The Model Car Showroom
Reviews, pictures, hints, and links 1/24, 1/25 car kits
TIZ THE SEASON TO GET SOME $$$
As some of you know, I am a collector and seller of model cars as well as a builder. What you may NOT know is I BUY COLLECTIONS. If you or a loved one is getting rid of a collection, feel free to contact me. I offer fair money for collections, can help with shipping/pickup, and will assist you in other ways if my offer isn’t what you need.
Help your Christmas season out by getting needed cash for the Holidays!
–Kev
2004 Ferrari Enzo – Revell, 1/24
This is an UPDATED review of the Revell Ferrari Enzo Kit#85-2192
The Enzo is one of the newer Ferraris that I’ve come to really like, and it is more than the grandness of its namesake. This kit is one of the most difficult kits I’ve built for a number of reasons, but the end result is usually so good that I have made it 3 or so times.
Unlike some cars, the Enzo has been done in enough ways that you can truly pick your poison in terms of difficulty and detail. The snap kit is very plain and plastic-y looking; the Revell is difficult goodness, and the Fujimi is – from what I’ve seen in other kits – the peak of design and quality. For those who want it all, the Revell Ferrari pack includes three of the best Ferraris ever produced – the F50, the 360 Modena, and this Enzo.
UPDATE 10/2025 :: After conversing with a nice person about this kit/car, I’ve been made aware of another model kit made by Tamiya. When researching (which I don’t exhaust since there have been hundreds of thousands of kits built over the years), I didn’t see the Tamiya as it is RARE and expensive. For Europeans, the kit difference to the Revell is closer to $40-50, but on this side of the pond, it is more like $80 or more, with long shipping waits if not found locally. The gentleman stresses this is the epitome of build goodness, but I can say wholeheartedly that the Revell kit is easily as good as one needs. I certainly like mine.
Also, like all good reviewers and builders, I can be made aware of my own mistakes and have revamped the kit’s rating to better reflect the kit, rather than the difficulty being a deciding factor. There are still drawbacks, but this is a really good kit.
CAR BACKGROUND :: The idea was simple – build a car that is as good as Ferrari has made in its history. Yeah, easy. We’re talking about a company that has made the Testa Rossa (no, not the 1980s version), 250 GTO, Daytona, 512BB, 308, 288 GTO, and F40. There was a great deal of history to overtake.
Overtake them it did.
The Enzo and its 650hp became the quickest production car that year, and with its 218 mph top speed, it was amazingly fast as well. Granted, at well over the $650k listed on R&T’s sheet (because of dealer markups), it had enough coin thrown into it to possibly fly to Mars. It was more than the sum of its speed, however, as it contained more tech than just about any car to that point. Yes, it is a bit of a clod next to the LaFerrari, but in 2004, you’d have been hard-pressed to find something more tech-heavy and as fast. Today, it remains one of Ferrari’s greatest achievements and easily one of my favorite exotic cars. Awesome.
Tamiya Italian Red didn’t fail yet again and came out splendidly. The body has quite a few pieces you’ll want to attach before painting, so read the instructions first. There is also an amazing amount of glass that could ruin the build, so be extra careful not to over-glue the clear parts. Thankfully, the kit is amongst the cheapest in the model kingdom, but it still takes the wind out of sails to muff the glass while finishing up.
The most frustrating thing about this kit is the rear hatch. It fits nicely in some of these kits and atrociously in others. It is also a pain in the a$$ to bend into the correct shape as there are multiple merge points to the car body – so where one works well, the other is still off.
I didn’t bother too much with an interior pic because the Ferrari’s dash is sunk in, black, and the car has a window the size of a peanut. Safe to say it is a marvelous set of detailing – thanks to Revell.
The engine bay is amazing. The V12 is super detailed, with dozens of parts to assemble. I’d not be surprised if there are as many here as some older Jo-Han kits’ full complement.
