First of all, pics here were borrowed from the
official Tomytec website. Great website & I highly recommend it. What makes this my favorite 1/64 diecast website of any brand is the fact that they actually feature their complete list of releases right on their site. You just select the category(TLV, TLV-NEO, Snake Motors, etc.), then the year. Tomytec will show you beautiful photos of the cars they've released + upcoming releases such as this
Silvia Super Silhouette.
Now on the car. First, we saw these images on
829 Japan website.
They always seem to get the latest news on these Tomicas & other Japanese diecasts. Absolutely beautiful pictures, too. Anyway, the waiting game begun that day we first saw those two pics on 829Japan. It's been especially painful for my friend Jarrod. He would bring these cars up every couple of weeks, see if I've seen or heard anything(lol). It was nothing - nothing - nothing, probably for better part of the year. That changed last night.
I woke up in middle of the night, couldn't go back sleep, so I checked my phone. I was surprised to see what looked like
ten Twitter notification from the Tomytec PR account. There were cool news about the TLV-N Isuzu Gemini, R34 Skyline Sedan, yada yada yada, but they all took backseat to the Silvia we've been waiting for.
I'm not gonna lie, I was actually looking forward more to the S12 Silvia? I can't complain though, they both make very desirable classic castings. Release is slated for June & MSRP is ¥6,300($54, U.S.). Hopefully some sellers can work magic on the high list price. ;)
May, we saw the first pics of this back in freakin May!!
ReplyDelete6.300 yen? Bit more pricey than I was expecting. Thought it'd be closer to $40-$45 somewhere around there. :crazy:
I think we'll be okay on the pricing, Jarrod. I want to say that Isaw one preorder on Rakuten for about $45? Also, amiami seem to undercut everybody, so good chance it'll be closer to $40. I can't wait! :D
DeleteYeah, I just checked Rakuten. With the weak ass Aussie dollar at the moment, it works out to $57. But as you said AmiAmi is normally cheaper, I imagine it'll be probably be around $50-$55 range for me. Still a little more than I was expecting but it's going to be worth it though, for sure. :D
DeleteWe have roughly five months to save some dough. :p
DeleteSaying that Tomica outdid themselves with this car would be a grave mistake. If anything, this is the same top-notch quality work thst we have grown accustomed to as followers of the TLV line. And let's face it, what faults can we point at a 1/64 model that has the detail of a 1/43 one, can have its whole front end removed and comes with a scale figure of "Japan's fastest man" (yes, I know Hoshino's nickname well, in case my avatar didn't tell you, I'm a Calsonic man)?
ReplyDeleteWell, any fault that isn't the price that is, haha. According to a currency converter, it rounds up to 43 euros, which is nowhere near close to the price most Super Silhouette models go for these days, but I'm sure that soon that mark will shoot up to 100 euros... And then I have to think of those damm importing taxes. :\
Well, never you mind. What matters is that the Silvia is here, and it's simply beautiful. And who knows, maybe one day the S11 may show up as well. Didn't Tomica release all the possible Skyline Super Silhouette variations...? ;)
You seemed to know a lot on the subject. I know little to nothing about the real life race cars. :D
DeleteTLV did release three variations of the Skylines + Bluebirds with three different liveries.
I really need to post them on here. So far, blog has featured only one of the Bluebirds.
Well that's somewhat unexpected, giving how popular Super Silhouette cars were in Japan at the time... After all, if it weren't for them, we wouldn't have all those wacky bosozoku-inspired tuner cars, right? It's just something I did a little research on, that's all... ;)
DeletePrecisely, all of them being very good castings and command top dollar in the scale model world. And they are all beautiful...
You have a Bluebird? Which one, may I ask?
So far, I've posted the "Coca Cola" Bluebird Super Silhouette, but I have all three. I also have all three Skyline Super Silhouettes. :D
DeleteWell well, aren't you loaded, haha! I can only dream of owning ONE TLV Super Silhouette car, and you have all 6... Can I take a swim in your pool of money?
DeleteNo, no, no, you got it all wrong. Because I have all six, there is no more pool of money. A puddle at best, and it's very small. lol
DeleteWell, at least you had a pool of money before. I have to upgrade my puddle of money to money pool status, haha! It'll take a while before I can buy a single car like the Silvia, much less six...
DeleteI hear you, Hugo. All six were separate purchase, and it was over a period of time. I think the most expensive was one of the Skylines at around $70~$75. Cheapest was the Autobacs Bluebird, maybe around $35. $35 was the cheapest of the TLV Super Silhouettes. lol
DeleteWell, I had no idea that you could get an actual Bluebird for less than $40, consider me impressed. As for the Skylines, no surprise there; they are the OG Super Silhouettes and command a quality feel that very few 1/64 cars have, so they pay a dear price for those characteristics.
DeleteARTA's image isn't worth much apparently, haha.
That Bluebird was their last Super Silhouettes, and were still available thru amiami on backorder. Both me & Jarrod(Spacedog) was able to cash in on it. Not only there isn't any premium pricing by amiami, they also discount prices off the original MSRP, so that's how we got them so cheap. :)
DeleteThat was a wise decision, betting on AmiAmi allowed both you and your friend Jarrod to get your Bluebirds with a special discount on the original price as part of backorder status. I have to say, if I ever can afford a new TLV release, I may want to look at AmiAmi first to see how cheap it can get...
DeleteUnfortunately, even from amiami, the new Super Silhouette is about $40 + shipping for me, more for Jarrod in Australia. Price is high, but so is the expectation for this one.
DeleteIndeed, the casting looks nearly flawless, and there are no major inaccuracies within it... The Silvia seems to have been made with the same wonderful care as all the other TLV SS models, maybe even more than that. And if Tomica's own press pictures are anything to go by, then this car will sell, and it will sell quickly...
DeleteOn amiami's sales ranking list, I think it was already outselling castings costing 50% of the Silvia SS, or less.
DeleteWow, that's something alright, as I expected from a SS model. People have been wanting this car for years, and now that they have their chance, it'll be hard for people to ignore the car.
DeleteYup,even with this super high price tag.
DeleteIt seems that the exclusivity of TLV prevents the price from putting customers away from buying it.
DeleteAfter all, as I've told someone else before, TLV is the only brand who creates SS models in this size and quality, so the only thing missing from them is more brands (namely Toyota and Mazda's own SS cars), haha.
Well said, I think you're right on the money.
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ReplyDeleteI saw your comment earlier, I also have it preordered from amiami. :)
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