Ah diecast, the little 'joys' for car enthusiast the World over. I say 'joys' because even though most of us really love these little models and have probably one time or another bought one or two (or ten), this little hobby of building our little dream mini garages can go from harmless little fun to a full blown and very expensive hobby! Made much worse if you have a case if the OCDs.
I should know, i started young, receiving 1/24 Bburagos as presents and eventually graduating to buying my own 1/18 Maistos as a student. When i started working a few years later, i discovered the World of UT Models, Autoarts, Kyoshos, Minichamps and eventually, Exotos and CMCs amongst many other brands.
I even started my very first blog writing about diecast, it's gone now but thanks to sites like
Wayback Machine, it's been nicely archived on the interwebs. (
Click to view it here) Maybe, that was kind of the precursor to
Garage36. ;)
This also means that with limited space, my collection of miniatures progressed from this nicely curated fleet:
To something like this (x4 corners of the room):
Of course this took a big toll on my wallet but i guess i was lucky as i started collecting back when the 3 big brands in 1/18s, Autoart, Kyosho and Minichamps, were still relatively affordable. Standard Autoarts could be hard for SGD$80-120 and the higher end Millennium cars were going for about SGD$130-$150, Kyoshos came in somewhere in between with Minichamps sliding just under the Kyoshos. I guess one could say that was the golden age for us diecasters.
My diecast collecting story eventually paused when i sold almost every car off (keeping only 7) to fund the down-payment of a real car. Not a bad trade i think.
So years have passed and i have watched as prices of 1/18s soared and i instead got my mini car fix from some much more wallet friendly Hotwheels. Once in a while i do get tempted (Rubystone 964 RS, i'm looking at you), but so far, i've not strayed back into the addictive World of 1/18s. That is, until i found myself in a little shop tucked away in a little corner of this little city,
Motorsports.
It all began a few weeks earlier where i was innocently browsing through diecast on ebay (don't we all), looking through an inventory of models from a relatively new (at least to me) company, OTTO. I've been slowly following the cars they release and boy do they have good taste in their subject matter. Their previously release E36 M3 Coupes have been sold out for months and though i see some pop out online once in a while, i just couldn't bring myself to pay the inflated prices being asked. Interestingly, OTTO have made the decision to re-release another batch of E36 M3 Coupes, but this time in LTW form. Not wanting to miss out this time, i scanned through the ads and found that one of them was located in Singapore and it was a shop! Calls made, messages sent, car reserved, it was time to head over and collect.
To be honest, i have visited Motorsports years back when i was still in diecast collecting mode, back then they were hidden inside the shopping recesses of a 5-star hotel and if my memory serves me correct, featured mostly F1 and motorsport-related cars, hence the name i guess.
This time though, oh my, the shop might not be the biggest out there but what a selection of cars they have.
Quality not quantity is key here. I spotted so many desirable cars, reminds me of those smaller stores in Japan full of interesting little cars.
Though prices of most 1/43s are not exactly what you'll call "cheap", they seem to be a much more viable alternative to 1/18s. Looking at this F40, I'm sure modelling techniques and construction methods have also improved alot over the years.
That G-nose. Need one badly in my life (in 1/1 scale of course :P ).
Perhaps also, since living spaces have shrunk, many have started turning to 1/43s.
Can't blame them as you just can't beat the sheer variety of cars in 1/43 form.
If you're on a slightly tighter budget, how about these Hotwheels? Sure don't look like the ones i see in the department stores.
So much want, so little money. It's really awesome that a local store is bringing in all these "non-mainstream" brands. They hands-down win it on subject matter alone.
I came, i collected, i went home happy. So next time you are in the area, do drop by Jacky's little automotive treasure trove and tell them this little blog sent you there. Just try to keep calm and remember you need some money for food and daily necessities too! Motorsports can be found in the basement of The Adelphi, 1 Coleman Street, Singapore 179803 (closed on Sundays). Have fun!
Another weekend went by and what better way to unwind than to head out early morning with some friends for an early Saturday morning drive. Of course, having a BMW M4 to play with sure made breakfast that little bit tastier.
The morning posse.
Morning drive regulars sans M4 of course.
Wasn't part of the group but this rather rare Clio RS197 sure looked good.
For those not in the know, Munich Automobiles sits in the same compound as the local dealerships for Alfa Romeo, Lamborghini and previously, Lotus. So it's actually quite a daily occurrence to see exotics parked all over, if you looked at the wondiwo reflection, there's a Huracan just in front. (+ There's even a Disco Volante in the Alfa showroom). This Honda sitting quietly by itself might not have the same visual pow-wow as the Italians nearby but it is probably one of the rarest cars on our local roads. I've only seen it one other time and that was probably over 10 years ago. Fun fact, Harrison Ford shilled for these in Japan over 20 years ago. Legend.
Quality not quantity is key here. I spotted so many desirable cars, reminds me of those smaller stores in Japan full of interesting little cars.
Excuse me while i fawn over this fine example of an Alfetta.
With the last Cars & Kopi meet a couple of months behind us, we thought maybe it was time to have another one. What we didn't think of though, was how great a turnout it was going to be! We had hoped and wished such a turnout would happen one day, but never really expected it to flourish so quickly! Great successs! Big thanks to everyone for taking their time out and swinging by! The variety of cars was lovely!
I think the above picture pretty much sums up what it's all about.
Really liking the green 911
Rear deck with gold lettering. Choice!
That gearknob!
Lovely NA not looking out of place at all.
There seemed to be an even match of German and Japanese cars this time. No Italians in attendence this time. Maybe they get cranky on public holiday mornings.
Since we're on Audis.
The Vorsprung is strong with this one.
If P-cars are more your flavor.
Looks like this is no ordinary 911.
Ruf Ruf!
B-road warriors these 2.
Hip shot!
Maybe something mid engined?
Or is this 993RS more your taste?
Unmistakable silhouette in the background.
This R San-yon wasn't alone.
Away at another corner, older sibling San-ni sits with a Sunny.
San-ni and Sunny, geddit? :P
How do you like your Datsuns?
If the Skylines and Sunny wasn't enough, the President dropped by as well.
Toyota Crown and Nissan President. Like a gangsta Boss!
The police must have caught on that the president was around.
Miata's from 2 different generations.
Rarely seen sleeper MPS6 sitting quietly.
Or do you prefer some high revving VTEC Power?
King of lightweights the Lotus Super 7.
MG and Jag E-type joining forces and proudly representing the British.
A strong contingent of Swedes also landed early. +1 for Gryffindor!
Probably the newest car in the carpark, this fresh new M3 punching hard for Germany!
Z3 has aged pretty well.
Not really part of the group but might as well grab some pics. It's an SLS!
What's better than an SLS? How about 2 of them?
Don't see as many W201s as we used to. Shame.
As the afternoon drew nearer, it was time to start heading home. I think it's going to be difficult to top this morning's turnout.
Here's hoping! E36 jalop signing off!
