Friday, August 10, 2007

AutoArt Porsche Carrera Cup Car-review


AutoArt has come up with a highwater mark with the latest Porsche. I've thought a lot about this next sentence, and I don't want to give the impression that I make this statement lightly... AutoArt GT3 Cup Car Porsche 911 (997) in 1/32 scale is quite possibly the finest, best representation of a 911. The contours of the body seem like someone, finally has gotten the subtle curves just right. It was clear when I opened the box that this model was, in my mind, the definitive 911 to date.
The critical line is the fender above the front wheels. Most models have a fairly flat fender top, this fender extends not only up but out as well. So it gives the front end a nice, broad feel that most other 911 models lack. Also the spacing of the headlights is closer to correct than other models. The modeling on the front end really sets this car apart.
The real 997 Cup Car


The body features printing that's matched very well to the real roll out livery of the 2006 Porsche Cup car. The few sponsor logos that are one the car are in the right places and are reproduced well.

The stance of the car is correct, it might be a bit too high but the angle of the stance is right.

The rubber tires feel more sticky and sand very well. And they feature nicely done Michelin logos on each tire. The wheels that the tires are mounted on a nicely modeled. There is a bit of wobble to the wheels that is evident, but that small amount of wobble doesn't effect the performance of the car on the plastic track.

The rear wing angle is also more raked than other models and gives the car a very aggressive look.

Under the car we see a hint of another change on this car. There are wires going to the guide rather than a tab system. The tabs pushed the guide down and sometimes might make the front end ride a bit too high so this is an improvement over other recent Porsche's that AutoArt has released. This improvement will give the car better range of motion because it will provide power to the car when it makes wider turns than it would with the tabs. Also it will provide more constant power that might have less likelihood of losing power because the tabs lose contact with the guide like if dirt or tire debris would get inside the contact area.

The motor is the red stripe motor. Which is a pretty light-braking motor. Which is probably better suited to magnet racing than non-mag racing. The magnet holds the car down tightly to the track and gives the car pretty decent brakes because of the pull of the magnets. If you race non-magnet racing it might be good to change the motor...or get used to a different type of driving style...think drifting.

So how does it perform? Well on my Carrera track, where the Carrera C6.R just set a lap time of 2.4 seconds lap time, the Cup car lapped the track at 2.5 seconds fastest time with an average of about 2.7 seconds. The Porsche doesn't feel like it can be pushed quite as fast as the Corvette though.

The real Porsche 997 Cup Car


Thanks to AutoArt/Global Gateway for the car.

DaveK

No comments: