Meng Full Detail 1/24 2019 Audi R8LMS GT3 announced

[Justin Porter]

Meng has posted renders of an upcoming FULL DETAIL Audi R8 GT3 that they have planned. While the NuNu kit is well known for being a quality build, it's exciting to see Meng jump into the arena especially with a full detail kit as opposed to the industry standard of curbsides for GT3 builders. 

 

[rrb124@sbcglobal.net]

Very desirable! I forget to check in on Meng. Big Audi fan. Thanks for posting.

[Jim B]

This in interesting.  Hopefully it'll be easier to get than the NuNu kit and will be reasonably priced.

[iamsuperdan]

6 minutes ago, Jim B said:

This in interesting.  Hopefully it'll be easier to get than the NuNu kit and will be reasonably priced.

Unfortunately, being a Meng kit, it will not be inexpensive!

But it will be awesome.

I'm mentally preparing myself for the cost. And the fact that my wife will ask about the credit card charge!

 

[stitchdup]

I'll be getting one. I hope it is the non team audi version. From the pics its looks good

Edited July 21, 2023 by stitchdup

[Zoom Zoom]

Considering full US MSRP for Meng's curbside BMW Z4 is $105, I can only speculate that the price of this Audi will be considerably higher so it seems Meng is taking some risks that may or may not pay off down the road. That said, I built the Z4 and while I expected the kit to be okay based on early photos of the unpainted test shot it's really quite good. I won it in a club raffle last December and was pleasantly surprised how it went together and how they did the little details like seatbelts and emblems. This is in stark contrast to friends that have had a lot of trouble w/the full-detail Jeep and Hummer kits having terrible fit issues. Meng's GT40's have design/detail issues (I think Fujimi captures the shape better in 1/24th and the same can be said for Trumpeter's 1/12 kit), whereas this straightforward curbside BMW looks great and it went together without any drama. Completely unexpected subject matter; I can't imagine it's setting any sales records with the steep price especially in the US. Let's hope Meng is really learning as they go. 

[Bugatti Fan]

Yikes  Bob!

105 bucks for a kerbside plastic kit of a Z4 in 1/24th scale. That's about 85 Sterling over here.

I may be keen, but not that keen!   At least you won yours in a club raffle. Lol.

Joking apart, you have made a very nice job of it!

Edited July 21, 2023 by Bugatti Fan

[Chuck Kourouklis]

Stay patient, and you can eventually find a Meng Z4 more in the 50 USD / 45 Euro / 38 Quid range.

Very agreeable at that price point, I think.

What it all means for the R8, though, I have no idea.  The Meng 1/35 British MKV heavy male WWI tank started in the $100 range and you can find them now at just over $60.  Those have complete engines, interiors and something like 400 parts in the tracks alone.  Except for being accurate, nicely molded, and a clean build if Bob's experience is any indication, I have no idea how to rationalize the BMW at the same price point.

It'll be ver-ry interesting to see where the Audi lands...

Edited July 21, 2023 by Chuck Kourouklis

[Justin Porter]

22 minutes ago, Chuck Kourouklis said:

Stay patient, and you can eventually find a Meng Z4 more in the 50 USD / 45 Euro / 38 Quid range.

Very agreeable at that price point, I think.

What it all means for the R8, though, I have no idea.  The Meng 1/35 British MKV heavy male WWI tank started in the $100 range and you can find them now at just over $60.  Those have complete engines, interiors and something like 400 parts in the tracks alone.  Except for being accurate, nicely molded, and a clean build if Bob's experience is any indication, I have no idea how to rationalize the BMW at the same price point.

It'll be ver-ry interesting to see where the Audi lands...

According to Stevens International, MSRP on the Audi is $99.99, which is an MSRP five bucks lower than what Stevens lists on the BMW Z4. 

I've had similar experiences with cross shopping other distributors so that I can stock Meng at lower prices though. For instance, that same Z4 sits at my shop for $82 because I was able to get it from a different distributor at a slightly better rate. 

[Zoom Zoom]

2 hours ago, Bugatti Fan said:

Yikes  Bob!

105 bucks for a kerbside plastic kit of a Z4 in 1/24th scale. That's about 85 Sterling over here.

I may be keen, but not that keen!   At least you won yours in a club raffle. Lol.

Joking apart, you have made a very nice job of it!

Thanks, I was pleasantly surprised how good the model is. It's a great $50 kit in reality. I saw one at a show for $45 after I built mine, I almost bought it. A little later a good friend who was me about my Z4 model on the show table really liked it and I pointed out the one for sale, and he snapped it up. I see the Audi will be $100 in the US, I have no clue why it's cheaper than the BMW but it still is far from cheap! 

[bbowser]

7 hours ago, iamsuperdan said:

Unfortunately, being a Meng kit, it will not be inexpensive!

But it will be awesome.

I'm mentally preparing myself for the cost. And the fact that my wife will ask about the credit card charge!

 

LOL, I see the same thing in my future!

[martinfan5]

Hobby Easy has it listed for $43US , shipping is around $25, release date for 9/2023 , I ordered the BMW Zed 4 from them and paid less than $60 total, its a nice kit, but not $100 US Mark up nice. And since Bob shared his, might as well share mine.

 

https://www.hobbyeasy.com/en/data/je27mjvq7tvhbic9hgg2.html

Edited July 21, 2023 by martinfan5

[Rodent]

I don't even particularly like Z4s, but now you guys have me wanting this kit. This forum is full of bad influencers.

