Welcome to my channel about motorsports (diecast) models. I used to do my reviews on my previous channel, Diecast Reviewer. All new content will be added here exclusively.
The main theme will be F1, mostly scale 1/18. I do have other motorsports related subjects like half scale helmets and cars and bikes from other disciplines of the world of motorized sports. I'll be posting unboxing video's, reviews, collection overviews and much more! Any bias to any particular brand is purely based on a personal feeling about the modelcar or brand in question.
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Interesting to see your thoughts on them. I’ve also started collecting in the last year and now have a mixture of F1, road, race and rally cars. Amongst my collection are the 1995 Le Mans McLaren F1-GTR, 1995 Subaru Impreza and 1992 Martini Lancia Delta, all of which I think you’d love. I can’t wait for their Ayrton Senna cars to arrive, and I’m also eagerly anticipating the Alfa Romeo Sauber from 2023.
Interesting to see you trying these. I have acquired a few MiniGT cars over the last year as well. They also make "regular" road cars, as i have an Audi RS6 Avant and a Corvette C8 I also recently got the Verstappen RB18 from Abu Dhabi. These models are really impressive for their scale and not too expensive. They definitely are no toy cars as they have kinda fragile parts like mirrors or wings
Hi they switched to Renault decals for the race as a rub in the wounds of Williams as Benetton the day before achieved the 100th pole for Renault in F1. Williams were the long term partners of Renault and was Benetton's first season with them. Ironically it was this same race the Williams of Hill retired with a hydraulics failure something Williams did not fix all season that Benetton found out in before the season started despite being new to Renault. Per Steve Matchett during the Speed Channel F1 decade Review of the race.
I would love to have been in the meeting when this conversation came up: "Right guys I've got an idea. We're going to make [this] model again. We're going to weather the car, but only the tyres. Got that? We're only weathering the tyres, that's all. It'll look fine, JUST the tyres. Go..." I mean, what were they thinking??!! 🤦
@@rps_reviews That would be very cool 👍 ... When i first saw the pictures at the Minichamps "coming soon", i was excited for the release. Then i see the used tires and dirty rims, i was disappointed. I never was a big fan of that "after race look" and so i decited to stay at the "first" edition... Until the decals also peel off like my old B193 and the B194's... 😤
Great review. I think Minichamps did a great job on this one, even despite the shortcomings of their product vs. the offerings of competitors. It's honestly one of the better 1/18 cars I've seen out of them in recent years. Some really seem to think they missed big time on the color of the papaya, but I actually quite like the color they went with and it seems to be what I would expect the real car would have looked like. One rather big question though, how did you end up with a copy of this model that is missing almost all of the sponsor logos on the engine cover? I see no OKX, Cisco, Arrow or Tezos logos below the Chrome logo that are present on the car that ran Monaco and other copies of this very model I see online. Was this perhaps a prototype/sample you got to review, or is this a huge whiff in QA by Minichamps on this instance?
Oh dear! Great spot, I never even noticed until I read your comment. As I mentioned in the video, I didn't feel like doing such a deep research for this one, and it shows 😆. I wondered why this model looked so clean, there is the answer. This model is not a sample or prototype to my knowledge. I'm not sponsored or affiliated with anybody, I purchased this model from and online store. Since Minichamps still has to get back to me about a replacement box, I can ask them how this one went through their QC like that.
Most of your viewers probably don't have your skills and are not as observant or as picky. I am not one of those. I do find your videos packed full of great information although, not actively collecting 1/18 scale. I only have one 1/43 scale Mini Champs model and found it to be quite good with attention to detailing as good as Spark. I don't however like the cheap cheesy base unlike that of your 1/18 scale.
Thanks! I try to be as precise as I can be, both in my remarks and my basic modifications. Being so picky is more of a curse I think as I can say something bad about every model I have 😄, even if they are pretty good still. I mainly collect 1/18s because the details are more apparent on those. Maybe Minichamps will one day upgrade their packaging style of the 1/43, who knows.
The livery looks great. What was rattling in the box? For the price of a /18 scale car, should be as good as a Spark. I have to admit that I only have 1 mini champs in 1/43 and is quite good. Sadly the base and the backing attached to it are crappy, particularly because I never remove cars from their base. Great job once again.
These models are way too expensive for me especially considering that it's resing and no rolling wheels. I wish Bburago would start doing more classic F1 models. I find great value in their new F1 models
@@CaptHotah Great news for you then Model Car Group is going to come with a 1/18 version of this same car! Their models usually are great value for money, so something to look forward to.
