Martini Livery Is The Best Livery: A Look at the Minichamps 1/18 Porsche 918 Spyder

It's only been a little more than two weeks since I last got to play with a brand new 1/18 toy, but it feels like an eternity. I'm happy to say that the short-lived hiatus is over. Put aside the 1/64's for a moment and revel in the glorious and iconic red and blue that is the Martini racing livery. Today, I present the Minichamps 1/18 Porsche 918 Spyder with the Weissach Package.

The Porsche 918 is the most conservatively-styled member of the Holy Trinity, but it's also the cleanest design of the three and most certainly a looker in its own right. Having seen them at auto shows in person, they definitely stand out and have you leaving the Porsche exhibit with exhilaration (or maybe not leaving at all). Add the Martini livery to that and you've got me spending countless hours on the web looking for the best deal on this 918. I'm not a big racecar guy, but I would like to make the bold claim that the Martini livery is the best livery in all of motorsports. The contrasting colors and the way the stripes swoop up the rear fenders of the car instantly make it the icon it is.

This is my first Minichamps model, so naturally I would like to compare it with the other 1/18 brands I have in the collection. From afar, all these high-end models look great and are very comparable to one another. When you look closer, you'll see that some stand above the crowd in the way all the little details are executed. I am afraid to say that this is not one of them.

As a model, itt’s clearly a couple steps below any AUTOart or Kyosho. Detail-wise, it’s even a step below resin models from GT Spirit. I’ll just call Minichamps the diecast version of Otto. Rather, Otto is the plastic resin form of Minichamps, but you get the idea. It looks good, even great, from the outside, but doesn’t have the fine details that its competitors do.

Interestingly, AUTOart has recently announced that it will also be producing the 918, available in monochromatic paint choices as well as with the Martini racing livery in both black and white variations. With the skyrocketing prices of the signature AUTOart models, I see that one landing at around $250, which is why I jumped the gun on this much-cheaper (almost half the price!) Minichamps model. Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see how it compares when it is released. I would put my money on the AUTOart being vastly superior and more detailed, but would you be able to take the hit? I know I probably wouldn't, but the thought of having a black one to complement this is intriguing. 

Anyways, back to the Minichamps itself. A good looking car, yes, but there are numerous areas where this model feels cheap. The grilles, front and rear, are all painted in. The badges are printed. Even the rear license plate is printed right onto the bumper, which isn’t the least bit realistic. 

I could go on.

The steering turns only halfway. The brake details are very basic. The lights look like something to come off of a budget model. The included roof panel is made of very cheap molded plastic. Some of the body panels are also plastic, such as the large chunk sweeping under the doors up to the roof. There’s no carpeting on the interior or the trunk. To make matters worse, I accidentally brushed my hand along the side of the car and snapped the wing mirror. Certainly, these areas are not befitting of a model that normally retails at around the $170-180 mark. On the bright side, I was able to get this one at a significant discount to offset some of that.

I know this sounds like a rant, but I would be lying if I said I were disappointed with this Minichamps model. There are areas where I feel like I’m looking at a Maisto, but take a step back and you’ll see it fits in just fine with other high-end 1/18 models. The car just looks right, from the wheels and stance to the body lines and the flowing red and blue stripes. If you’re looking for value, you won’t find it here. But if you like the 918 and you like the Martini racing livery, this could be one for you. 

An onslaught of photos below...