It isn’t without its drawbacks, however. The exhaust is a futility in making corrections. The ports on the side of the block line up for the first piece, but the second piece is impossible to figure out, which makes the third piece even more challenging for placement. Thankfully, most of it isn’t showing, so you can fudge it together fairly well anyway, but it is NOT a good design. After you get it close, you then realize the damn thing is in the way of the motor mounts. If I ever want a yellow or white Enzo, this engine and chassis will be reused—guaranteed!
The underside of the Enzo is smooth and unimpressive. It is amazing to see a flat-bottomed car that isn’t a toy design, but it is just dull and flat black.
This is NOT a perfect model kit, but as I mentioned above, it is amazingly cheap. You can get 2 or 3 of these nowadays for the price of many other Ferrari kits. The hatch is a tough fit; the exhaust is tough to work out; there’s a good bit of glass to ruin; there’s a lot of black trim to do; and the mesh for the vents is a lesson in patience-breaking cut work. At roughly $11 a kit, however, you’ll have three or four to get it right!
8.5 Good
X-RAY (XL): *NEW RELEASE* 1971 Dodge Charger R/T, AMT 1/25
This EXTRA LARGE X-Ray is for a brand-new release from AMT – the ’71 Charger R/T
So, to start with, this car is one that has been around for a while and, until now, has had a challenging hood decal to get correct. See, I tried this car a few times in the distant past, and every time I failed due to the hood decal not matching the painted section (for a reason or another) OR the side stripes being bad.
This new kit, however, has the “air grabber” option that makes black decal much easier to use. Don’t get me wrong, now that I am an expert, the older hood would be easier to use… but NOT this easy.
1. Paint the hood whatever color you wish. 2. Paint the grabber (either lid closed or open with the sides) semi-gloss black. 3. TRIM and add decal to hood. The original AMT Charger hood had this middle section made into the hood, and that meant taping off the square, painting, and hoping that not only the paint came out well, but that it also matched the decal’s tint and look. Definite improvement.
The kit also comes with exhaust tips that are about the coolest in the MOPAR parts garage. They are the slotted exhaust tips with the red/orange lines. I fashioned some [here] from another kit, but these are ready to use and look fantastic (if a BIT on the small side). It is a nice touch and certainly would be appreciated in more MOPAR kits.
The kit also has a low level of flash, near-perfect chrome, white-letter tires, and is currently (9/23/25) on sale at WalMart for $19.99. This original kit has been semi-expensive for a while, so I think that this deal cannot be missed for those who need the car.
Not everything is sunshine and roses, however. The decals sheet is part original and part expansion. There are a TON of Dodge decals to use here – maybe even 2 or 3 kits worth. They are REALLY nice, and since the kit is new, there is almost 0% chance of failure (except user error). BUT… and it’s a big ole’ but, there are a bunch of decals that WILL NOT work with this kit.
This Charger came with 440 and 426 engines back in ’71. This model kit comes with the ability to build a 426 Hemi. GREAT choice. Therein lies the issue – this kit not only comes with 440 decals (for a 440 not included) but also for a 440 Hemi and 440 6-pack. The first NEVER existed from the factory, and the second doesn’t exist in this kit (no parts for a six-pack). Yeah, you can certainly pull parts from other kits to make this work, AND I happened to make a ’70 Cuda with a hemi six-pack [here] as something different, but for purists, half the sheet is CRAP.
1 set of tires and rims; 426 HEMI engine; TINY chrome tree; BIG decal sheet; NO speed parts.
Good: LOW flash, new hood is paint/decal-helpful, chrome is stunningly bright, white-letter tires already white; low price, awesome exhaust tips.
Bad: ZERO speed parts; decal sheet is only half usable; holes in trunk stop from easily having no wing;
$19.99 (see text above LOL)
XRAY : 1972 Chevy Chevelle MPC, 1/25 -MPC/AMT new models STILL do not have the correct molding for real life!
Those familiar with the ups and downs in the model car world will NOT be surprised by this article at all, but I wanted to show a major issue with a newer reissue.
