Design of the kit & tool:

Finding a pristine example will not be a problem in this case, because Hemmings “Muscle Car Machines†Magazine recently did a restoration feature on one. Likewise for someone to measure and photograph it, because it’s in Tom Montgomery’s back yard!

Body: Four-door body of course with fine and sharp engraving (Don’t you love the window surrounds on a late 60s Jo-Han annual?) and without heavy molded-in features. For example, a dome light which can lead to a sink mark in the roof, which the modeler has to fill and sand. Small ridges and holes where to drill in the roof for roof mounted emergency lights will do.

Because this car has seen service in many agencies, it would be handy to either offer the side moldings as separate metal transfer pieces (like Galaxie LTD’s 1948 Chevyrolets). This may not be feasible and could be a possible giveback when running into budget issues, but since it’s a thin molding to begin with, it probably can be sanded off with relative ease when molded-in.

The body closings will only consist of the hood dressed up with a separate lip* and hinges, in case the builder wants to show off the engine.

The following items round up the body assembly: firewall, inner fenders (as with Amt ‘ 68 RR), radiator brace, side mirror(s)*, door handles*, front bumper* with separate grille* (to ease the detail painting) with clear headlamp lenses, rear bumper*, tail lamp-surrounds* with a perimeter flange to reinforce them and provide a gluing surface to mount them into the body and provide a stop for the rear bumper, and clear tail lamp-lenses of course (* indicates chrome part).

Interior: The plain-Jane base level trim all around interior, would be a sort of snap-fit platform style, minimizing the risk of getting glue in unwanted places.

Consisting of a floorboard with a two piece dash, steering wheel and column with molded-in selectors, separate pedals, two piece bench seat, separate rear seat with package tray (flashed over holes for mounting the two CHP flashers), separate door panels to allow for easy detailing. Police radio set-up for the transmission hump. It can be similar to the Jo-Han Plymouth set up, as that was very accurate. However, having separate pieces for the radio, siren control and switches would be great so that different set-ups can be configured by the builder. Two detailed microphones are needed; there was only one in the Jo-Han kit which was incorrect for the set-up.

Chassis and drivetrain: Breakdown similar to AMT’s 1957 Chrysler 300 or their 1960 Galaxie kit, 440 4bbl (what else!) with Torqueflite 727 Auto Trans. This police engine was rated at 375 HP. Kit should include two air cleaners, one stock and one low restriction. The low restriction is the police unit, and is similar in design to the one in the Lindberg 1964 Dodge 330 kit. It’s actually referred to in the Dodge literature as an "unsilenced" air cleaner. Separate chassis, heavy duty rear end, dual exhaust, and front and rear sway bars round out the chassis. Wheels: two sets...one needs to be correct steel wheels with dog dish hub caps of correct vintage. I'd include a base series full hubcap as an option for those doing a standard sedan. Tires need to be a beefy vintage blackwall, Goodyear Polyglas or similar. The ones AMT has been using for years are actually pretty good.

Accessories: Here's where it gets tricky. The Jo-Han Plymouth was actually a great kit for the roof lights alone. They were extremely accurate and looked the part. This kit should be done with that in mind, optional roof light set-up* for multiple agencies. Spotlights* for both sides are a must. Two styles of beacon lights, one like the Jo-Han, which is a Federal model 176H and one a flat top 4 beam (Federal 184, Dietz 211 or similar). The roof bar with twin beacons would be nice too. That's a Federal model 11, with optional chromed siren speaker in the center. I'd use the rounded speaker (like the speaker on the Adam-12 car) instead of the flat wide style in the Jo-Han kit. Since electronic sirens were just becoming popular, it would still need an old mechanical siren for under the hood as another option. To round it out, about six flashers of different sizes, 2 small, 2 medium, 2 larger, all single faced. These could be used for rear deck flashers, front grille flashers, optional light bar flashers, etc.

Now the most important necessity for all of these lights: MOLD ALL OF THEM IN CLEAR PLASTIC. Not red, not blue, not a mix... CLEAR. This allows the builder to tint them accordingly to the agency that's being represented.

The push bar would be a preformed pre-painted metal assembly, to keep it in scale and robust

Agency decals: I'm sure licensing and permissions are in order here. But it shouldn't be too bad, considering Hawk/Lindberg is issuing about 6 different state agencies in their reissue of the 1996 Crown Victoria. A CHP version is a must, this would negate the need for roof lights, too, as they ran most of these with no roof lights and dual spotlights, the driver's side being red. The CHP would also have two flashers, one red and one amber, on the back package shelf, both on the left side, facing rear. However, the 1969 Polaras were used all over the country, and offering different versions or including different agencies in the one kit (like the Jo-Han Plymouth) would be great.

The tooling could be used for modified reissues of any C-body MoPar from 1969-77 as the chassis were virtually unchanged except for the yearly addition of annual emissions upgrades (or downgrades, if you will). The ultimate choice would be the 74 Monaco for its wide use in movies (Blues Brothers) and its very wide use in police and taxi work.

4) Packaging and support

Box

- Artwork: I really like the way Sean Svendsen handled the Model King box designs of the ’70 Wildcat and Camaro Funny Cars. He really knows how to present a built model, so I would put him in charge of that (hopefully his fees are reasonable). for the box top however, I also like the art work of Jairus Watson and know he would do a good job of a CHP unit burning sideways (showing off the “Wolf’s Head†graphics on the door) through a corner on Mulholland drive, in hot pursuit of some bad boys.

The size of the box would be like the AMT Corvette kits, to show off the artwork and the neatly displayed contents when removing the box top.

- Packaging of the parts: chrome, clear parts, tires, packed separately in poly bags, same for the white plastic parts, decals by Cartograph covered with a protective paper and bagged too.

- Instruction sheet: I like the approach AMT/ERTL took in the mid 1990s, which was very detailed and every part was clearly identified.

- Consumer support: On our company website I would post a whole range of photos taken when the engineers of product development were measuring up the cruiser, together with anecdotes, facts and fiction of the subject and the agency it served with.

Also a photo composing as per instruction sheet sequence would be available on line together with tips on how to build a perfect model.

5) Budgetary constraints

I would lose the metal transfers, and engrave the side molding into the cavity of the body sides, is a too simple solution for the cash problem, therefore I would get in touch with a die cast manufacturer (like Highway 61) to see if the project is of interest to them too, because the majority of model car collectors are not modelers, if they’re interested the R&D costs would drop considerably, and could start a long term partnership

6) Post a photo of the subject

Pictures courtesy of Hemmings Muscle Machines, for more photo's and the original article of the restoration of this unique vehicle, click on the link below

http://www.hemmings.com/mus/stories/2007/0..._feature15.html

Note: The book "Dodge, Plymouth & Chrysler POLICE CARS, 1956-1978" by Edwin Sanow and John Bellah, Motorbooks International was used for reference.

Luc Janssens

The 2007 250 000 dollar / 250K question ©.

Format created by:

Luc Janssens,

Klaproosstraat 72C, bus 8,

B-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium

Edited November 25, 2007 by Luc Janssens