SCALE MODEL NEWS

THIS IS A WELCOME ITALERI REISSUE OF what was previously an ESCI kit, Italeri having since acquired the tooling. Mat Irvine:  This is pure build-one-way model of the car that participated in the 1979 Monte Carlo Rally, the first round in the World Rally Championship that year. There is a slight oddity with the markings though, as the decals are for the car that came fifth in the race. A similar car actually finished in second place. The kit is neatly produced, and easy to assemble, with 103 components. Included are items such as the DOHC engine block, full drivetrain complete with disc brakes. The interior is fully fitted, and comes with with twin rally seats and a full racing roll bar. The parts layout ( below ) is complete, except for the tyres. Instruction leaflet ( below ) with component list and finishing scheme. Note that as the kit is set up as a rally car, you can’t (easily!) modify it to build a stock version. I built the kit ( below ) using an aftermarket decal set. Click...

THE FORD ESCORT 1972 RALLY-WINNER CAR SHOULD HAVE been released in kit form years ago. But it’s better late than never, so here is one of Ford’s most popular mid-sized cars from the late 20th century, released to 1:24 scale by Belkits of Belgium. Mat Irvine: The Ford Escort saloon has been available in smaller scales, as kits, diecasts and slot cars, but this is the first kit to the bigger 1:24 scale. This Ford Escort comes from the Belgian company, Belkits. And from the look of the extra parts that are included in the box, but not used here, we should be seeing other Escort kits in future that do use them.  Actually, there are already two Belkits Ford Escorts. The kit in this review features the car that won the 1972 Daily Mirror RAC Rally, as driven by Roger Clark and Tony Mason. The second kit models the winner of the following year's race. Box side panel ( below ) shows a different view of the 1972 car. The Belkits construction style is conventional, with a one-piece body, mul...