With 2022 coming to an end it’s time for me once again to look back at the year’s hottest and best selling diecast and then totally ignore them all to look at an old Fiat. It’s been another incredibly busy year in 1/64 and it’s been hard for me to narrow down my selection for this article. But I managed. Somehow. So in no particular order let’s hear it for my top 10 of 2022:
Schuco x Tarmac Works BMW M3 E36
Look, let’s get one thing out of the way with this model: I don’t care about the roof shape. Schuco know they dropped a ball on the tooling too. Hopefully they fix it but even if they don’t I’m pretty smitten. When I first opened the parcel and set eyes on it, it had me. Those wheels combined with that colour = perfection.
(Find the Tarmac x Schuco BMW M3 on Ebay)
Tetsuma Bisimoto Porsche 935 K3V
A combination of a Porsche and one of the world’s most talented tuners can only result in something good. Case in point is the Bisimoto 935 K3V, a new build 935 based on a 1984 Carrera SC chassis but with a whopping great 636bhp electric motor. It’s one of the most eye catching and interesting vehicles around and Tetsuma shrunk it down to 1/64 beautifully.
(Find the Tetsuma Bisimoto Porsche 935 K3V on Ebay)
Laudo Racing Mini Laudo Fiat 850
Ok so you didn’t expect a top 10 from me without an odd little European car did you? We’re firmly in my comfort zone here. Laudo are a renowned brand in the 1/18 world but their first shot at 1/64 with the Mini Laudo range is a lovely thing. Evocative of the Mercury and Politoys cars of the 1960s and 70s and with beautiful box art this thing is a surefire winner for me. Stay tuned to Lamley for a full review.
Majorette Dacia 1300
OK now this is even more “me” than the Fiat. This isn’t in here because of extraordinary good looks, incredible detail or anything of the sort. It’s here because it’s an incredibly brave and left field casting choice and one I find utterly wonderful. And my pick of the liveries released so far has to be this Romanian taxi colour scheme. Another one that I’ll be covering in more detail on Lamley in 2023.
(Find the Majorette Dacia 1300 on Ebay)
Pop Race Toyota Celica GT-Four RC
Memories of various Playstation games and of watching WRC in the 90s came flooding back to me when the Celica arrived with me in the summer. I love how well this thing is put together; how solid it is, how much detail is present. I featured two colours back in September but the Super White really took me. A superb effort from Pop Race.
(Find the Pop Race Celica GT-Four on Ebay)
Pop Race Audi R8 LMS Team Hitotsuyama #21 Super GT 2020
There was a time when collecting 1/64 race cars meant they pretty much always didn’t roll properly. It’s a testament to how far manufacturing has come that we are where we are now. And with Pop Race, it’s testament to just how much effort goes into their miniatures. MiniGT of course offer a superb line of GT racers but with Pop Race I know first hand just how dedicated brand creator Marchy Lee is to the cause of making a collectable, realistic miniature that can also roll. Proof of that is in this Audi. It’s superb.
(Find the Pop Race Audi Hitotsuyama R8 on Ebay)
Not the most glamourous casting, nor the most interesting. But incredibly handsome and well executed. Any new brand coming into the hobby at this level deserves attention, especially when they have made such a strong start. MSZ took their first steps into the 1/64 world this year and this was the pick of the bunch for me.
(Find the MSZ Audi A7 Sportback on Ebay)
Schuco Porsche 964 RS
Schuco’s beautiful 993 GT2 has already made the Lamley 64 car tournament and almost made this list too. But anyone who knows me will know I’m besotted with 964s and when Schuco released this plain Jane version (as opposed to the very cool BBS LM shod Tarmac collab car) it was always going to go into my top 10. I haven’t even got hold of one yet, having to rely on my fellow Lamley brother Bryan for these stunning shots of it. But I already love it enough on sight to have it here.
(Find the Schuco Porsche 964 on Ebay)
Guisval Lancia Stratos re-issue
Guisval are a brand that I’m really very attached to thanks to childhood holidays on Spain’s Costa Brava. And I’m ashamed to say that even though there are a few of their cars in my hoard this is the first time I have covered one of their cars on Lamley. But what a place to start. Straight in the top 10 goes one of the brand’s fabulous re-issue cars: the Lancia Stratos. A combination of retro cool and a touch of peculiarity make for a winning combination to me. Look out for a Lamley feature on this and other original Guisval in my collection in 2023.
(Find the Guisval Stratos re-issue on Ebay)
Matchbox Moving Parts Range Rover Classic
This is one of those models that I knew I wanted when the first pictures surfaced. I’m a big fan of the Moving Parts series and this Range Rover is one of my standout models from the entire range. A wonderful colour choice (that Bahama Gold combined with a beige interior), some fantastic proportions and a whole bucket of retro cool make this a winner for me.
(Find the Matchbox Moving Parts Range Rover on Ebay)
Honorable mentions and other business
OK so this is the part where I kind of cheat and cram in the stuff that didn’t quite make this list. And there was a lot. The Matchbox Moving Parts Morris Minor would have sat proudly in the top 10 but I hadn’t managed to get hold of one by the time I collated this article. Salvat shocked me by revealing a 1/64 SEAT Ibiza Mk1. Hot Wheels’ De Tomaso Pantera Group 4 also stole my heart but the chances of me getting one in the UK are almost zero, let alone before the end of 2022! Schuco and Tarmac’s custom Volkswagen T2 in the Mooneyes livery was a seriously under-appreciated casting and blew the previous T1 into the weeds. XCartoys continued to impress in 2022 they managed to pique my attention with their Audi 100 and A6. MiniGT’s Porsche 911 GT3 Touring and RUF CTR “Yellowbird”, Para64’s Audi e-tron GT and Cizeta-Moroder V16T would have also all been here too if I’d have managed to get hold of them.
As it was I put more of a priority on older models this year and 2022 has ended with me knocking a few rare and wonderful diecast off my wish list and I can’t continue without mentioning them. A Gama Minette Lotus-Ford, a beautiful Auro Metal Yugo, a Tomica Honda Civic Country Wagon. A gaggle of Fiats; a gorgeous 1400 and a 238 van from Mercury, a 124 from Polistil, a 2300 from Dinky. A Schuco Mercedes C-111 and the super rare BMW 2000 Tii Touring arrived as did a very early Majorette Citroën DS 21. A Safir Renault Estafette and a Buby Mercedes M1112 “Kurzhauber” truck arrived at the very end of the year to round off a successful year of hoarding.
It’s been a heck of a year here at Lamley and also a heck of a process putting this article together so I hope you enjoy it! And here’s to a happy and safe New Year for all of you.
Instagram: @alex_the_hoarder
Facebook: facebook.com/alexthehoarder
Twitter: @AlexTheHoarder
Some excellent models there Alex, glad there was a Porsche in there !