All is well in little-Honda land.
Two new Hot Wheels Hondas are coming, with the Honda Monkey motorcycle debuting this month and the Honda Odyssey in a couple of months. Plus we have already seen two Acura debuts and an Acura Super TH, but right now lets turn our attention to the CR-X.
The CR-X is a creation of – who else? – Hot Wheels’ resident Honda-head, Ryu Asada. Ryu cut his blue brand teeth with the S2000, and has since dropped the Honda Civic EF and a couple of fancy Acuras.
And the CR-X too. It is another one of those perfect Hot Wheels selections. A car that essentially created its own scene, and even more special because those not-in-the-know will wonder why so many people are going cuckoo for a Honda from last century. That always makes it more fun.
The CR-X has run in premium lines since its debut, and now has made its way to the mainline. Yes, plastic chassis instead of diecast, but that is the smallest change. The CR-X has gone through a massive makeover, and it is much improved.
For those of you who have collected the CR-X, the front grill has always been a problem. Ryu originally designed the model in a very interesting way. Chassis, then wheels, then an exterior bottom half/interior piece, then a window/front grill/headlights piece, followed by the upper exterior body. That may not make much sense, unless you have it in hand. This makeup allowed the CR-X to go two-tone if that was desired. And on the first three versions, that is exactly what happened:
The idea is great, but the execution didn’t totally go as planned. The window/headlights piece never seem to fit correctly, and gaps seemed to form. Collectors noticed, and you bet the designers, included Ryu, definitely noticed. Since its debut, the plan was always to modify it so the gaps didn’t occur.
Problem solved. Ryu went back to the drawing board, and the new full diecast body, plastic chassis CR-X emerged. And it looks fantastic:
Ryu was able to salvage the plastic headlights, but the rest of the body is all one piece, as most models are. The casting looks better, and definitely feels better. This may be the basic debut, but it is the most proper CR-X so far.
Yeah, to some it’s just a Civic from the 90’s, but it is a most-deserving Hot Wheels, and now executed properly. This should be a fun one to collect. Zamac? Super? You name it, we will welcome it…
Not sure what it is, but i really do not like this, it just does not look right…. maybe the paint is too thick so makes it look blobbyish, or the colour, it does not do it any favours
I am definitely pleased with the execution. When I first saw the casting was on the 2016 mainline list, I was skeptical because of how the three premium releases were. With the body being half and half, if the mainline received a plastic base, I was going to be thoroughly annoyed as there would be no weight to it. This redesign is definitely welcome. Hopefully they redesign a metal base for this tooling as well for future premium releases.
I will likely try to detail the interior on one of these as well. I already have a Cool Classics release I am planning to detail the engine compartment.
They went for a closer to stock look, but they still elected to leave the engine in the rear. Interesting choice. And I really wish there was some way to do the true 2-panel rear window design.
This execution is much better. I loved the CRX but I avoided getting the premium versions because I thought they were poorly done. I will likely add this and perhaps even customize a couple.
Love it!
Love it!
This is a 1st generation CRX made 84-87. It has a Mugen body kit (among other modifications). There was no lower rear window with this model.
Has anyone tried a custom by combining the new top onto the old metal base yet?
Has anyone tried a custom by combining the new top onto the old metal base yet?
For a long time, I never was a big fan of this casting because of the two-tone. I just thought it looked tacky with the body kit, and with the metal and plastic halves, it just made it look cheap.
But I must say, the mainline looks the best, believe it or not! Because in my opinion, it looks so much more “together”. Never truly been into CRX's before, HW or not, but it seems like I just might get one these little ones now.
first thing is first, removal of the ride tampos with a dry erase marker.
this looks so much better, kinda like the one piece f40 that came out in the multipack before ferrari went on hiatus.
The engine was placed in the rear as a nod to the Japanese comic book King in which the protagonist drives a Mugen kitted G1 CRX w/ a rear Subaru boxer engine. Surprised few have picked up on it, given who designed this casting. Here's some more info/pics on an old Speedhunters article…
http://www.speedhunters.com/2010/12/collectables_gt_gt_my_japanese_car_comics_pt_2/
Not sure it would work, the metal base is quite a bit different than the plastic base.
I'm going to have to check some of these out, if there are English translations of them.
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Yup, this isn't a “Civic from the '90s.” =)
This looks great! Thanks for featuring it. Hopefully I'll be able to find one. And hopefully they'll release more color variants (light blue would be nice).
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The wheelbase is too short and the wheels are to big compare to the real one, that makes the difference in look.