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Volkswagen Corrado 35 Years Giftset (05666) 1:24


Mike

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Volkswagen Corrado 35 Years Giftset (05666)

1:24 Carrera Revell

 

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The VW Corrado was a child of the late 80s, arriving in 1988 and based on the then-current Volkswagen A2 platform that could also be found under the Mk.2 Golf amongst others.  It was a replacement for the Scirocco, but ran alongside it for around three years, with almost 100,000 made, half of which were sold in the US.  It was designed as a 2 plus 2 sports hatchback, and for its time had classic lines that don’t look too out of date, even now.  The bodyshell was partially zinc-plated, which kept the panels from rotting out as the years went by, although because of the nature of the car, many saw the wrong side of the hedge at some point in their lives, meaning that there is a dwindling stock available on the second-hand market today, with the price increasing as a result of that fact, and the nostalgia of those that would have liked one when they were in-production from 1988-95, of which I was one.

 

The top-of-the-line VR6 had some components from the A3 platform, adding a new wider front-end to cater for the suspension and the additional bulk of the V6 that was either 2.8 or 2.9 litres if your budget would stretch to it, or you could have the G60, which was equipped with a supercharger mounted on a 1.8 engine, which wasn’t quite as fast as the VR6, which could get to 60mph either side of 7 seconds depending on the engine type.  The base model 1.8L 16V wasn’t slow however, getting to 60mph in a respectable 9 seconds, but those two seconds make a lot of difference on the ground.  Initial sales were slower than VW would have liked, partly due to the higher price when compared to the ageing Scirocco, which sold alongside the Corrado for three years, but anyone that had a hankering for some hi-tech gadgetry would have been enamoured with the spoiler on the rear of the sloped hatchback boot, which automatically deployed at 100kmh and drew admiring glances from those that were left in its wake, although whether it helped with handling is debatable, as all Corrados were front-wheel drive, so technically the airflow was putting more weight on the rear, thereby lifting the front wheels and reducing their traction.  Still cool though.  There was talk of the police being able to tell how fast you were going by whether the spoiler was deployed, and I have a feeling that its function was made selectable at some point, but as they have radar guns anyway, it didn’t deter many people.  The last model in the US was in 1994, with Europe following on the next year, with no upgrade or replacement available in its place, which is a shame, as the Corrado had a good reputation and a stylish name that was gleaned from Spanish and roughly translated means sprinter.  I’d still like one.

 

 

The Kit

This is a reboxing of the kit that was originally tooled in 1990 as a G60, complete with supercharger assembly under the bonnet, although it has been reboxed in the past as other variants, one the extremely rare Zender cabriolet that was released in 1991, just a year later.  The kit is a celebration of 35 years since its launch, and arrives in an end-opening box with three sprues and the bodyshell in grey styrene, a clear sprue, a bag of four flexible black tyres, decal sheet and the instruction booklet, which is printed in colour and has the painting and decaling guide on the rear page.  The package is completed by another bag containing six thumb pots of acrylic paint, a 12.5g bottle of Contacta Professional cement with a precision applicator, and a #2 brush without protector that had got a little bent out of shape.  Detail is as you would expect for a kit that is almost as old as the 35-year anniversary that the giftset is intended to celebrate, and although some aspects of the model are slightly simplified, there is a full engine on the sprues, and with a little surgery you can ‘pop the hood’ to show off your work under the bonnet.

 

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Construction begins with the engine, starting with the cylinder head with integrated supercharger unit, applying a choice of two decals on the head after painting.  This is then added to the top of the two-part block and transmission, and has the sump fitted underneath, installing the exhaust manifold under the supercharger at the rear of the transversely mounted engine, and fixing the distributor on the front, which you’ll need to wire up if you are planning on opening the bonnet.  At the front of the engine, the air-intake path is connected to the supercharger on the left side, and at the other end of the block depicting the alternator, which is later supported by the front axle.  The front of the floor pan is painted in preparation for engine installation, painting the inner arches in body colour, and the ancillaries in various other shades, plus black for the cover panels, and applying a decal to the top of the battery that is moulded into the left inner wing.  The completed engine and front axle are then inserted from below into the space at the front, supporting the axle with a pair of coil-over shocks that are painted yellow in the centre.  A scrap diagram shows that from the side the engine should be tilted back 5° from vertical, using the floor pan as datum.  Underneath the pan, the exhaust with catalytic converter is inserted into a recess down the centreline, starting at the downpipe and ending at the forward muffler box, which is made from two halves, the visible portion having stiffening ribs moulded into its surface.  The rear box has the entry pipe moulded into it, as well as the exhaust pipe, adding the stainless-steel tip, which is over-thick and will need thinning or replacing with a length of tube to improve realism, remembering that the tip is angled.  The rear axle is mounted behind the front box, and fits snugly around the rear box, mounting on another pair of yellow coil-over shocks.  The wheels are each made from three parts, consisting of a bland inner rim that you paint black inside to hide its presence, then gluing the visible alloy wheel design to the front and slipping the flexible black tyre over the assembly, the latter having a nice tread pattern moulded-in.  There are some slight sink-marks in the surface of the alloy portion of the hub, which can be filled and sanded flush with a little care to protect the moulded-in details around the stud locations and logo.  The finished wheels snap into position, then the radiator assembly is made up from the core moulded on a cross-member, with the fan trapped between it and the tin-work behind, lowering it into position at the front of the engine bay, and connecting a hose to the supercharger, then linking the air box to the intake trunking via a ribbed cylindrical structure.

