Input from the Real Rodders

[toydzinr]

Awesome Forum- well done and lots of quality posters who really know their stuff!

...I work as an industrial designer for a company that is currently redesigning a popular line of die-cast - and would very much like to hear some input from anyone here.

Are you a buyer of die-cast replicas??

If so, what would you like to see happen with die-cast in regards to this wave of madness over Pro-touring and G-Machines?

Thanks.

[TonyL]

welcome to the site. you make the 3rd "pro-touiing" toy designer here.
less bling, more realism. copy some real cars.

[derekf]

Hi, welcome to the site O ye of no name (we're big on names around here).

We've got a couple of other die-cast designers around as well and I think most of the board has at least a few die-cast cars.

For me, if it's not something I was specifically looking for and it's going to be an impulse buy, it needs to be cheap - 15 bucks or less. Anything more than that, it'd need to be a car that I just absolutely NEEDED a diecast of (like my Exact Detail 65 Chevelle SS that's a perfect match for how my 65 looked when it left the factory).

If it's going to be expensive, it'd need to be a model of a car I own, or one I've always lusted after (like a Daytona Coupe) - and even then, I'd end up debating before I bought.

Even if it's going to be an impulse buy, it'd need to have the proportions at least vaguely right. I've seen a couple of cars I'd pick up but they'd overexaggerated some of the body lines and it just looked wrong - so far as I know, they're still sitting on the shelf there at the store.

I may be the minority in all this though; I've only got ~15 1/18th die-casts and ~70 1/64th-ish cars.

You know what I really like though? I really like the "Projects in Progress" series that Johnny Lightning is doing right now. I've got 64th scale diecasts in that series of cars that I'd normally not buy. I've also got a "Motor City" Studebaker in 1/18th that's the same way - axle on a cinderblock, leaves in the engine compartment... I don't even like Studes, but the project-carness is just too cool.

[Charley Lillard]

I still want a diecast of the Mule. But thats just me.

[TonyL]

i want a diecast version of the mule to.

a 1/1 version would be cool. I'd keep it in the driveway, sit in it and go "Vrrrooom".

[JohnnyGMachine]

Cool another diecast car designer!!

As not only an industrial designer, I am a car guy and collect diecast as well. I am a product development guy here at GMP Diecast and we developed the 1:18 1968 Camaro Street Fighter. A '69 will soon be out as some know (and, no I do not have any sneak peaks - yet).

As a collector I have a few of our high end $100+ 1:18 scale diecasts.
I think personally I'd collect a line of PT diecast in the $30-$40 range. I mean a $20 model is OK if you don't care about any kind of nice detail at all and all the parts are molded into a blob. The Jada and Maisto stuff is decent detail for the money. The Pro-Rodz are nice and I have a couple but too much chrome and bling for me. The proportions are pretty good. The Jada stuff is just too dubbed out for me.
With the direction of the car market going towards new muscle cars I think there's gonna be a huge market for some serious collectible Muscle that makes sense. I like seeing the LS2 engines and performance suspension and brakes but then you look in the interior and there's over 20 speakers, amp, chrome and anodized roll bars - YUCK. The Hot Wheels stuff - yawn. Now that I'm not a Mattel employee I can say this but Mattel has always been the late guy to the party and misses the mark totally. They are so afraid of jumping on something that's new and hot that they wait until everybody else is doing it and creating a market THEN they jump on it - too late. I was showing presentation boards for Pro-Touring 4 years ago - now they are finally doing it??? Look at their PT diecast too - c'mon where's the staggered offset wheels? They look so sedated.
Sorry for the rant there but there's sooo much of this stuff on the market that it's all looking the same. Somebody needs to step up and make a quality well thought out lower end PT Diecast for 30-40 bucks. Something with Auto Art quality possibly.
If you did the Mule, Big Red, the 50/50 Camaro (I have to promote that you guys know this!) and the Bob Johnson Cuda that'd be hot.

Just my 2 cents
John

[Steve1968LS2]

Yea, I guess you could say I like die-cast cars :)

https://www.pro-touring.com/forum/vbgarage.php?do=getimage&id=1709

I will pay big bucks for the right car like the GMP Street Fighter that cost me $120 but for the most part I buy the $10 to $40 cars.. they need to have the right look and I am more apt to buy one that looks real than one that is blinged out too much.

Would love to have some of El Mule, Big Red and other "real" cars..

I need more shelves in my office.. and to water my plant.. lol

[derekf]

Oh.. one more thing I'd love to have:

I've got a 1/4 scale die-cast 67 Camaro 350. I'd love to have a similar LS1/LS2 and BBC.

Steve, if that's a lot then I guess I've got a real problem. Might take pics when I get home, if I think about it.

[Steve1968LS2]

Oh.. one more thing I'd love to have:

I've got a 1/4 scale die-cast 67 Camaro 350. I'd love to have a similar LS1/LS2 and BBC.

Steve, if that's a lot then I guess I've got a real problem. Might take pics when I get home, if I think about it.

My problem is space.. if I had more space I would be even more broke.. lol

Plus I have my ones at my home office.. the GMP one is my favorite and the box is so nice that I display it as well..

I think Tony (Nineball) has a TON of die casts as well..

[JohnnyGMachine]

GMP will be raising the bar each time we put out another Street Fighter. This black 69 will just be evil period. Ben and I are working on the box art together and we're gonna top the first one. It's just a lot of fun!

John

[JMarsa]

Oh.. one more thing I'd love to have:

I've got a 1/4 scale die-cast 67 Camaro 350.

This wasn't exactly clear...Do they make 1/4 scale models?

