Revell BMW 320i Turbo

[polybius]

This is an old and somwhat hard to find Revell kit that dates back to the early 1980s.  It was in my stash for a few years and it's finally off the bench.  Somewhere along the way one of the fender flares went missing, and despite an exhastive search for it the build went back on the shelf until I was able to find a second kit to supply the missing part.  Initially I planned to use the kit's Rally decals but the more I researched photos of the 320i the more I favored the non-striped stock look.  The kit's body has a scribed in sunroof panel in the roof, so figuring the car's rally heritage I filled and smoothed the roof to effectively delete the sunroof.  The finish is a very basic gloss white appliance lacquer wet sanded and polished without clearcoat.  

It is mostly box stock other than the sunroof delete, and the only parts not used were the off-road lights and roll cage.  Ignition wires were added along with black flocking for the interior carpet.  I had some BMW photo-etched parts and decals in the spares bin that came in handy for the emblems.  The kit assembled surprisingly soothly for an old Revell offering, although I believe the kit has Japanese origins since I noticed small Japan stampings in the tires.  Most parts had tabs or slots that made placement straight-forward, although the entire front end of the car is a test in patience.  First the header panel and hood, then the grille, and from there down.  It was necessary for the hood to be in place since the hinges are effectively locked in once the grille is attached.  After some minor adjustments it delicately fit together and somehow the hood manages to open properly. 

The most disappointing parts in the kit were the wheels which looked to be short-shot and were missing some of the finely detailed spokes.   Even the wheels in the second kit I used for parts had the same issues in the same places, so I had to make the best of them.  The later Revell reissues of this kit are a bit easier to find, and it looks like they contain the same Rally parts along with different wheels.  Overall it's a surprisingly well engineered kit and was mostly a joy to build.  

[Rusty92]

Nicely done! I would like to have one of those kits. You should be proud. 

[stitchdup]

Very nice, it looks good in white

[peekay]

Nice clean build of a kit you don't see that often.

[TarheelRick]

Sweet BMW, would like to find one like that in my garage.

[ChrisR]

Looks great!

[Kararic]

That looks really good. I like the color and how clean it is.

[espo]

I like the clean look of the way you finished this. Cleanly detailed trim and wheels. 

[slusher]

Super nice!

[ATHU]

Looking good, great work!!

[DonW]

'Overall it's a surprisingly well engineered kit...'

I'm impressed that the exhaust bore gets smaller towards the rear just like it should - this maintains the gas flow as it cools so helps it exhaust faster. 

Good job all round.