Sign In
Create Account
0
Here is a couple of auctions:
ebay
ebay
Here is a short article from Hemmings:
QUOTE
Collectibles
Civic Duty
The number of influential Japanese two-seat sports cars in the American market can be counted on one hand: Toyota MR2, Datsun Z, Acura NSX… that’s most of it, really. The 2000GT was barely in the American market, but even if we include it in our list of two-seaters, there are tons of versions of these cars have been made in small-scale.
We would be remiss if we didn’t include the Honda CR-X in that list also. The slick Civic-based two-seater was equally at home as an economy car (where lower-powered HF versions were able to get 50+ MPG) and as an Si-badged pocket sportster embodying the less-is-more philosophy. Yet the CRX has never had a solid following in small-scale: Zee Toys/Zylmex did a first-generation car back in the day, but it was on the crude side; Johnny Lightning did a second-gen CRX with some detestable graphics plastered on the side; and a delSol (sold as a CR-X in some countries) was only available two-packed with a 1:43 model in the long-deceased X Concepts Modifiers line. Not quite the big exposure you’d think the CRX deserved.
So in comes Tomica, to the rescue! By Christmas, there should be at least two colors of early (1984-87) CRX Si in their Limited Vintage Neo lineup. Their high-end Limited Vintage series (retailing for $10-15 apiece) and their sub-series, Limited Vintage Neo, are among the highest-quality 1:64 scale cars you’ll find: They’re picture-perfect representations of (to Western eyes, anyway) some pretty obscure models. (The only difference between regular Limited Vintage models and the Neo versions are the years of the cars that are represented: Since Tomica started business in 1970, any model that predates the company’s birth is standard Limited Vintage, and anything made after 1970, like the CR-X, is considered ‘Neo’. Confused yet?)
This one is sure to be just like all the rest in Tomica’s Limited Vintage family: no opening features, prototypically correct rolling stock, separate clear headlamp and taillamp lenses, and delicate detailwork that really does make just about everything else you can find at the local store look like a crude toy. For the scale purists, it’ll be as close to 1:64 scale as the thickness of the paint will allow, and it’ll be nearly indistinguishable from the real car, a photo of which leads off this story. The model, which should clock in at under three inches, will also likely be right-hand drive, so even if the color is right, it won’t look exactly like the one you could buy at dealerships a quarter-century ago.
If you don’t want to suffer a Babelfish translation of the www.takaratomy.co.jp homepage, you can check out www.toyeast.com now and again to see when the new models hit; it won’t be out for another month or more.
- By Jeff Koch
Civic Duty
The number of influential Japanese two-seat sports cars in the American market can be counted on one hand: Toyota MR2, Datsun Z, Acura NSX… that’s most of it, really. The 2000GT was barely in the American market, but even if we include it in our list of two-seaters, there are tons of versions of these cars have been made in small-scale.
We would be remiss if we didn’t include the Honda CR-X in that list also. The slick Civic-based two-seater was equally at home as an economy car (where lower-powered HF versions were able to get 50+ MPG) and as an Si-badged pocket sportster embodying the less-is-more philosophy. Yet the CRX has never had a solid following in small-scale: Zee Toys/Zylmex did a first-generation car back in the day, but it was on the crude side; Johnny Lightning did a second-gen CRX with some detestable graphics plastered on the side; and a delSol (sold as a CR-X in some countries) was only available two-packed with a 1:43 model in the long-deceased X Concepts Modifiers line. Not quite the big exposure you’d think the CRX deserved.
So in comes Tomica, to the rescue! By Christmas, there should be at least two colors of early (1984-87) CRX Si in their Limited Vintage Neo lineup. Their high-end Limited Vintage series (retailing for $10-15 apiece) and their sub-series, Limited Vintage Neo, are among the highest-quality 1:64 scale cars you’ll find: They’re picture-perfect representations of (to Western eyes, anyway) some pretty obscure models. (The only difference between regular Limited Vintage models and the Neo versions are the years of the cars that are represented: Since Tomica started business in 1970, any model that predates the company’s birth is standard Limited Vintage, and anything made after 1970, like the CR-X, is considered ‘Neo’. Confused yet?)
This one is sure to be just like all the rest in Tomica’s Limited Vintage family: no opening features, prototypically correct rolling stock, separate clear headlamp and taillamp lenses, and delicate detailwork that really does make just about everything else you can find at the local store look like a crude toy. For the scale purists, it’ll be as close to 1:64 scale as the thickness of the paint will allow, and it’ll be nearly indistinguishable from the real car, a photo of which leads off this story. The model, which should clock in at under three inches, will also likely be right-hand drive, so even if the color is right, it won’t look exactly like the one you could buy at dealerships a quarter-century ago.
If you don’t want to suffer a Babelfish translation of the www.takaratomy.co.jp homepage, you can check out www.toyeast.com now and again to see when the new models hit; it won’t be out for another month or more.
- By Jeff Koch
Back to top
View Garage
