Zagato Mio!
Lance gets delivery of a model that’s he’s been hunting for awhile
What happens when you put a fine woven English wool in the hands of a Neapolitan tailor? Its the same when when you put a halo car from one of England’s most distinguished marques in the hands of an Italian Carrozzeria. Something fine AF.
The Aston Martin V12 Vanquish, the “first” saw the light of day 20 years ago at the 2001 Geneva Motor Show. It had all the bells and whistles, closely resembled the concept car and also made an appearance in the Piece Brosnan-era James Bond 007 flick Die Another Day. Then it was replaced by the DBS in 2007.
The “second” iteration appeared in the summer of 2012. Based on a new platform, it had styling cues from the DBS and the One-77 and was updated for the new decade.
Zagato, the brainchild of one Ugo Zagato has been around since 1919. His long and storied career continued for decades, and his name became synonymous with beautiful cars. He’s famous for Alfa Romeos, Fiats and other fine Italian fare.
So when they put these two to together, the Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato was born. And boy, it was magic. The flowing lines were smoother, the soft edges were softer, and it looked like it was in motion even when it was parked.
Takara Tomy, out of Japan is one of the biggest toy makers who really don’t care about the rest of the world. They concentrate a lot in Japan, with a little overseas business, mainly through retailers. They make some of the finest 1:64 models I’ve experienced. Their Tomica, Tomica Limited Vintage (TLV) and Limited Vintage Neo (TLVN) make some amazing pieces, the first one being toys and the latter two being collectibles. They are hardly found outside Japan, and when you do, they are expensive AF.
I got delivery of a 2020 released Tomica Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato, from a grey market importer. This was the #10 (the numbers keep being reassigned, so you might find the same number on the box of another model) model for 2020, which also happens be their 50th Anniversary. It arrived at the garage on quite detailed Tomica Limited Vintage Neo Nissan Atlas Safety Loader, which I had received previously from JL Hobby.
The car is detailed, hood vents, micro badging, lights. Has suspension, needed when playing with them. Oh yes, like Hot Wheels, Matchbox, Majorette, Tomica makes these cars for PLAY. So you or your kids can PLAY with them. But the wheels remain the Tomica Basics. The black plastic found in most of their basic models. Drive the around toy cities that you have made with their other products while making “brrrrrm brrrrrm” noises. The doors open, the wheels turn. And it looks good in your shelf/display case (obviously not in a storage box).
It’s quite a decent car and I am happy I managed to add it to the collection. I sincerely hope you manage to get one too.
What’s your Reaction?
Added by
Casthead Admin
01-02-2024
Recent Blogs
Comments