[Ben Brown]

Nice! Hopefully they’ll follow it up with other GT3 kits. We still need a Huracan, NSX, Aston Martin, and 488.

Ben

[Jim B]

1 hour ago, Ben Brown said:

Nice! Hopefully they’ll follow it up with other GT3 kits. We still need a Huracan, NSX, Aston Martin, and 488.

Ben

I could go for a Huracan along with a BMW M8.

[64Comet404]

What are the differences between the 2015 (NuNu) and the 2019 cars? Bodywork? 

I have one of the NuNu kits already, but if the Meng kit is different enough in appearance, I could be persuaded...

[niteowl7710]

48 minutes ago, 64Comet404 said:

What are the differences between the 2015 (NuNu) and the 2019 cars? Bodywork? 

I have one of the NuNu kits already, but if the Meng kit is different enough in appearance, I could be persuaded...

There already is a 2019 Spec NuNu kit as well. Came out over a year ago. I do not understand what the point of this kit is...other than having an opening door and deck lid gimmick. None of my contacts overseas seem to understand the thinking behind this release either as it's an exact duplicate (albeit perhaps more detailed - since this is all CAD imaging) of an existing kit that was popular enough NuNu sold out of it.

They could at least do a 2021-2023 Evo II Spec which would eliminate the need to source resin/3D print conversion parts for the NuNu item. Or do a kit of any of about a half dozen other gaps in GT3 cars that haven't ever been done by anyone. 

[allis200]

double post  had missed this one

Edited July 27, 2023 by allis200

[Justin Porter]

We got these in at my shop this week and I am here to say that for anyone for whom "curbside" is a dirty word, then you have nothing to complain about with the Meng kit. Just rifling through the box shows really fine molding, some genuinely clever design to keep things square and fitting nicely, and a good amount of goodies as there is included photoetch, belt material, and precut window masks.

[niteowl7710]

9 hours ago, Justin Porter said:

We got these in at my shop this week and I am here to say that for anyone for whom "curbside" is a dirty word, then you have nothing to complain about with the Meng kit. Just rifling through the box shows really fine molding, some genuinely clever design to keep things square and fitting nicely, and a good amount of goodies as there is included photoetch, belt material, and precut window masks.

Unfortunately with this kit while the decals do match the box art they're only about 85% complete for the actual race car it represents. The literature about the kit proudly touts it as the 3rd Place finisher of the locally run (cause no FIA due to Covid) Macau GT Race in 2020. But it has none of the actual race day items like number placards, windshield banners, et al.

In general it seems a pretty decent kit, but they somehow used the wrong sized polycaps and the wheels end up sitting way inside the wheel wells and camber all willy nilly due to the loose fit of the cap inside the receptacles in the suspension components. 

[stitchdup]

theres a subtle hint why the race decals aren't included on the box

[niteowl7710]

2 hours ago, stitchdup said:

theres a subtle hint why the race decals aren't included on the box

Here's a subtle hint of MENG's own advertising literature says about the kit.

In 2020, EVANGELION RACING ventured into international competition, collaborating with Audi Sport Asia Team TSRT at the 67th Macau Grand Prix GT Cup. The car in the spotlight was the EVA RT TEST TYPE-01 Audi R8 LMS. As a standout feature of the EVANGELION RACING team, the car's livery was a striking showcase of the Evangelion Test Type-01 theme, predominantly in purple and green, with orange highlights adding a vibrant contrast. Alongside Chen Wei An's exceptional driving skills and the Audi R8 LMS GT3's formidable performance, the team clinched an impressive third place in their debut race on the challenging streets of Macau.

Here's what the race-run car looks like

It's a matter ot MENG cheaping out and not paying the licensing for the Race Specific items, also notice the kit (actually both of the Audis) don't have any tire licensing either.

Understand the "blank" Audi R8 LMS GT3 has a North American MSRP of $99.99. The EVA kit is extra on top of that and will MSRP in around $115.99. I think that's enough money - even paying the $47 it costs out of China, given that's a $15 premium on the NuNu Audi kit - to get the entire set of decals for the actual race car.

[Justin Porter]

1 hour ago, niteowl7710 said:

Here's a subtle hint of MENG's own advertising literature says about the kit.

In 2020, EVANGELION RACING ventured into international competition, collaborating with Audi Sport Asia Team TSRT at the 67th Macau Grand Prix GT Cup. The car in the spotlight was the EVA RT TEST TYPE-01 Audi R8 LMS. As a standout feature of the EVANGELION RACING team, the car's livery was a striking showcase of the Evangelion Test Type-01 theme, predominantly in purple and green, with orange highlights adding a vibrant contrast. Alongside Chen Wei An's exceptional driving skills and the Audi R8 LMS GT3's formidable performance, the team clinched an impressive third place in their debut race on the challenging streets of Macau.

Here's what the race-run car looks like

It's a matter ot MENG cheaping out and not paying the licensing for the Race Specific items, also notice the kit (actually both of the Audis) don't have any tire licensing either.

Understand the "blank" Audi R8 LMS GT3 has a North American MSRP of $99.99. The EVA kit is extra on top of that and will MSRP in around $115.99. I think that's enough money - even paying the $47 it costs out of China, given that's a $15 premium on the NuNu Audi kit - to get the entire set of decals for the actual race car.

I can't speak to what other shops are going to be charging, but it's $75 on my shop's shelf and that's only a fuzz beneath MSRP which is my standard practice. Granted, $75 still isn't cheap but I feel it's in line with the $65 I charge for the Tamiya AMG GT Mercedes GT3 or $57 for the Fujimi McLaren MP4/12C GT3.