TAMIYA - McLaren MP4/13 Mercendes-Benz (1:20) - 1998 Formula One Champion Car

[Dimitris Vasilopoulos]

What do you believe guys?

Thank you for the comments! 

By the way, does anyone know where I can find decals for the Hakkinen's helmet (1998) 1:20 scale?  

 

 

 

 

 

[Vesa Jussila]

Looks really impressive. Engine area looks really good and nice work with carbon fibre decals.

[Potsie]

Stunning build and beautifully presented!

[Malc2]

Thats great!

Can't be your first F1?

Malc.

[Dimitris Vasilopoulos]

Hi @Malc2, thank you for the comment. Actually, this is the second F1 car I made… check my profile and you will find the McLaren MP4/5B… 

[Finntrol5]

Good work! Did I miss a build thread for this?  I have the same project going on - nearly finished and you can find it in the WIP section. 

[triumphfan]

Nice build. The extra detailing looks very well done.

 

Atb, Steve.

[kiseca]

Very nice build. One of the prettiest liveries in Formula 1 in my opinion.

 

I remember being shocked by the appearance of the 1998 cars when they first came out, so long and narrow and gawky looking compared to the wide tracked, slick tyred cars of 1997, but my view has definitely softened over the years and the grooved tyre cars look quite conventional to me now compared to what followed when the cars went hybrid and grew another metre or so in length.

 

Is all the white done with decals or have you had to paint some of the white sections? The borders all look good. The pattern around the colour transition on the nose looks like it has to be a decal but I can't tell on the sidepods and wings.

[Dimitris Vasilopoulos]

9 hours ago, kiseca said:

Very nice build. One of the prettiest liveries in Formula 1 in my opinion.

 

I remember being shocked by the appearance of the 1998 cars when they first came out, so long and narrow and gawky looking compared to the wide tracked, slick tyred cars of 1997, but my view has definitely softened over the years and the grooved tyre cars look quite conventional to me now compared to what followed when the cars went hybrid and grew another metre or so in length.

 

Is all the white done with decals or have you had to paint some of the white sections? The borders all look good. The pattern around the colour transition on the nose looks like it has to be a decal but I can't tell on the sidepods and wings.

@kiseca 1998 was the year I started watching F1 and I still remember the feeling when i saw the MP4/13 driven by Mika Hakkinen! It blew my mind. I am glad that I grew up in the era of Mika Hakkinen and Michael Schumacher where to be a world champion you needed to have driving skills and it was not so much about the car technology as it is nowadays!   
 

All the white parts on the nose are decals, unfortunately, I had a problem applying them correctly on the sides!! 

 

[kiseca]

On 9/4/2024 at 7:14 PM, Dimitris Vasilopoulos said:

@kiseca 1998 was the year I started watching F1 and I still remember the feeling when i saw the MP4/13 driven by Mika Hakkinen! It blew my mind. I am glad that I grew up in the era of Mika Hakkinen and Michael Schumacher where to be a world champion you needed to have driving skills and it was not so much about the car technology as it is nowadays!   
 

All the white parts on the nose are decals, unfortunately, I had a problem applying them correctly on the sides!! 

 

 

1998 was a good season. I was a Hakkinen fan so it was good to see him winning, but I remember how the McLarens were streets ahead of anyone else in the first two races. In the first race Hakkinen and Coulthard lapped every other car in the race. Even then, Newey was getting the new regs just right. But with the grooved tyres and narrow track the cars were a real handful compared to 1997 and you could see the drivers struggling to come to terms with them.

 

I think Formula 1 has always been about the car technology really, as much in the past as it is now. In the '50s the winning teams had the best engine. In the '60s it was the mid engined revolution and then the Cosworth V8 when the formula changed to 3 litres. In the 1970s Lotus revolutionalised the sport twice, first with the wedge nosed 72 which introduced sidepods to house the radiators, and then with the 78 and 79 which introduced ground effects. Turbos in the 1980s, carbon tubs, coke bottle back ends, automated gearboxes. Those last 3 all courtesy of John Barnard. The 90s brought electronics, the pinnacle being the Williams FW14b and FW15 with active suspension, ABS, traction control. By now Newey's aerodynamics were already dominating. Then the wild rides of 1996 and 1997 before the narrow cars with grooved tyres of 1998 and Newey's first McLaren snookered everyone. He went for a long wheelbase to reclaim the underfloor area lost when the cars got narrow and restore the underfloor downforce.

 

Then it was Brawn's revolution at Ferrari where his total performance strategy (basically he made the car's development a much more holistic project with closer cooperation between chassis, aero and engine departments, finances, pit crew, even, infamously, their tyre supplier). But you know the rest from here.

Edited September 6, 2024 by kiseca

[kapam]

You've done an excellent job on this, Dimitris!

I don't know the kit well, but I'm fairly sure you added more details to take it a step further.  Looks fantastic! 👏👏

BTW, I enjoyed your little summary, above, of the technical innovations that characterized F1 through the decades.

Must admit, I'm not as passionate about F1 as I used to be, as the actual racing doesn't excite me that much.  🫤