23 January 2023
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Tarmac Works Toyota Supra GT Le Mans 24 Hours 1995 #27
PRICE: £22.99
REF NO: T64-051-95LM27
SCALE: 1/64
Le Mans was going through an interesting phase in the mid-'90s. In a bid to attract big automotive manufacturers back to the race, the organisers were trying to move away from the era of expensive prototype racers and usher in a raft of GTs that were more akin to road-going cars.
One such manufacturer, which had already heavily invested in the prototype era, and had come so close to winning the Le Mans 24 Hours in 1994, was Toyota. Its new Supra GT had made its debut in the All-Japan Grand Touring Car Championship (JGTC), the forerunner to the present-day Super GT series, at the beginning of the 1995 season.
For Le Mans that year, a sole example was entered under the SARD racing banner, a specialist Toyota tuning company that had plenty of Le Mans pedigree, but make no mistake, this was a factory-supported team.
After a reasonable first half of the race, niggly problems halted the car's progress up the leader board, but it did finish the race, albeit in 14th place overall. It was a real beauty to behold and sounded great (yes, I was there!), so this fabulous little model by premium 1/64 manufacturer, Tarmac Works, was a must-have for me.
The execution of the Supra GT's meaty stance is really well captured and the detailing is excellent, as is the application of the graphics. But what really sold it for me was the simple box with Le Mans elements to it. I hope Tarmac Works bring out the 1996 version in due course too.