This is the 2025 reissue of the 1972 Chevy Chevelle SS. I purchased it to fix up my older build with stripes and potentially a new grille. However, though the stripes were EXCELLENT and there are enough of them for 4 different kits, the grille was a farce.
Here is the before and after with the new stripes added. The white looks good and doesn’t let the color bleed through. There is also RED and BLACK included, as well as a third “SLASHER” multicolor look. The decal sheet is GIANT and sports side markers, 7 license plates, air cleaner decals, and much more. The glass is excellent, the body has no dimples from the posts, and the tires are gorgeously white lettered.
The model is much nicer than anything made previously, but it still has a big problem. On the left below is a real-life picture of a ’72 for sale. I’ve taken the pic from https://www.vanguardmotorsales.com‘s website for comparison (NICE place to buy excellent classic cars). As you can see from the left side pic, the headlight is
recessed inside the chrome frame. Unfortunately, the headlight setup for the older kit (see XRAY **HERE**) – [TOP] , and the 2025 reissue [BOTTOM] both have headlights and bezels that are “bulging” instead of surrounded by chrome and recessed. It seems like a minor issue, but the result from the front is a completely different look, and frankly, it seems a bit ruined to me.
Similarly, the promo vehicles from years ago for sale on the internet are also made with the same crappy look (not surprising since the promo companies were typically the modeling companies anyway). They are expensive and usually not very detailed, but they also do not help in this case. Unfortunately, I haven’t found anything on the web that helps with this situation. A new resin grille section would be just the ticket, but for now, I’ll keep my build off the shelf. I REALLY do not like inaccurate models, and this one is lousy when compared to the real thing.
Is the reissue better than the previous editions? YES. There is almost nothing that isn’t better than the older models in this case. Some new kits (looking at you 70½ Camaro with its cheap-ass disgusting orange plastic, lousy flash, and BAD dimples around the posts) have NOT gotten better, but this one is 100% a better car to build… just try not to look at the front end too much.
1962 Ford Thunderbird
This is a review of the AMT ’62 T-Bird #30081
I have wanted to do this car for some time, and it just seemed to get put aside for a multitude of reasons – primarily because of how BAD this kit is. It is a shame, as there are a lot of pieces involved in this kit, but what is there transforms into a mess (except for the very experienced builders). I’ll explain later…
There is one crazy-old model (bottom) that is not only very similar to the “normals”, but is also super expensive. The two red-heads are duplicates of the one I put together, and the new one, I assume, is similar to the reds aside from some better decals, tires, and such.
CAR BACKGROUND :: The Thunderbird had been through a number of iterations since the original 2-seat sports machine, and the ’62 was the biggest and heaviest yet. At 205in, this convertible was a driveway-filling hunk of metal. That said, the T-Bird for this year is, IMHO, the best looking one of all. The lines are crisp and simple, the bumper is stylish, the hood has just enough muscle suggestion, and it looks as if it would entice even the most boring person into blasting down the road with the top down and music up! The big heavy looker didn’t become a disgusting slouch either. With a 390ci and some 300 horses, the big coupe would gobble up tarmac as well as most cars on the road. No, you wouldn’t see any of these suckers at the local dragway, but it was about style and comfort more than laying rubber or time slips.
If you look on my “FORD” page, you’ll see the burgundy T-Bird this is modeled after, and I think this came out beautifully. Tamiya Burgundy is a challenging paint to get right (it can have a spot that separates, and there are trouble with glossing), but when it does, it is spectacular. Thankfully, there is also NOTHING to have to fix or add to the kit as well.
As I mentioned earlier, however, the kit is indeed trash. There is a good bit of flash, the body refuses to take the interior without a LOT of help, the front bumper is angled and tough to glue on tight, the tires aren’t whitewalls and boring as all heck, and the glass is a treacherous folly of not ruining the whole car with the glass being a glue monstrosity. The bottom of the car is also an issue. There isn’t much to do, and the details are light.
