Upcoming Tamiya new kit

[stevenoble]

Not my thing. I think Tamiya has really lost it's way in recent years. What's happened to their rally and sportscar series..?? Not many new releases there for a long time. F1, well that's all but dead. Give me some Group B classics like an Audi S1 or the Lancia Delta S4. At least Aoshima/Beemax are releasing the
stuff I like. New Celica TA64 and Nissan 240RS are already announced..

[mattbacon]

I suspect F1's not so popular in Tamiya's home market, and who'd want to negotiate all the deals with F1 teams and sponsors to reproduce their cars? The lifetime's also pretty limited -- who wants to be building the 2013 season car? It's not as if today's F1 cars are particularly "timeless classics," unlike a Lotus 25, 49 or 72, a Mclaren MP4 or Tyrell P34, which you might want to build today. Global interest in rallying has fallen off a cliff, so again, you're looking at old goldies...

And anyway, it's not as if Tamiya has ever really HAD a "way". They make stuff that they like, with their main eye on the Japanese domestic market. This is the company, after all, that released a Fieseler Storch as their "landmark 100th 1/48 aircraft kit"...and added an obscure French WW2 tank to their bestselling Panzers. I'm not complaining, mind, just saying that high-profile sure-fire best-sellers aren't always top of their agenda.

The AA is probably the equivalent for the Japanese market of an Austin 7 (Revell released a BMW Dixi), or an original Mini, or a 2CV or Traction Avant. There are a zillion (well, half a zillion) car kits on 1999.co.jp that are primarily for the domestic market -- cars that never made it to Europe in any form, or the few that did which weren't big sellers. I'm glad -- it means I can buy a kit of an Isuzu 117 or Mazda Cosmo (and have done) -- but they probably only sell 10 of them a year to Europe, if that!

bestest,
M.

[lovegt40]

Originally Posted by BVC500

or classic Ferraris...a safe business decision.

true, and they could also pay the fees like revell and fujimi do.
No matter, if final result is stunning like gullwing mercedes.

[petesy]

When Tamiya made at least two new F-1 kits a year the Japanese economy was at its height. Interest in F-1 in Japan was at its peak, with Japanese companies paying the way for Japanese drivers into F-1. Tamiya themselves were involved with Team Lotus, even after they were having financial troubles in the early 90's.

The Japanese economic bubble had long since burst, the money had dried up, and interest in F-1 in Japan had all but vanished. I doubt we will see a lot of new F-1 kits from Tamiya.

[Marianitem]

Originally Posted by petesy

When Tamiya made at least two new F-1 kits a year the Japanese economy was at its height. Interest in F-1 in Japan was at its peak, with Japanese companies paying the way for Japanese drivers into F-1. Tamiya themselves were involved with Team Lotus, even after they were having financial troubles in the early 90's.

The Japanese economic bubble had long since burst, the money had dried up, and interest in F-1 in Japan had all but vanished. I doubt we will see a lot of new F-1 kits from Tamiya.

Do you think this is also related to Super GT new gen cars?

[petesy]

Tamiya is actually still releasing the latest Super GT subjects. They just find it far more profitable to make 1/10 bodies for generic R/C chassis than investing in 1/24 scale detailed model kits.