TOPIC:

It's been a while since we had a "what's next" type thread - time to revisit it?



The Ford F150 Ranger XLT (27) - last of the SRBs not to be re-released, the chassis is obviously there, body would have to be the recent & de-Fordified Blackfoot III body, wheels & tyres from the Brat re-re, generic decals. Interest, number of sales & the value of used examples all seem to be rising.


The Monster Beetle (60) is a perennial candidate for re-release, the ORV chassis is shared with no end of other cars as the tyres (the wheels I know need a "gold" finish, but we've already seen that on recent re-releases like the Fox), the body is basically a re-re Scorcher ...
The glass is a bit different and there are the sprues relating to the nose mounted lightbar & rear end bumper (?) construction, but surely those aren't a major issue? This one's been "imminent" for so long it takes no talent to make this a pick ...


We've had the Bruiser and the Mountaineer (111), so you've got to think the Toyota 4x4 Pickup (28) and the Blazing Blazer (29) (often regarded as the "Daddy" of the 3-speed group for some reason) have got to be on Tamiya's mind.


Given the amount of development money that will have gone into the new MF-01X chassis that's just appeared under the new Suzuki Jimny body, it's difficult to believe that Tamiya wouldn't look to their back catalogue & see if there's anything that could fit - the Toyota Celica 4WD (64) and Porsche 959 4WD (59) are the most obvious candidates.


A prediction out left field - the Wild Willy M38 (35) on the original chassis. Probably preceded by the Opel Ascona Rally (37) and Audi Quattro Rally (36) as Tamiya have a history of re-releasing the slightly less popular variant(s) first. It's not a totally daft prediction, numbers & values of used M38s (the LWB variant anyway) are climbing, and it's a chassis with other applications. The recent re-release of the Wheeler (Honda City Turbo) on a completely different chassis go against this idea though.


Of course, Tamiya do tend to do the unexpected - though the above are all reasoned, it's just as likely we'll see a Striker and Sonic Fighter



My 3 top picks for most likely big re-releases, bearing in mind all I can do is make guesses based on what I see, are:

- Ranger
- Toyota 4x4 Pickup
- Opel Ascona rally (on MF chassis)

I like that prediction Jonny, I would love a ranger, and a quattro rally.

Left field prediction from me would be an Astute/Super Astute, think I am dreaming though

HI!... Bigwig is rumored to be coming soon.

Non-existant user wrote:

HI!... Bigwig is rumored to be coming soon.

Bigwig has been rumored for a while, would that make 9 or 10 The HP Freak lol

They can release anything they want, even if its ugly as whatever, aslong as it has the M38/blazing Blazer tires. Willy needs new rubber.

I'm not convinced TBH, although it shares a lot of parts with the the Hotshot/Supershot/Boomerang line, there's an awful lot of the chassis that's unique to the Bigwig - the chassis tub & sub-chassis, the wheels, the rack & pinion steering - so no pay off on other cars.

On the other hand you can make an argument pro re-release - a lot of the bits are there, the rest of the line (I think) has been re-released, and as the pool of cars _not_ re-released it becomes increasingly likely.

I've also seen an advert (print, I think, not sure where) recently claiming 2015 as the 40th anniversary of Tamiya RC As the Bigwig was their 10th anniversary car, there's a certain amount of symmetry there.



edit - it's at the bottom of the Tamiya Sand Shaker ad inside the front cover of the Aug '15 issue of RCC Racer.

waterbok wrote:

... Willy needs new rubber.

Ranger seems a no-brainer since most of the bits are already there. It's basically a parts bin job.

Toyota Hilux 4x4 seems likely because of the value (and therefore profit) in it. What would be the retail price? £600?? (edit: I see the Bruiser is already nearly £700 , so I assume a Hilux would be at least that)

Ascona and Quattro Rally would be nice. Would they not do it on the ORV chassis though?

Porsche 959??

Martin wrote:

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Toyota Hilux 4x4 seems likely because of the value (and therefore profit) in it. What would be the retail price? £600?? (edit: I see the Bruiser is already nearly £700 , so I assume a Hilux would be at least that)
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700 GBP on a Bruiser? Maybe on the release date, with no discount... Fusion has them at 549 GBP (less with 10% discount), Seidel has them at 519 EUR + 10 EUR shipping, that's about 375 GBP

Martin wrote:

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Ascona and Quattro Rally would be nice. Would they not do it on the ORV chassis though?
...

Are you thinking of the 58040 Lancia Rally? That was on the ORV chassis.

Jonny wrote:

Martin wrote:

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Ascona and Quattro Rally would be nice. Would they not do it on the ORV chassis though?
...

Are you thinking of the 58040 Lancia Rally? That was on the ORV chassis.

I knew I shouldn't question the Master I thought the Ascona and Quattro were also on the ORV chassis. Is that basically a stretched WWI chassis under there?

What are the differences between the Bruiser, High Lift and vintage Hilux chassis? I have no idea on prices as I refuse to spend more than £40 on any car. Restricts my choices a bit