BMW 507 and Lexus LFA

[mattbacon]

Thanks, guys. It's been a very busy couple of weeks with relatively little bench time, and what I have had has mainly been devoted to progressing lots of individual pieces that need painting, but aren't very photogenic! Anyway, there's finally some progress to report...




Once again, mocked up for test fit, and I think it's heading in the right direction. It'll be critical to set the windscreen just right at the correct angle, and get the hardtop to settle down properly, but at least I'm now convinced it will all fit together!




The engine is now sitting in the floorpan, and as shown above, it does all fit nicely into the body with a satisfying click...




The engineering on the LFA is just incredible. There aren't that many parts (and they often need painting four different colours because one moulding has several different components depicted). But they are literally a press fit in many places, with just a touch of thin superglue to hold them in place permanently. Awesome!

Should get some more done tomorrow -- the interiors are being painted, bit by bit...

bestest,
M.

[mattbacon]

It's been a crazy busy couple of weeks, but I've got back to the bench now...



The dash for the 507 -- a bit of detail painting and the Revell decals for the instruments and radio, and I think it looks pretty convincing.




More great kit design and engineering from Tamiya. The front suspension looks the part, but only has about 6 of them -- parts, that is...



..which means that I can officially declare the LFA powertrain *FINISHED*



...and this is where we are this evening...

bestest,
M.

[JamesPerrin]

The dash has come up great, I wonder what is playing on the radio.

[Dirkpitt289]

Man that is sweet!

[mattbacon]

Thanks, gentlemen... a bit more assembly tonight:





The piping on the seats could be neater, but it'll be under the hardtop...

Work on the LFA interior is now under way in earnest.

bestest,
M.

[Clashcityrocker]

Nice dash on the Beemer. Lexus powertrain looks good too.

Nigel

[ShaunW]

Excellent work Matt, these models are really shaping up very well.

[mattbacon]

Thanks, gentlemen...

I've done a lot of "carbon" lately...



It's all the usual Zero Paints Graphite Grey sprayed through a fabric mesh mask and Kleared. So much easier than chopping up decal, even if it isn't as accurate....


The doors have "carbon" in the front corners if you look hard, and the two sides of the "bridge" are the same. It's hard to photograph!


Seats with belts and "sockets" added (what ARE those things called???).


Transmission tunnel insulation is cigarette packet foil... useful stuff!


And now you CAN see the carbon effect on the "bridge". You can see why I think the key to realistic interiors is to use a lot of different finishes and colours to reproduce different materials. Tamiya would have you do the whole thing in semi-gloss black and German grey...

It's starting to come together now, even if it doesn't look that way! Tomorrow I want to finish the LFA interior and make good progress with the 507 chassis...

bestest,
M.

[Clashcityrocker]

Some lovely interior work, and you're right about all the different colours and shades of black.

Nigel

[JamesPerrin]

Ever thought about scaling up your carbon fibre technique and pimp the Skoda?

[mattbacon]

Thanks, chaps.. @james -- now there's an idea! Wing mirror housings first, I reckon..





Great thing about the LFA is that you can spec it any way you like, so who's to say that this look doesn't exist! ;-P I decided that the horizontal recessed panel would be impossible to mask and get into with the mesh "carbon" technique, so I used some of the Scale Motorsport decal I have. It claims to be 1/24, but it looks a bit large to me. It's another texture and finish effect in the mix, though...







..and that's the LFA interior done. Once again, not too many parts, but crisply moulded, well-fitting, and just crying out for detail painting...

Slow progress on the 507 in parallel, but not much to show for it at the moment!

bestest,
M.

[Clashcityrocker]

Surrounded by all that red, you'd just have to drive fast!

Nigel

[mattbacon]

...and I think in an LFA you really could... ;-P





Despite its age, the Revell kit has some nice detailing. I must read up on how this rear suspension works, because I've never built one like it before. It looks like some kind of torsion tubes for the "springing", regular shock absorbers, and a cross-brace to locate the rear axle.

Nearly there with the LFA chassis now, as well...

bestest,
M.

[ShaunW]

This is really great work Matt. That Lexus rear suspension set up is interesting, I wonder if it some type of hydraulic system with different degrees of firmness available at the touch of a button in the cabin?

[mattbacon]

Thanks, Shaun but... that's not a Lexus chassis.This is a Lexus chassis:





That's the whole chassis completed. Now time to move onto fitting out the body. You can begin to appreciate the engineering of the real thing: carbon tub, aluminium chassis beams and the most complex packaging of all the cooling systems. Plus the engine. Ah, yes...




Not many parts, but it's quite the beastie. In these shots you can see the various tones of "black" I've used (NATO black, Rubber Black, Semi-gloss black... and the air box is actually just the kit plastic, polished up)






This is the bit I love about modelling. Now, when I hear Clarkson or Evo raving about the engineering of the LFA, I can really understand what's going on under the skin. The kind of engineering that made the guys at Toyota stop half way through the design of the thing and redo it from the ground up with carbon instead of aluminium is clearly visible in the Tamiya kit. You won't get a better insight into the relentless pursuit of "supercar" quality that those guys went on. There are few compromises in terms of what the kit gives you, either, all the whilst keeping the kit buildable. No fiendish complexity and equally fiendish fit like a Fujimi Enthusiast kit -- nope: all the parts you need to reproduce the genius of the original, and no more. This is a car kit like no other I've built, although I hope that the LaFerrari will be its equal.

It's been a productive day, today -- and next, progress in BMW-land...

bestest,
M.