Getting Introduced to Tomica Premium, with the Mitsubishi GTO Twin Turbo

Today's feature is Tomica Premium release number 18: the Mitsubishi GTO Twin Turbo. That's eighteen. That's how long it took for me to finally step foot into the money pit that is Tomica Premium, the bridge between the regular "kiddie" Tomica and the hardcore "grown-up" collector TLV. That says a lot considering that Tomica is my number one brand when it comes to diecast.

Upon its release, I was never really happy with the Premium releases. I've been a long fan of its predecessor, the Tomica Limited series, which took castings from the regular line (Series, as they call it) and spiced them up with extra details, molded wheels to match the real cars, and rubber tires. The Limited line was a stepping stone for me into the expensive, high-end diecast world. The Premium line uses brand new castings, never before used by Tomica, and gives essentially the same detail and treatment as the Limiteds, minus the rubber tires. So why the hate?

For one, I didn't like the selection of models. The first few releases were a mix of seemingly randomly chosen models ranging from sports cars to fire trucks to space vehicles. The very first release, the NISMO R34 Z-Tune, got my attention but I was never able to find it in stores. Everything afterwards was a snooze-fest for me. The horrendously modified FD RX-7, the lame aforementioned fire truck and space vehicle (both shelf warmers, by the way), a couple VW's that don't interest me, and a poorly executed Lexus race car. Looking at the most current releases, I think Tomica has finally gotten things together, and my perspective towards the Premium line has brightened up a little.

I chose this GTO to be my first because of the rare subject matter. Outside of Matchbox, I haven't seen this car done in 1/64 scale, and Matchbox did the convertible. Therefore, I quickly ordered this model off the bay and officially made it the first Tomica Premium in my collection.

As I mentioned, the wheels and tires are the major difference between the Limiteds and the Premiums. These use a two-piece plastic wheel/tire combination, and the wheels look a tad oversized because of the thin tires. The Limiteds were quite the opposite - too much tire and not enough wheel. The narrow and cambered wheels are really its downfall, but it isn't as bad in person as it looks in these photos. The Limiteds suffered from the same problem. I wasn't complaining back then, and I won't do it now either. For the price (~$10), you could probably find better. Tomica have always been expensive; that's just the nature of the beast. However, I do like this model very much, and I wouldn't mind getting a few more of these Premiums.

 I'm looking at you, 22B and R34's.