Junkman

That's very true. We now get the information sooner, but not the kits.

The legend doesn't become true by repeating it. The 'Blue Train Bentley' coupe type thing (which was recreated here) is NOT the car Woolf Barnato used for the race, it was a limited series created afterwards to commemorate his win. The car Barnato used, was his personal Speed Six saloon:

How about the Plein Air?

I'd have preferred the Galaxie with thick axles and no engine. Saves a lot of hassle when building it.

In the 4L, you had glazed frost on the floor in Winter, so a wet dog probably would have frozen to the car. Despite that, it was ideally suited for ski trips. You could push the skis in the back and they would emerge underneath the front seats. Hence they weren't exposed to road salt and dirt, like they were when carried on a roof rack, and thus were always ready to use. So when we arrived, we could proceed straight to the ski lift, while others first had to clean their skis and lubricate their fittings. Low performance, narrow tyres and front wheel drive provided excellent traction in snow, too.

OK, I'm getting picky here, but I wish Ebbro would have put the early type steering wheel with the clear parts. It is the so-called Quillery wheel (named after the company that supplied them to Renault) and it was translucent. My mother had several so equipped (I don't know which trim levels had it and which not) and I was fascinated by it as a kid when the sun shone. 1960 odd Mopar steering wheels were still unbeknownst to me back then, so this for many years was the ultimate in automotive sparkledom for me. I later found one in a scrapyard and put it in each and every 4L I owned.

LOL, thanks! I became an "expert" in these cars rather involuntarily. If that tailgate is the tailgate I think it is, it would open a whole new door (pun intended) for speculations about what Heller might have in the future of this kit. This tailgate treatment was only available in 1962 and 1963 on the "Super" models (pun yet again intended). The Super was an upmarket version that set itself apart from the "regular" 4L by having a better appointed interior, added chrome trim, hinged quarter windows and this special tailgate treatment, which was actually quite a bit more impractical than the standard one: It also has this peculiar grid you see behind the rear seat. This can be folded up. With the tailgate being lowered like it is shown here, it makes a perfect ramp for dogs entering the car. Since you can retract the rear window for ventilation, and fold out the quarter windows, and fold up that grate, you'd have a perfect dog carrier. Note that this is just my interpretation, I didn't find any "official" statement that that was what it was intended for. I must buy the Heller kit now for further analysis. I was hoping I could delay it until my holiday to France in July, thus save the postage...

I remember when you knew which other kits were available because they were depicted on the side of the box. Not that you got them, mind you...

You are right. Here is a better shot at a Heller: Now I really have to buy them both. It's all your fault. I'm not responsible...

I just had another one of those "Duh, why didn't I think of that?" moments.

By the way, could this be the other tailgate in the Heller kit?

The circles you see on the plates are official "seals". The lower, bigger one is the Federal Seal of the issuing authority. The upper, smaller one, is either the round TÜV (technical inspection) on the rear plate, or the hexagonal AU (emission test) sticker on the front plate. The colour of these stickers changes annually on a rota, so the law enforcement can see at first glance, whether the stickers are expired.

Weirdly, these are seldom seen made correctly, even on decal sheets. If you want to make your own, here are a few tips. German plates have been white with black letters since 1956. From 1956, they used DIN 1451 font: Since 2000, they are in "FE Schrift" in 'medium' spacing: and 'narrow' spacing: Here are some examples for possible layouts: Each show the maximum permissable number of characters for each respective size. Smaller plates than the standard ones are only allowed on vehicles, where the space does not allow for mounting a standard one, e.g motorcycles or US cars, etc. Note: Pre-2000 plates in the old font do not have the blue "Euro" field. Here is an example of the same standard plate in the old and new format:

The black French plates are oddly out of period with the kit, which should have white front/yellow rear. Also, the fonts used for the Belgian and the German plates are completely wrong.

I'm looking forward to both of them! Heller reissued quite a few 1/8 scale bikes this spring and announced more over the rest of the year. It's nice to see all these 8th scale bikes making a return. I have hardly any left from the first time around. Oy, Revell, are you listening?

