BBurago 1/18 Bentley Continental Supersports Convertible

Although as of late I collect very high end models, I still buy the odd cheaper 1:18 scale models made by BBurago or Maisto. It's obvious that they have made leaps and bounds in the last decade to bring the quality and accuracy of their models out. Also new techniques, molding and materials have given these models a lot more "value". 

Today at Costco I was browsing through the 1:18 and came across this. I thought only Minichamps had a license with Bentley, but turns out BBurago produced one too. For $15 I definitely had to pick it up.

I'm not a HUGE Bentley fan, so I couldn't justify buying the Minichamps version at $200. But I do love the Bentley's shape, its power and it's heritage. The W12 engine is an absolute beast and it seems to be shown in the body work. 

The base version of the Continental GT has a W12 that puts out 567Hp and 516 lb-ft of torque. Essentially, its two V6's that are side by side to create a "W12". The Continental GT was produced since 2003. The second generation started from 2012 onwards and this model happens to be a 2013 model. The Continental GT had a "Speed" edition come out in 2012. This gave it a big boost up to 616 HP, a 100HP gain and 590 lb-ft of torque. The Convertible edition came out for 2013 and this is the model I picked up:

One of the thing I hate a lot about cheap models is the "wheel gap." It seems that the wheels never fill in properly and that when they do the cars don't sit quite low. They always seem to sit very high because they like to put in "working suspension." For this model BBurago skipped the working suspension and the car sits very nice and low. 

One of my favourite parts on the model is the front end. it looks so large and aggressive and definitely gives me the hint that something beastly is hiding under there. The headlamps are done up well and the grills are all in a satin black which accents the silver paint very well.  

The rear of the car also looks very good. The exhaust area and cut out are a separate piece which allows the exhaust area to have more detailing. One thing I'm not a fan of is the license plates they do. I wish they would just print out manufacturer name plates or "continental GT" or leave the area blank. 

Another area that the lower end markets are doing very well in improving are the wheels and brakes. It had poor lighting but the wheels looked awesome. Another huge improvement are that the callipers are static while the brake disc turns with the wheel. I'm use to cheaper models having the static disc brake! Bentley is also cleanly printed on the calliper and the wheels have a metallic sheen to them giving the impression of really being metal wheels. 

The interior is also a huge improvement over prior Bburago models. The seats have a nice diamond pattern on them and embossed with Bentley on the neck rests. The console has carbon fibre patterns moulded into them and the silver highlights on all the knobs are accurate and not misprinted or misaligned. 

The soft top is also very realistic and the sheen they chose for the paint makes it seem less like plastic and more like a fabric soft top. 

Upon opening the hood I was met with standard disappointment of a cheaper model. The engine section really does blow. It's a pressed flat piece of plastic that has some paint here and there. Really really shitty job. But I can't imagine them making a separate engine block and building on top of that. It seems to be the standard. I have older Bburago's or Maisto's where quite a bit of effort was into having multiple "depth" to the engine bay. But it seems that with cost cutting measures the engines are now printed flat pieces of plastic. Bummer. 

Also this is my first Bentley model ever. I also owned a rare Bentley book titled Bentley: A Motoring Miscellany. It's one of my most cherished coffee table books and offers an insight into the models, history and random interesting facts about a automotive marque that most people don't know a single fact about.