REVIEW: Tunning Auto Model Porsche (993) RWB • DiecastSociety.com

REVIEW: Tunning Auto Model Porsche (993) RWB

Words and photos courtesy of Wes Shakirov

 

Unless you’ve been living under a diecast rock, you must be aware by now of the recent influx of bewinged and bespoilered monster Porsches from a certain squatting, chain-smoking, oily-fingered Japanese man. I’ve always thought they looked pretty awesome, but as they became more popular, the purists got wind of what was going on. The RWBs instantly became opinion dividers, with one camp loving every single creation, and the other loathing the (in their eyes) violation of their beloved cars.

autotunig_rwb-21

These cars have so far been tackled only by GT Spirit in 1:18 scale sealed resin. There are some plastic 1:18s coming from AUTOart as well, with only the doors opening. Hobby Design have been releasing 1:24 RWB kits for a while now, and decided to extend their expertise to the 1:18 scale under the newly created sub-brand Tunning Auto Model. The result is a limited run of 100 models based on the fully opening diecast AUTOart 993 Porsche 911. This model is quite pricey, having retailed for $530 USD before shipping, and as far as I can tell, at the time of writing, they’re all sold out, though I might be wrong. What I’m here to do is evaluate Tunning Auto’s (did they spell “tuning” wrong?) first creation and decide if it’s worth the asking price.

autotunig_rwb-23

First big plus is the presentation. The model comes in a big box, labeled with the Tunning Auto logo, the name of the model, the colour, etc. It comes with an outer sleeve as well. Upon opening the box, you’re presented with a bow-tied display case with the model nestled safely within. Undo the tie, pull up by the strings, and after much effort, the heavy display case will slide out. Thankfully the case is of high quality, with a heavy base sporting a carbon pattern, and a nice, solid acrylic cover. There is also a metallic plaque with all kinds of information, and a hand written number of your model, which in my case is #80. The first minus is that the base was covered with some kind of sticky white powder that wouldn’t come off with a dust brush. I had to get a damp cloth and wipe it off. It would be really nice of them to clean it on their future models prior to sending them out.

autotunig_rwb-32

Lift up the acrylic cover, and the model is carefully wrapped to avoid damage, with the engine cover in a separate box. Right away you’re hit with the paint colour, which according to the box, is “Rosso Corsa 300 RED”. I’m no expert on colours, but I know Rosso Corsa is a Ferrari colour, and I’ve seen Hobby Design proudly declaring for their LB Works Huracan that the paint is the same as on the real car. Assuming this model received the same treatment, it’s got Ferrari paint. Which is cool. It’s well enough applied and clear coated, but with a run of 100 models to be completed by what I’m guessing is a limited number of staff, they had no time to wet-sand and polish for hours, so some imperfections are present. Tunning Auto use their own in-house body kit, and it’s applied very well, with panel gaps simulated with black marker. Now here’s the really cool part. All the decals are under the clear coat. Yep, no nasty transfer paper and a fear of flaking in the future. See that German writing on the front spoiler, and the “Idlers” script on the tires? Those are spray painted through a template. Very nice!

autotunig_rwb-2

autotunig_rwb-6

Another big plus, and I may be wrong here, so correct me if I am. I believe this is the first 1:18 RWB Porsche to be based on an actual customer car, which in this case is dubbed “Fishbone” (not sure what’s up with the silly names). The GT Spirit cars, as well as the upcoming AUTOarts, are all generic versions, not really based on any particular car. In my book, that’s a really big plus. Another thing I like is the body kit itself. I am very much in love with the little winglets on the rear wheel arches, and the way the main rear wing slopes backwards. Also love that little stabilizing rod, which is made of metal.

autotunig_rwb-19

autotunig_rwb-18

The exhaust tips are to die for, and are also metallic. The rims are great, and I love the deep dishes on the back wheels. Obviously the main pluses for me is that the model is made of diecast metal and everything opens. It’s not too exciting as all you get are the stock AUTOart interior and engine, which is true to this particular car. The only things that differ from stock are the body kit, and the Nardi steering wheel, which are obviously both replicated on the model. The grills are also all perforated as they are on the AUTOart.

autotunig_rwb-28

Now to the negatives. The main problem I have with my model (and I’m not sure if it’s an issue of any of the others) is the positive camber on the rear wheels. I tried to push them up a little bit to create some negative camber, but they keep going back to the way they were. I could take the wheels off and see what’s causing the trouble, or just direct some hot air from a hair drier while holding them in the desired position, but I would risk melting the tires. And anyway, at this price point, the stance is something that can’t be gotten wrong. It must be perfect. Big mark taken off for Tunning Auto there.

autotunig_rwb-30

I was going to take off another mark for what looks like a crookedly applied RWB  decal on the engine cover at the back of the car, wondering why some people can’t straighten decals. But then I thought I’d check pics of the actual car, and it appears to slope slightly upwards on the real thing as well. So kudos for this one. I was also hoping to get actual rivets for the flared wheel-arches but they’re just paint dots. To be fair, they’re so tiny that they couldn’t have been done accurately in scale.

autotunig_rwb-15

Another problem is that the engine cover isn’t hinged. It’s also plastic, so I’m fairly sure this is not the AUTOart item. It’s very light, so even a light knock on the display case knocks it off, and you have to take the acrylic cover off to put it back on again.