This engine bay is VERY good for an AMT. There is a lot of detail; a lot of engine to build; it all fits well, and even the “blackening” you have to do to the bay is easy, given its shape. NOW, you will NOT get this look from the kit as-is. The car comes with a tri-power engine, and although it might have been available, the 390, 4-barrel not only looks beautiful, but is also the more realistic one for this car. I cannot think of an engine bay I’ve done recently that I am more pleased with.
The interior of this car IRL is stunning. There is chrome for days, and the buckets are incredibly comfy. Thankfully, AMT made this interior with enough detail to bring out the glamour the car had. I would have liked to do a black & white look, but the interior and chassis were one piece, and it was far easier to black out the whole shebang. NOTE: the steering column has both directional and gear shift stalks – not typical for many models.
Yup, the car came out fabulous. Yup, I almost threw it into the wall numerous times. With all the problems this kit can hand you, it is NOT for the novice builder. The good news, however, is this kit is amongst the cheapest on the internet (saying whatever site you are on isn’t rooking you). My advice… get a couple so you have some extra pieces in case of a goof. After the most recent re-issue, you may as well, since it won’t be a pricey kit anytime soon… if ever.
6.0 – Fair
IT’S RAINING AUTOS!
Been on a tear lately with builds, and it’s time to showcase a few. The TBird is a first in my lifetime, as it is a pain to build. The Impala is my 3rd or 4th success at two-tone models, and it’s likely the best I’ve made. The Opel is one I never imagined I’d work as it is a third-rate sports car with a lethargic 90hp engine, but I guess I just like the look of the thing. It came out great, and I recommend it as a reasonably easy model (if a bit pricey). Last but not least is the 1980 Mustang. It is a Pace Car version whose decals were garbage, so it became a regular ole GT. It also has one of the most tepid engines Ford ever put into a Stang, but it is a childhood favorite of mine.
Thanks for stopping by and please make sure to comment if ya like what you see… or even if ya don’t! LOL
X-RAY :: ▓RARE▓ 1972 Chevrolet Chevelle STREET MACHINES, AMT, 1/25.
This is a X-Ray of a RARE 1972 Chevelle Super Sport by AMT.
Includes: Large chrome tree, 454 engine w/ blower option, 8 rims, 4 tires (no color), non-stock decal sheet.
GOOD : Heckova Chevelle, interior detail, easy build.
BAD : *LOTS* – high flash, no slicks or other paraphernalia for blower option, no rallye rims, no racing stripes, expensive.
Price :: $120+
X-RAY :: Lamborghini Murcielago, 1/24 Fujimi
This is an X-Ray of a Lamborghini Murcielago by Fujimi
Includes: Small chrome tree, static engine, and 4 deluxe tires/rims, decent decal sheet.
GOOD : GOOD example of a modern wonder car, makes a lovely display, glass fits better than most model cars, almost no flash.
BAD : SMALL number of parts, extra-wide model doesn’t fit in most quality display units, LOTS of black detailing, expensive – and unless you find a local buyer with one not needed – an overseas purchase.
Price :: $80+
2025 – A new year of building…
Hello all. Sorry for the hiatus but 2024 was a terrible year for me and 2025 has been me gathering my emotions to function running my website. I can say that things are better and I am doing well, but I hope – even with the lousy state of the country – that the year is a positive one from here on out.
I will be doing quite a few x-rays in future, have a post about a re-build coming up, and much more. Anything that you may see that you have a question about, feel free to use the contact button. Also comment with any questions, critiques, or just an opinion…. I appreciate everyone who stops by.
ALSO, reminder to all, I am here to buy UNBUILT model collections of all kinds. Shoot me a message anytime and I will help as much as possible and I certainly try to give the most $$ as possible.
ALSO ALSO, remember I do FAN SUBMISSIONS to anyone who submits a story with pics of their builds. I have a few you can look at on the site, but I showcase builders and their imaginations, not critique and bad-talk them.
CHEERS, Kevin
The Model Car Showroom 