FUTURE MEMORY | TOYS & MODELS

Scale model of an automobile, the Enzo Ferrari , made by Hot Wheels . This example is reference 9 ¹ , included in the "2007 Treasure Hunt" series  ² . It is made in Malaysia, in 2007. Metal body painted in red. Black plastic base. Glazing represented in transparent plastic, with molded details. Interior details in black plastic, red painted seats. Plastic wheels (PR5), "chrome" rims. No suspension. The nominal scale seems to be 1:64 and the overall length is approximately 2.9 in. About 1.2 oz. This model represents an automobile, the 2002 Ferrari Enzo , equipped with the 5998 cm³, 485 kW (660 hp) Ferrari F140B V12 engine. It could reach a top speed of around 221 mph. It is publicly known that I am not a Ferrari enthusiast – even though I truly understand its visceral appeal. Also, I admire these cars' honesty – a Ferrari is what it is and does not pretend to be anything else. You either get it – or you don't. The miniature made by Hot Wheels is assumedly a ...

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 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...