Scuderia Saturday: The LaFerrari in 1/18, by Bburago

Fall has officially arrived, and that should mean one thing and one thing only to diecast collectors - discount 1/18 models at your local Costco and Sam’s. So I did what the rest of you would do: booked it to my nearby wholesale outlet in pursuit of cheap cars to fill my shelves.

It was around this time last year that this particular model you will be seeing here was released. It’s a model that’s been on my radar ever since. I told myself to be patient and wait for Costco to hopefully stock these the following year, then grab one for peanuts.

My wish has been granted. The time has finally come.

My LaFerrari has arrived.

I got this at Sam’s Club, utilizing their free one-day pass for non-members. I’ve been doing my research and heard murmurs about these Maisto and Bburago models starting to appear over the past couple weeks. Models such as the LaFerrari, ‘17 Ford GT, and Bugatti Chiron, among others. I don’t care who you are; when you hear the names of those cars and realize you can add them to your collection for $13 apiece, you get off the couch and make the drive, no questions asked.

In my excitement and haste, I neglected to take photos of the pallet. There was a fairly decent selection. Some of the ones that caught my eye were an orange Lamborghini Gallardo Superleggera, silver Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, silver Nissan GT-R (R35), and orange-red Chevy Corvette Z51 (C7). I found this lone LaFerrari on the top of the back shelf and grabbed it immediately. The employees would not allow me to move the shelf in front to fully access the models in the back, so I made do with this one. I was hoping to get more mileage out of that one-day pass, but I didn’t spot the GT or the Chiron. That’s OK, because Costco and Sam’s stores will continue restocking and selling these through the holiday season, so opportunities are aplenty. Though, in hindsight, I wish I picked up that ‘Vette.

On to the LaFerrari itself. The Ferrari. One of three in the Holy Trinity, and the best looking of the trio. This is a Bburago model repackaged as a Maisto. It looks really, really good. The details aren’t as crisp as a high-end model such as the Hot Wheels Elite, but you can’t go wrong for one-tenth the price. Maisto has been upping the quality of its models in the past few years, and their efforts are on full display here. There isn’t the droopy suspension that plagues most of Maisto’s models. Interior details are noticeably improved from older releases. The brake details are fantastic and the best I’ve seen to date from a budget model. The wheels, true to the 1:1. There is some semblance of steering, a feature that I very much appreciate having.

On the drive home, I had the LaFerrari riding shotgun. I couldn’t help but shoot a glance at every red light and smile.

Scuderia Sunday: A Pair of Ferrari's from Maisto Design

Maisto's 1/64 line has been a surprising hit among collectors ever since they've rebranded themselves as "Maisto Design" and distributed their product to select Target stores in the U.S. From what I've seen both on social media and in person, the models have been generally well received and stock is consistently low. Although Maisto has been doing these "1/64" cars (scaled very liberally) for years, they've been hard to acquire anywhere besides on the internet. As a result, the brand has remained very low-key and often dismissed by collectors.

Just recently, Targets have received new batches of cars, this time with a more diverse selection that includes exotics, sure to excite many including myself. The other day, I spotted a Porsche 911 GT2 in cop car guise, a couple of Lamborghini's, and these two beauties out of Maranello. And you know I can't leave a Ferrari behind.

We as collectors have been Ferrari-starved for too long. Being the only diecast company with official Ferrari licensing, can Maisto do them right?

So what we have here are a LaFerrari and a 599 GTO. Again, these are nowhere close to 1/64 scale; they're significantly larger than comparable castings from Hot Wheels. To many, that's an instant turn-off. I wanted to give them a second chance, if for no other reason besides the fact that they are Ferrari's.

At a price point of $4, the detail is there and certainly does not disappoint. Wherever there should be tampo treatment, there is tampo treatment. The castings are well-proportioned and crisp. Other than scale, the one that bothers me are the wheels. The wheel designs are true to their real forms, but the axles are not wide enough. This means the wheels are not flush with the fenders and the models look less "sporty" than they should be (for the record, I pulled them out as far as I could for these photos). These are supercars!

The LaFerrari is clearly not Maisto's strongest effort. The ride height is totally wrong and it has a growth on its chin. OK, it's actually a place for the front screw, but there has to be a better way to get the job done.

Either way, I'm sold, and I hope Maisto puts its exclusive licensing to good use. One can never have enough Ferrari's.