1:64 Mazda RX-7 LB-Super Silhouette Advan 2024

Group 5 in a modern coat

The Super Silhouette designation belonged at the turn of the 1970s and 1980s to the Japanese circuit specials that hid little of the production car under their wide fenders. Liberty Walk brought that look back to life with the LB-Super Silhouette range: a deep front spoiler, square flares over the wheels, a large rear wing and a stance as low as possible. The Wankel-engined RX-7 coupe is one of the subjects that the shapes of the 1980s suit best, because it was itself drawn at a time when bodies were laid out with a ruler.

The ADVAN livery

The color combination comes from the Japanese tire brand Yokohama and on the track and at shows alike it works as an instant recognition mark. On the miniature it is carried by printed stripes and lettering along the whole length of the body including the bumpers and the wing, which on a car seven centimeters long is the most demanding thing to produce.

A collector's piece, not a toy

The difference from a toy lies mainly in the accuracy of the outline, in the registration of the printing and in the fact that the wheels are separate parts shod in rubber. The handling matches that: the model belongs on a shelf or in a glazed display case, not in a child's hands. Dust comes off it with a soft brush, as a damp cloth could damage the printing.

One of a row in a Japanese collection

Cars with this conversion make up a coherent group, because they share the same shaping of the fenders and the same stance. Put several pieces in a row and they read as one range, and the differences between the individual subjects come out better than when each stands on its own. That tends to be the reason they are collected in sets.