autotunig_rwb-25

So, just the verdict left then. Is it worth buying? Subjectively, yes. It is, as far as I know, the only actual replica of a 1:1 RWB car, done with all opening parts, in diecast metal, with freakin’ Ferrari paint and clear coated decals. The presentation is awesome as well, and you can’t argue with the exclusivity. In my humble opinion, it also looks better than anything else out there. Objectively, it is a custom model, and as such, it is going to have imperfections. The front wheels don’t steer, and the rear wheels have a weird camber. Then there’s the elephant in the room – the price. Ask any builder how much it would cost to make a bespoke model like this, and they’ll easily name you a price at least twice or three times of this one. There’s the obvious AUTOart 993, the body kit, the decals, wheels, other various bits like rims and the steering wheel, the paint, labour, display case and box. I’m not even sure if it’s licensed (probably not). So to me, the price is justifiable both subjectively and objectively. I’m absolutely glad that I bought it and it’s going to be one of my prized diecast possessions for sure. More than likely, a diecast fully opening model of an RWB-tuned Porsche will never be made. And that you can’t put a price on.

autotunig_rwb-3 autotunig_rwb-4 autotunig_rwb-7

autotunig_rwb-8 autotunig_rwb-9 autotunig_rwb-10

autotunig_rwb-11 autotunig_rwb-12 autotunig_rwb-13

autotunig_rwb-14 autotunig_rwb-16 autotunig_rwb-17

autotunig_rwb-20 autotunig_rwb-24 autotunig_rwb-1

autotunig_rwb-26 autotunig_rwb-27 autotunig_rwb-29

autotunig_rwb-31 autotunig_rwb-33

Written by

20 Responses to "REVIEW: Tunning Auto Model Porsche (993) RWB"

  1. DS Team says:

    There is a lot of win in this model for sure. It is expected based on the hefty price! The appreciate the execution on the winglets and wheels. Thumbs of for the true authenticity if spray painting the script work just like the 1:1. Well done!

  2. scott says:

    Thanks for the help / advice Wes picked one up

    • Wes says:

      I guess it would vary. I paid $500 usd including shipping and customs, but I bought from Carmodelz rather than directly from Hobby Design.

  3. Rafi says:

    Do you know the actual price?

  4. MSZ says:

    LOL my GT Spirit 993 RWB Purple looks trillion times better than this thing, and it costed me 100USD.

    • damnyou says:

      I would rather have this than 5 of those GTS RWB`s. Not into cutting up 911`s, though.

    • Wes Shakirov says:

      haha naaah. GTS looks like a toy, is sealed, made from plastic, with water slide decals. This thing has clear coated decals, diecast shell, opening parts, ferrari paint, a better looking wing, better looking wheels, lots of photo etch parts, a body kit that’s applied, and not moulded into the shape, based on an actual car, with a better looking body kit… damn I think that’s enough lol.

      • MSZ says:

        You just wasted $500USD on it, it is normal for you to find reasons to justify your purchase. I can understand Wes. But is it worth the money? A freaking hell no.

        • Wes says:

          Oh those weren’t justifications. Those were all the points where this one is better than the GT Spirit version. I feel I got what I paid for. Yeah sure it’s not perfect but I’d rather pay a lot for something good than 5 times less and get an inferior product.

  5. damnyou says:

    Looks pretty good, better than I thought. Being the only RWB based on a actual RWB is the most important bit.

  6. Roshan says:

    Let people buy the cars they want. It’s silly to compare the GT spirit cars to this car which I have on order. I would like to say I have all most all the GT spirit RWB cars and I think they are great for the price but this cars detail is why I paid the 450$

  7. Scott says:

    Plus theres only a hundred of these ……as far as I can tell they are completely sold out… if you’re trying to order one my guess is it wont be going through.

  8. Manolo says:

    I will never understand what´s all the hype with these RWB. But I guess that´s cause I don´t like tuned cars in any way,

    • Wes Shakirov says:

      Yeah they’re definitely an acquired taste. I really love how extreme the 993 GT2 looks, so this just takes it to another level in my eyes, which is awesome.

  9. Moondawn says:

    Limited editions make the price go up. It has little to do with build quality in most cases. Remember that Spark did the very same thing with sealed models and prices even higher than this. Porsche unlocks emotion and you can’t put a price tag on that. I only wish that emotion would be left out of reviews. It bears no relevance.

    But Spark produces originals; this is not a hand crafted model but just an Autoart with some added handy work. But the name Autoart makes most here at DCS gasp in admiration. Even before an actual model is issued. And even the fact that their models are nowadays qualified as “plastic crap”, it is still better than anything else out there. Read a few posts back (and I quote): “an upgrade from GT Spirit”. Mr Shakirov takes it a level higher (or should I say lower?): “GTS looks like a toy” and “inferior product”. It just goes to show what emotion does with objectivity. And please note that the review of the GTS here at DCS led to verdicts as (and I again quote): “a true gem” and “unique piece”.

    So what does that tell you in terms of value of review?

    • Wes says:

      Reviews are written by different people, so individual opinions are expressed. We are not an amorphous mass, but a number of people, each with preferences and degrees of “passion”, as you aptly put. And my replies regarding the GTS model were a like-minded reply to a certain snarky comment from someone who woke up on the wrong side of the bed that day. Usually I keep opinions of that sort to myself.

  10. Chris Lee says:

    Thanks for the review!
    Does wheels roll and steer on this model? or they are glued and fixed?
    Thanks.

Leave a reply