I do an unboxing and review of the 1/72 M3 White scout car from ESCI. This older model kit definitely has some nice details and was fun to put together. watch this video for the good and the bad.
I found similar issues with this kit. My recce regiment needed a few so I got 6 from Frontline Models and 6 from Britannia Models, all of them resin and far cheaper than the kit. The driver is only seen from the shoulders up so a head swap would suffice for a Soviet driver.
According to Scalemates Tony that kit was made in 1976 and your version was re-boxed with new decals in 1985. Comrade Popoff should be the name of the driver of that vehicle.
