FUTURE MEMORY | TOYS & MODELS

Scale model of an automobile, the Ferrari 348 , made by Novacar. This example is reference 101. It is made in Portugal, in 1994. Yellow plastic body, with printed details. Unpainted metal base. Glazing represented in transparent plastic. Interior details in red plastic – no driving wheel. Plastic wheels, "chrome" rims. No suspension. The nominal scale seems to be 1:59 and the overall length is approximately 2.8 in. About 0.7 oz. This model represents a sports car, possibly the 1989 Ferrari 348 , equipped with the 3405 cm³, 221 kW (300 hp) Ferrari F119 engine. It could reach a top speed of around 166 mph. As with most Novacar models, this Ferrari 348 is well proportioned and reasonably detailed. Unfortunately, someone thought giving up the steering wheel was a good idea to reduce production costs. The plastic and printed details are of good quality and wear resistant, but the base metal alloy seems less stable than the one used on Majorette 200 series models. The "chrome...

Scale model of an automobile, the Renault Alpine A110-50 , made by Majorette . This example is reference 221H, included in the "Racing Cars" series. It is made in Thailand, possibly in 2016. Metal body painted in blue, with a slanted orange stripe on the sides. Rear wing in black plastic, with printed details. Black plastic base. Glazing represented in black translucent plastic, with molded details. Interior details in black plastic. Plastic wheels ( 5SV ), "chrome" rims. No suspension. The nominal scale is 1:63 and the overall length is approximately 2.7 in. About 1.1 oz. This model represents a " concept car ", the Renault Alpine A110-50 , unveiled by Renault in 2012 at the "Monaco Grand Prix". It is mechanically based on the Renault Sport Mégane Trophy  and uses the 3498 cm³ Nissan-Renault VQ35DE V6 engine, with 295 kW (400 hp).  I fell in love with the Renault Alpine A110 many years ago for its functionality, simplicity – and efficiency. By ...

Scale model of an automobile, the Ferrari Testarossa , made by Novacar. This example is reference 104. It is made in Portugal in 1996. Red plastic body, with printed details. Unpainted metal base. Glazing represented in transparent plastic. Interior details in beige plastic – no driving wheel. Plastic wheels with "chromed" details. No suspension. The nominal scale seems to be 1:60 and the overall length is approximately 3 in. About 0.8 oz. This model represents a sports car, possibly the 1984 Ferrari Testarossa , equipped with the 4943 cm³ , 287 kW (390 hp) Ferrari "flat-12" engine. It could reach a top speed of around 180 mph. The idea of combining a plastic body with a metal base in a "3-inches" model may have some advantages, but when Novacar hit the market it didn't seem like a good idea to me. Perhaps my memory fails me, but I think that the price difference between these models and those with a metal body was not relevant. The blister packs were...

Scale model of an automobile, the Renault DeZir , made by Majorette . This example is reference 221H, included in the "Street Cars" series. It is made in Thailand, possibly in 2017. Metal body painted in metallic dark red, with a slanted silver stripe on the sides. Black plastic base. Glazing represented in red transparent plastic, with molded details. Interior details in black plastic. Plastic wheels ( 5SV ), "chrome" rims. No suspension. The nominal scale is 1:63 and the overall length is approximately 2.7 in. About 1.1 oz. This model represents a " concept car ", the Renault DeZir , unveiled by Renault at the 2010 "Paris Motor Show". Equipped with a 110 kW (150 hp) electric motor, it can reach a top speed of around 112 mph. This automobile, the Renault DeZir , is in my collection under the theme "French Vehicles" and "Concept Cars". ● Modelo à escala de um automóvel, o Renault DeZir , feito pela Majorette . Este exemplar é ...

Scale model of a race car, the Peugeot 405 Prototype , made by Poliguri . This example is reference (n/a), included in the "Guri Car" series. It is made in Portugal, possibly between the late 1980s and the mid-1990s. Metal body painted in beige, with printed details on the hood. Rear wing in black plastic. Metal base painted in black. Glazing represented in transparent plastic, with details such as the windshield wipers and the rear-view mirror molded in the windshield. Interior details in white plastic. Plastic wheels ( R16 ) with printed details in white suggesting the rims, white line printed on the tire wall cut twice by the word "Guri". With suspension. Opening doors. The nominal scale is 1:52 and the overall length is approximately 3.1 in. About 1.8 oz. This model represents a race car, the 1987 Peugeot 405 Turbo 16 Group S prototype.  For years I thought that in this model Poliguri had tried to reproduce the Peugeot 405 Turbo 16 " Pikes Peak " – I ...