I got couple of Tomica transporters in the mail earlier this month. Mainline/basic Isuzu Elf(w/orange Isuzu Bellett!) & the TLV Nissan Atlas.... Wait. So the cheap mainline transporter comes with this beautiful Bellett on the back, but the spendy Nissan Hanamidai safety loader has no sweet bonuses!?
Oh, my bad. It too also come equipped with the beautiful orange Isuzu Bellett(this is a bull***t lie, I'm sorry lol).
Okay, jokes aside, this one caused a minor controversy when it was released in March. Its MSRP was roughly $48, preorder price for me from amiami was $36-ish(before shipping), but as March approached, they quickly sold out & comes the secondary market prices(think eBay) of over $100!! Yeah, nuts. Whatever.
For me, the intrigue was this "Hanamidai" name. Hanami is traditional cherry blossom flower viewing in Japan. Grownups hit the park, enjoy the cherry blossoms & party. The "dai" in the name would translate to something like a "stand", or "platform" in this case. Naturally, I thought the name was a cute nickname given for its slick slide-action flatbed. Until I googled it.
Yes, still probably have come from a nickname, but Hanamidai is the actual name of the company that builds these safety loader trucks. They are located in Iwaki, Fukushima. Very cool, as I used to visit my grandparents there every summer as a kid. Pics:
Look, dude! Those wheel stops are painted Isuzu Bellett-Orange!!
Yeah baby. Third transporter featured this month!
Link to the other two: Scion/Chevy + Ford/Shelby
Like that Scion xB with Transport. What is the brand? Where did you find it? I really really want that,been searching for a long time.
ReplyDeleteMy wishlist was long, so it took me years to get that one. I finally found it on eBay for what I would pay. I will add a link to both the Scion/Chevy transporter & the GreenLight Ford transporter now. Thanks for reading!
DeleteHow to get this LV N-144？
ReplyDeleteI can only think of two places: eBay & Yahoo Auctions Japan. LV-N144a would be the first release of this model, so probably pretty pricey at this point.
DeletePersonally, I'd watch stuff like this on eBay & turn on the notification, so when one gets listed at your price point, you'll receive a email or text. Good luck!