Well, it's finally here after waiting for this grail model since I had fanciful thoughts of someday owning a diecast model of the car back in the late 80's when I first saw it in a book. After being repeatedly tempted by 1:43 models of the car from BBR in the 90's which I could never afford years ago anyway, I am so glad to just have waited for something like this CMC to finally be produced..... Over two decades of waiting for this one! Dang! Booyah!



Nice thing is, I think the model looks definitely nicer in the flesh, the beautiful, long, flowing shapes and proportions of the car are easier to see with the actual model in front of you. Better yet, it looks like CMC had adjusted the ride height up front as the body is definitely lower over the front wheels as one can see with the much smaller space between the tire the the fender well opening on my model. the lowering of the body helps emphasize the long, sleek shape of the car. So if you receive Model number 675 and up, you most likely will have a good ride height on the model, unlike the dealer samples we had been seeing. The the dark "Ox Blood" (much better than just calling it "dark maroon") colored paint gives the model a very elegant look, which I prefer over the lighter red and somewhat I think a bit orangey color the LM version was painted in.
I haven't really opened up the car to look at things except for the driver and passenger doors, but what I can see so far looks very well made, although the cabin interior is quite sparse anyway compared to many other cars, as this was an LM racer turned street car. The doors are notably lighter to the touch compared to doors on most other high quality models I have in my collection. The lighter construction seems to give parts like the doors a better detail resolution, but there is a negative to this, as they feel much more fragile when you open and close them, which then makes one feel reluctant to do so as much as other models. One thing that really surprised me when I first put the model on a tray when I first took it out of the box is the model rolls on its wheels so easily, so be careful as it can get away from you if you put it on any surface that is not totally level. Shut lines look very good around the doors, but could be better around the rear boot cover. I'll need to look at that closer on my model as it might be just the cover is not fully seated against the body. Too late in the evening to mess around with it. I think the bonnet panels could be a bit more flush to the body but it's not that bad and at least the seams around it are very consistent, It seems to be the same with all that I have seen in pics.. Had a peek under the car when I was unpacking it and Holy cow! I have not owned a model with so much under-body detail. The steering linkage alone blows me away with its intricacy. It's almost visual sensory overload when I looked at the bottom of the car for those few seconds. Made me feel much better seeing the bottom of the car, as I can see a good amount of value in the model that I have paid for is much more than just skin deep.
Is this model worth the $450 CD's one will have to pay for it? My first impression is, for a super fan of the 1:1 car like me, Definitely YES, especially as a model like this from another manufacturer like Exoto will most likely cost at least a third more or more. But frankly, for a collector with no emotional attachment to the car and might find it on the esoteric side, it might be harder to justify even with the uber amount of detailing and build quality CMC had put into the model....But doesn't that now apply to most high quality diecast 1:18 models these days because of the very high prices we are dealing with now? It's not like years ago when most of us can do an impulsive buy anymore without too much monetary and can we say, emotional consequences?
So I am pretty much done this year with diecast purchases! Finally, my first two Alfas in my collection. This model and the AA 33TT 12 #1 Nurmburgring winner. I actually had to pass on a lot of other very nice AA Alfa models in the last couple of years anticipating this very expensive grail buy. Diecast budget for the year is totally dried out and maybe even overdrawn, but I can sleep very happy tonight and the rest of the year, as long as I don't think of what could be the last of my must haves..... the Porsche 908LH......;^))