Our steady friend, Auto World.
Auto World has dropped some big news over 2022, but most of those excitement-inducing aren’t going to show until 2023. Think Starion, 3000GT, Charger, Z, and others. And it was the year before – 2021 – that AW released the Supra, which brought a whole new group of collectors to the brand.
So that leaves 2022 as a bridge year, but for us diehard fans, isn’t that how it’s done with Auto World? And isn’t that how we like it? Honestly, we collectors can sometimes be guilty of focusing way too much on what is coming, and not enough on what is already here. And when Auto World makes a casting, they don’t beat it to death, they gently create a collection. Replicate a classic, pursue factory colors and trim, and give us a ton of them. Collecting AW is about putting that fleet together, one model at a time, over months and years.
And it adds up, and it’s a blast for the patient collector. For as much as I love other brands for the constant stream of new and cool cars, I love Auto World for its deliberate and focused pace. It’s a chill brand.
Of course it has its frenetic side too. AW is open to all kinds of hobby collabs, and the result are a wide array of interesting – some successful, some not – hobby exclusives. There have been so many Squarebody collabs that have gone in so many directions it has become almost impossible to collect. Still amusing to watch what is next. Maybe I’ve gotten in on the act. Hint hint.
So I am glad that this year, for the Lamley Awards Best of Tournaments we didn’t restrict it to new models only. We opened each tournament to what we considered the 16 best releases of the year. I worked with Lamley Contributor and AW obsessive David Kiley, aka Championdjk on YouTube, to come up with 16. AW only had a few Premium Releases this year, so we also considered the Target Exclusives Deluxe 2- and 3-packs as well.
But I will admit to a mistake. I think we should have considered hobby exclusives. After all I just wrote above, hobby exclusives are a big part of what AW does, and those releases, large or small, need to be considered. So if you have a favorite hobby dealer who does do AW exclusives, let them know we want to consider their collabs for next year.
For now, let’s focus on what AW released directly. Still a lot of great stuff to choose from. Watch the video (I showcase and randomly draw the pairings there), check out the photos, and head over to Lamley Instagram to vote in my stories.
The nominees:
