1:18 scale replica project of my FD!
 

So I have always wanted not only a nice model of an FD, but even more, I thought it would be cool to have a replica of my own FD that I have put so much blood, sweat, te-....money into over the ~10 years I have owned it. Car started out completely stock but in horrible shape and I have slowly focused attention on what seems like every inch of the vehicle to bring it where it is today. still FAR from where I'd like to be but I'm not complaining ;-).

enough of the talk, now onto the facts. Purchased the model off ebay from a seller in UK. I ONLY wanted a LHD and wanted a black model. Both of which I have determined are pretty rare for an already very rare model. In time I found one and bought it. I think I paid $120 shipped for the model which was IMO a steal.

Model is a Kyosho 1:18 scale (LHD version)

First is the inspiration:
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351051207
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351051207
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351051207

WHEN I FIRST PURCHASED MY BABY

Not really diggin the faded black interior. It's a 93 so it has some peeling on the dash. Carpet is a rare grey factory option, rest is bone stock.

https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351051377
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351051377
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351051377
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351051377
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351051377

THE PROJECT

First I ordered some 18 inch bbs style wheels...think spirit R-ish and some new brakes all the way around. Taillights had some blemishes that needed to be addressed so they came off. I also started gutting the interior getting ready to install the new seat covers and swapping in a red interior

https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351051614
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351051614
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351051614
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351051614

New parts!!!!

So I ordered a new carpet from Ray and got it all fitted in. Also picked up a non-bose rear hatch carpet for cheap! Got the door dash panels repainted in a gloss black and fitted the new door panels. Also picked up a very RARE red backseat from a forum member in the classifieds section. (https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generati...-rare-1013464/)

https://www.rx7club.com/attachments/...38_800x451-jpg
https://www.rx7club.com/attachments/...82_800x451-jpg
https://www.rx7club.com/attachments/...55_800x451-jpg
https://www.rx7club.com/attachments/...05_800x451-jpg

More changes!!!

Got the rear hatch tinted up and installed the new smoked turn signals I bought from RX7.com!!!

https://www.rx7club.com/attachments/...40_800x451-jpg
https://www.rx7club.com/attachments/...09_800x451-jpg
https://www.rx7club.com/attachments/...09_800x451-jpg

I have ditched the stock fogs, better airflow to the radiator and IC have kept intake temps down. Still need to remove the brackets for them though...always something with this car ;-)

Pic of the ugly stock signals and fogs
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351052808

I have made some final details regarding the engine bay and undercarriage that need to dry before I begin final assembly. That should hopefully be tomorrow night or at least by the weekend so stay tuned for the final photshoot!!


:-)

that's pretty neat!

damn forgot to add pics of the seats....

https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351056621


and the reals when first installed maybe 6 years ago or so. All the "wrinkles" have since smoothed out as the leather has settled.
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351056621

Haha sweet! I've thought of doing an exact model for some of my cars

UPDATE:

Wild weekend so here's the post weekend update. I have finished, haven't had many nice days to go outside and take some 'realistic' shots but I figured I'd post a few quick shots and final detail pics.

Note: I went 'crazy' on this build. I lucked out BIG TIME and had an old unfinished 1:24 FD model that had the full decal set in tact so I raided it. I used everything I could and it turns out that the gauge decals worked PERFECT on my 1:18 scale interior......??

Enjoy

Mazda decal on my "Spirit R" BBS Rims
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351534900

Made some polished door sills. They actually have RX-7 logos on them as well! (not pictured)
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351534900

Some underbody detailing. Mostly on the control arms and front suspension. Will continue to work on this when I'm bored. Catalytic Conv details were also cleaned up (not pictured) as the paint ran a little.
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351534900

The model also had some weird Mazda label on the back which looked ridiculous to me. Luckily I had a perfect replacement!

B4
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351534900

After
https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1351534900

and the preliminary finished pics.

I still can't believe the transformation of the dash. That was the one thing that lacked horribly in the original model. See the original pic at the beginning of the thread. ABSOLUTELY no detail except the actual gauge cluster. I planned to try and hand paint originally but I KNOW it would have ended up looking like crap. I lucked out and had some decals that worked better than I could of imagined!

BTW, the flash makes things look a lot brighter and more 'cartooney' than it does in real life. Good for showing detail, bad showcasing the 'actual' appearance.

Dash
https://www.rx7club.com/attachments/...78_800x451-jpg

https://www.rx7club.com/attachments/...03_800x451-jpg

Real
https://www.rx7club.com/attachments/...7-_800x600-jpg

https://www.rx7club.com/attachments/...88_800x451-jpg

I have sinced fixed the spacing or the rear wheels after this pic. They looked a little too 'chico' to me ;-)
https://www.rx7club.com/attachments/...19_800x451-jpg

https://www.rx7club.com/attachments/...70_800x451-jpg

quick shot of the real center gauges.....only had JDM white faced gauge decals which will have to do for the model.

Wow that is totally cool! Good work, I don't know if I missed it, where did the wheels come from?

Being 1:18 scale it is VERY hard to find nicer wheels for models. Most of the good ones (in this style) need to be painted and I knew that it would end up making the model look cheap. I wanted something that would 'shine' a little...and didn't want to pay $40+ for some tiny model wheels.

I decided then that I would just take them off another model and was ready to buy a shitty used model off eBay to do so. I ended up coming across a killer deal on not only another full diecast 1:18 model, but a brand new (unopened) Z06. It by coincidence as well, also was the same color scheme (minus stripes) of my FD! Weird. So I stripped the wheels and brakes off the Z. I plan to pick up some Z wheels whenever I come across some for a bargain so the model isn't a total waste....or maybe I may swap my replica over to the DARKSIDE....MUWHAHAHAHAHA! j/k although it would be extremely easy to do as both motors can be removed.

I paid $15 for the Z06 model, btw! It's made by Maisto.

Lol, love this thread.

I'm liking this thread!!