Looksmart looks nicer overall aside from decals issue, but wheels don't spin... damn, that killed it for me. How hard is it to make a model with spinning wheels..
It would be great to see a whole review of this car, even if it's a lot of work for such a 1:43 scale car. What I love about your channel is the variety of different classes and models. I personally collect Spark 1:18 and 1:43 in a 50:50 ratio, that means 12 cars each. It's nice when such special but very beautiful cars also get a stage, not just the well-known Formula 1 ones. ❤
Great suggestion, I'll think about making a full vid of it. I do enjoy all kinds of motorsports, so yeah, I do get a lot of different stuff, not only F1.
Hi, Mark with "its all about racing". I primarily collect and review 1/43 scale IMSA and F1 race cars. I did however bid and win a Spark 1/18 World Champion 1st Victory Monaco GP. The seller shipped from Mexico to the state of Virginia. The box was wrapped like a 100000 year old Mummy. Took me 10 careful minutes to unrap it. Alas a found the right rear wheel detached and the Pitot tube broken. I did find the pitot tube and repair it. I repaired the rear as well. Figured it was easier than shipping back to México and only paid 150.00 USD. Here's my thoughts on this: Does shipping a model on a wooden base make it more subjectable to impact damage during shipping? I have never received a damaged 1/43 scale Spark model, and I have over 300. This is one of only 3 1/18 scale models and the first Spark. The 2 other were IXO and Auto Art. Both came with cheap cheesy packaging and no base or acrylic jewel cover but, were in excellent condition. What are your thoughts, this is the only 1/18 scale model I own and therfor cannot form an opinion.
Hi Mark! I've checked out your channel and some of your reviews, nice work, keep it up. I think some models, especially the 1/18 with heavy bases are susceptible to getting damaged during shipping, yes. Most of them are also screwed on way too tight, so the model itself takes the brunt ot the impact. Nice job on fixing it though! I actually sometimes enjoy the challenge of fixing or rebuilding a damaged model.
It depends if Spark is going to do a straight re-release, or modify a few things. One thing that always bothered me on the Spark classics 1/18 is that the front wheels are slightly too skinny.
Sigh this livery is so nice but the 1:18 scale sold out on f1 store and only available at other retailers for a high price. Might have to go with Bahrain winner even though this livery pops more! Does the 1:43 version retain the details?
Normally the 1/43 versions are not as detailed as the 1/18s, but the level of details is still very high, certainly for such a small scale. I would suggest looking on some of the second hand market sites for the Monza 1/18 model, I've seen some Leclerc or Sainz models for less than €200...
In a way all quality modelcars are... You can always wait it out and hope the price drops, but run the risk of them selling out. That's part of the collecting game.
There is another hypercar review coming soon... I'm a bit interested in every form of motorsports actually. Check my collection review video and you'll see I have a bit of everything, F1, Indycar, Touring Cars, Le Mans, WRC, MotoGP, Formula E or even movie cars!
This livery is definetly a grower. the more i see it the more i appreciate the detail. Great that minichamps are applying the vuse decals from the factory now too.
My absolute favorite livery of the recent years! I also liked the stealth mode livery for Singapore and Japan. I'm getting a 1:43 of Piastri because of his first podium finish I wanted to get this Triple Crown version in 1:18 first (Piastri) but i ultimately settled for the 1:43 version. I love that Minichamps is doing the Vuse decals from the factory now. But this model has the same Minichamps issues i have seen on other recent models, as you pointed out: Front wing no cuts, helmet/visor, lack of detail at the rear Overall good model still!
Usual stuff from Minichamps, yes, but luckily they did a good overall job on the model. I'll probably get the Piastri Qatar Sprint race winner too, shame it has that ugly standard livery with the blue in it.
Minichamps in the 90s were far better compared today considering the price aspect you expect perfection in the 90s the cars cost £10/15. Today on ebay 1/43 scale of lewis 2020 sells over a £100 thats far too expensive
You mean on the Minichamps model? The cardboard can be separated from the plastic, it's not stuck on there, no. The model is actually keeping it on there.
Hi there. I'm thinking of buying the 1/18 Super Aguri SA05 or Arrows A23 also made by Minichamps as well. Does the wheel can be rotated if removed the car from the base? Thank you.
Hi, I've always loved the Arrows A23 with that very high nose and distinct twin keel design. These models can be removed from the base, yes. The wheels should rotate and steer.