--JMarsa

[derekf]

It's just the engine. http://www.libertyclassics.com/Pages/EnginesMain.asp

[CRCRFT78]

I would like to see someone step outside the box for once and go with some vehicles not out there. I hate to sound biased but I've had my fill on the typical cars we constantly see. How about some late 70s early 80s cars. The Hurst/442 Cutlass, 78-87 El Camino, Turbo Regals, Grand Nationals, Monte Carlo SS, Choo Choo Elcos & Malibus. Yeah I know, I own 3 Malibus so it might seem one sided that I want to see more G-bodys, but these cars are really starting to come into their own in recent years. They're affordable and models/die cast cars give an enthusiast a chance to see what can be done with them. I personally have mutilated numerous die cast cars just to get an idea of how a car can look with different paint and wheels. Whatever the case may be, keep them somewhat realistic and less cartoony.

[Stu Seitz]

If you made big red I would buy it.

[DSchwenn]

I think personally I'd collect a line of PT diecast in the $30-$40 range. I mean a $20 model is OK if you don't care about any kind of nice detail at all and all the parts are molded into a blob. The Jada and Maisto stuff is decent detail for the money. The Pro-Rodz are nice and I have a couple but too much chrome and bling for me. The proportions are pretty good. The Jada stuff is just too dubbed out for me.
With the direction of the car market going towards new muscle cars I think there's gonna be a huge market for some serious collectible Muscle that makes sense. I like seeing the LS2 engines and performance suspension and brakes but then you look in the interior and there's over 20 speakers, amp, chrome and anodized roll bars - YUCK. The Hot Wheels stuff - yawn.I think John hit the nail on the head. I would definitely buy PT diecast in the $30-$40 range. I really like the Street Fighter series from GMP but they are a bit out my price range. I think a mid-range series of PT diecast would sell very well.

PS - If you don't mind me asking, what company is it that you work for? If you can't/don't want to answer, I understand, I was just curious.

[69rs]

I still want a diecast of the Mule. But thats just me.


What he said!

[Rick Dorion]

I'd like to see a PT 53 Stude :)

[Derek69SS]

No speakers, No TV screens; mostly stock looking interiors.

Rear tires scaled to about 12" wide; Front tires scaled to about 10" wide; No wheels bigger than 18"

Correct proportions (not like the "muscle machines")

Forget 69 camaros and 70 chevelles. If I want one of those, I have 1,000,000 other choices. Pick some fairly popular cars nobody makes. (I have never yet seen a die-cast 64 chevelle).

Honestly, I think the PT crowd is a pretty small part of the toy buyers. A red/black stripe 70 chevelle with 15" TTIIs will sell to the thousands of people who have that exact combination :D

[Nine Ball]

Yeah, I guess I like diecast cars. Here is HALF of my collection, just '69 Camaros mostly. I've probably got 150 diecast cars in my home office.
http://users.ev1.net/~ynot_dv8/diecast1.jpg

For pro-touring style cars, make them more realistic and performance inspired. Some of the ones I've seen lately look almost like ricer imports on a musclecar body. Wheels that are too big, silly TV monitors and woofers, weird graphics, etc...

Lets see some with twin-turbos and superchargers under the hoods.
Lets see some in basic colors without the flashy graphics
Make them with performance looking 3-pc wheels, not blingmaster fresh wheels
keep the interiors simple and functional, maybe with a 6-pt rollbar

Price? Doesn't matter to me, I buy them all if I like them.

Tony

[Steve Chryssos]

Awesome Forum- well done and lots of quality posters who really know their stuff!
...I work as an industrial designer for a company that is currently redesigning a popular line of die-cast - and would very much like to hear some input from anyone here.
Are you a buyer of die-cast replicas??
If so, what would you like to see happen with die-cast in regards to this wave of madness over Pro-touring and G-Machines?
Thanks.

Your name wouldn't happen to be Claus, would it? First initial "S"?

[trapin]

Here's an idea; why not build die cast cars....of ANYONES car?

The people send in the pictures to you and you build the die cast version for them.

Kris Horten does 3D sketches for people of their cars...why not take it a step further?

[C4Bird]

I'd pay $100 for a well done 70-73 Firebird/Camaro PT. There are a couple trans-ams out there, but no PT treatment, no formulas, no Z28s or RS. I'd also like to see a 64-65 chevelle with PT treatment and turbos, "Malitude" comes to mind.

-Nate

[Norm Peterson]

I've got 30 or so in 1:24, a couple of 1:18's and about a dozen 1:43's. At this point, most of the larger ones are either Corvettes or race cars.

Ditto about holding the bling to a minimum. While lots of chrome would be appropriate for a T-based street rod show car or a chopper, it's somewhat unrealistic and too distracting to represent a car that's built to be driven.

What I really appreciate is accurate chassis and powertrain detail. The cars that are better in this respect are the ones I look at up close most frequently.

A couple of the cars are constructed with one half clear so that interior detail is more visible. That's a neat feature to consider once in a while when there's something unique inside (like the roll cage structure in the Franklin Mint version of the #43).

Plastic windshield wipers break too easily.

Norm

[Beeper]

A 1:12 to 1:18 PT Mopar B body would be nice :)

[Scott Parkhurst]

Wagons! Buicks! Oldsmobiles! Pontiacs!

But that's just me...

I love the idea about custom-making diecasts...that's the future, and if people are willing to pay the price it could be pretty cool.

~SP~

[wedgehead]

I was just in walmart with my kids. We came accross a west coast choppers remote control car. Box said 67 cuda on the outside inside there is a 71 cuda. At least have some one know what they are doing when they box this stuff together

[JohnnyGMachine]

Man Tony - that's a tall order to replicate anyones cars!!! For a GMP diecast here's what it costs to develop a diecast car from scratch -

anywhere from $150,000 to $200,000 or more!!!! If anyone came to us with $150k and wanted a replica of their ride - no problem! LOL!

John