 

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The front seats are both made from front and rear parts, and have two decals applied to the centre cushions to depict the pattern of the material on those portions.  They are set aside while the interior tub is prepared, first painting the moulded-in scuttle at the front, the carpet, centre console, pedals and the integrated carpet mat under the driver’s feet, which are on the left side, sadly for the right-hand-drive fraternity.  There is a choice of white or red Corrado logos to apply to the front carpets if you wish, depending on which colour you paint the carpets.  The rear seats are painted and decaled, the gear shifter with gaiter and decal plus manual handbrake (remember those?) in the centre, and speaking of the centre console, there is a large sink mark at the front of this, but as it is covered by the dash panel later, who cares?  The seats are installed on a pair of raised guides, fitting the door cards after painting them and detail painting the accents and latches for added realism.  The dash is made from two parts, most of the detail is moulded into the vertical section, which has two decals applied for dials and heater details, then is topped off by the coaming, which has a pair of vents in the forward corners.  The short steering column with stalks is inserted under the instrument binnacle, fitting the steering wheel to the top with a grey accent panel in the square centre boss, which is perhaps the most dated part of the car.  The completed dash is inserted into the front of the cab, and here the diagrams initially seem to imply that there is a separate lower structure that is undocumented, but it is simply the shelf under the dash, which has had its connecting ends mostly obscured by the red location arrows.  The completed interior can then be joined to the floor pan, mounting on rails and locating via the exhaust tunnel.

 

The bodyshell has its upper interior painted black, except for the roof, which is painted a dark grey to match the accent material, and the bonnet is also painted black if you plan to open it up for viewing, which is shown in the next step, although only after the deed has been done, and you have taped it back into place, presumably to keep the bodyshell from deforming during handling.  The rear of the shell has a pair of inserts fitted into the light cluster cut-outs, and these may need trimming of flash, then painting with your shiniest silver or chrome colour to reflect some light back through the clear lenses installed later, which are painted red, amber and left transparent where the reversing lights are.  The trim around the doors, windows and screens are all painted black, assuming you have painted the shell red (other colours are available), adding more black paint to the clear part to depict the trim at the bottom of the windscreen and on the B-pillars.  The clear part is inserted from within the shell, and the body is then fixed to the floor pan, leaving the front side windows without glass, as is common with many car models.  The rear bumper is added under the boot at the same time as the rear light cluster mentioned earlier, then the front bumper with black valance is fitted with clear lenses under the main lights, fixing it in place, then adding the grill and integrated light backing strip under the bonnet.  These lens backings are flat, and should be painted chrome to reflect the light before you fit the headlamp lenses.

 

If you have cut the bonnet loose from the bodyshell, the tape can be undone and the bonnet removed so that you can install the slam panel, and a dash pot on the rear bulkhead, then the bonnet is glued in place at an angle, but a stay isn’t provided, so check your references and make one up from wire or rod that fits the bill.  The two windscreen wipers are fitted to the clear windscreen, so take care with your choice of glue so that it doesn’t fog the screen around it.  Another wiper is fitted to the rear screen too, and the wing mirrors are built from the shell plus clear mirror, which you should paint chrome on the back side to maximise reflectivity of the part in the same manner as a real mirror.  The final task is to stretch a length of sprue to create the radio antenna that fixes to a base glued to the rear of the roof at an angle, which helps the car look fast even when standing still.

 

 

Markings

There is only one set of marking for this model, but the main differences between individual cars is the body colour and the number plate, of which there is a wide choice from various countries.  From the box you can build the following:

 

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Decals are by Cartograf, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt and gloss carrier film, which varies between individual decals, and is cut close to the printed areas.

 

 

Conclusion

I was a big fan of the Corrado when it launched, and still have a soft-spot for it, even today.  The model is a little on the old side, but it’s also the only game in town, so I’m planning on building it.

 

If you’re looking for an upgrade to the detail, you could consider the transkit from Whitechocolate124.

 

Highly recommended, despite its age.

 

Carrera Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit

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  • 4 weeks later...

After reviewing this kit, I bought the Whitechocolate124 set, and it arrived in about a week from somewhere in Europe - I suspect Germany, but I honestly don't know.  The detail is excellent, and there are some choices of front grilles, including the stock grille for the G60, plus a choice of alloys, and some replacement seats.  It's all good stuff, and I can recommend it, although I'd also like to see a nice engine upgrade kit for the model too.  Coincidentally, I watched an Episode of Wheeler Dealers yesterday where they de-modded a heavily "personalised" G60 that had fallen victim of its owner being obsessed with 'stance' and power at the expense of handling and ease of driving.  Luckily, the scroll supercharger was so clean and well-preserved that they could turn it into a gorgeous stock restoration.  I've always fancied a Corrado, and was very jealous of the new owner at the end of the show. :jealous:

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