I bet the Budweiser decals won't be included this time. Because PC, you know.

The Heller is a K2. What is so nice about it are the individually moulded cooling fins.

Apart from the few technical inacurracies I have mentioned, there is a fundamental problem with the Ebbro kit. Whereas the Heller effort clear as a whistle depicts the latest incarnation of the car, the 1978-1992 GTL, the Ebbro kit can't quite decide on what it is supposed to be and offers an eclectic mix of parts that will not allow you to build either version correctly. If you want to build the 1967-1974 version, you will have to make the following corrections: - The seats would need to be scratchbuilt. The kit only contains the seats for the later version. - The parcel shelf for the earlier version is not included. Easy remedy: Just leave it off altogether. - On the earlier versions, the battery was located in a tray in front of the passenger, that was recessed into the bulkhead: This got later relocated to the front, as well as the radiator was put further out front, right behind the grille: Furthermore, there is only a 6 Volt battery in the kit, which is wrong for the late version. - Consequently, the bonnet (hood) lost its stiffening brace: which would need to be scratchbuilt if you want to do an accurate early version. - The instrument panel is only correct for the earlier version. Similar things as all the above apply to the Fourgonette (van) kit as well, which has the added inacurracy of the fuel filler cap angle. Also, the van has the same side-exit exhaust, as the passenger car, whereas to my knowledge most of them (at least in export markets) had it extended to the rear, to avoid exhaust fumes entering the interior when driving with the "Giraffe Hatch" open. /anorak mode

The Ebbro kit follows entirely different engineering principles and I'm sad to say has some major flaws. They might not be important to people who only have a passing interest in the car, but are severe enough to frustrate people like me, who not only grew up with these cars, but also owned a lot of them and had to keep them going by sohpisticated tinkering at times when life wasn't that prosperous. Here we go: Body has only two opening doors and sills molded in: Notice that on the passenger side, the door jamb is sqared off at the bottom rear, it should be radiused. Ironically, it is correct on the driver's side. Next: Notice the engine: It is a five-cylinder, almost a six! It should be a four with the distributor housing in the middle. Heller has this correct! Other faults are the total lack of a water pump, and the wrong shape of the inlet and exhaust manifolds. Also, the R4 initially had a especially designed 3-speed gearbox, which was later replaced by the 4-speed from the Estafette. The gearbox in the Ebbro kit resembles neither of them, it is pure Disneyland. Next: Note that the doors are not clear parts, as they are in the Heller kit, and the rear frame portion and the petrol tank are a separate unit. Next: The floor is a baseplate with the interior floor going on top of it, so you'll end up with a double-thick floor. That's not a bad thing, just notice that Heller found a better solution. A little bit of explainage is due here. The R4 was semi-monocoque, i.e. a not entirely structural body was bolted to a platform chassis. This was painted black chassis enamel. The boot (trunk) floor was part of the body and must thus be painted body colour. This is easier to achieve with the Heller layout. Next: Again, the tailgate is not a clear piece, as in the Heller kit. However, in the Ebbro kit, the door frames, door cards and windows are moulded combined: Chrome pieces are correct for the early version: The gear linkage wasn't chromed, though, and the grille lustre must be toned down to look right, it was made from stamped aluminium.

Interestingly, Heller just re-released theirs: It's an entirely different kit as the MPC/Airfix effort and superior in every aspect.

Same kit as this, if I'm not mistaken.

Well, the last issue I had was from the Countdown Series. It was typical Sixties AMT ware a bit from towards the lower end of their portfolio. I remember the taillight treatment being truly awful and that this issue still had the glass piece that was a carryover from '68, thus it still included the vent windows, something I believe was indeed rectified in later issues. I agree, your queston pertained an entirely different kit and should not have been tossed in here.

1961 Imperial 1977 Lincoln Town Car

Fantastic. Do you use any primer on these? If yes, which kind?

They sure weren't on soft drinks when they got that idea.