I hope the New Year finds everyone well, and dreaming of warmer times ahead to get their Lotus out of hibernation. In the meantime, here's a few Lotus in a smaller scale to keep you busy! First up is this new variation on the Lotus Exige by Matchbox.
The packaging is unique to this series, and this particular Exige is painted in the Chrome Yellow scheme as the original release. The added black and white stripes are what sets this apart from the normal release. This is #15 in the "superfast" series, and is rather rare to come by. If you are a completionist (like me), then it is worth being in your collection!
This model, certainly deserves a spot in your collection! It's the Lotus Evora, released late last year by Matchbox. This is #10 in the series, and is labeled "08 Lotus" on the packaging. The reason for this, is that the model was given away in a press pack to journalists at the London motor show (along with a brochure on the Lotus car range, and a very sharp CD ROM in a metal tin (yes, sadly, I have all of this)). Lotus wanted to keep the name a secret, so this was the name chosen for this model.
An interesting side to this story, as you may recall, the codename for this project was Eagle, however there seemed to be a "misunderstanding" between Dan Gurney and Lotus... seems Dan owns the rights to the Eagle name - so Evora it was! I rather like Evora more anyway!
Another new release is the Hot Wheels Designer's Challenge series. The challenge was for designers from various automotive manufacturers to create a hot wheels car that "truly captured the brand's core values of speed, power, performance, and attitude, while also retaining the distinct attributes of each company's brand essence". The Lotus concept was designed by Steven Crijins, who wanted to make a car that looked fun to drive while showing off Lotus's engineering philosophy. I think he hit the nail on the head on this one. The original release was in orange, with red, white, and silver cars now out there on the shelves. All the above cars are in 1/64 scale, and are available at most of your bigger stores (AKA Walmart, Target).
Maybe 1/64 is just too big for your collection....if so, then feast your eyes on this 1/87 scale Lotus Super Seven series 2 from Spark! Yes, the Spark model company that I have discussed in the past... handbuilt resin models! How they do it is beyond me! As with other spark models, this one comes on it's own base, and includes a nice acrylic cover to keep it protected. Well worth being in your collection! Jim at Diecasm can hook you up with one and remember, he makes a donation to a charity for each model purchased... a win/win situation!
Next month, we will look at a few cool accessories for your 1/43 Lotus collection! Happy Hunting!!
