BillC
87thScale addict
Posts: 2,541
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Post by BillC on Feb 4, 2004 7:35:58 GMT 1
Dear BillC: Regarding the Vic, probably is me, but it seems that Walthers dropped it;and their product is not that good (see road test).I still think that Busch would have a winner if they model it. Walthers is no longer producing the Crown Vic, and it was (and is) a third-rate model, like most everything Walthers does. Unfortunately, it pulled a lot of Busch's potential sales away because it was heavily promoted and less expensive and there are a lot of American model railroaders who just don't care about the superior quality offered by Busch. Since Athearn and Atlas have done it, I would imagine it would not be that difficult for Busch to obtain a license to produce the current Crown Victoria. But why? I guess they could start re-running the state police series, but that's about it. Very few real Crown Victorias are sold as anything but public safety cars or taxis. In fact, Ford has considered not selling it to the general public as the few civilian sales aren't worth it. IMHO, If Busch was going to make a model of a modern Ford, it should be the Explorer. Not only is it the best-selling SUV in history, it has been used as a family vehicle, police and fire company vehicle and commercial vehicle.
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mo87
Apprentice
Posts: 58
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Post by mo87 on Feb 4, 2004 15:33:19 GMT 1
On the Herpa Website you can now see some of the News. Highlight is the new Liebherr Mobile Crane 1045/1. www.herpa.de
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stanhas87
87thScale addict
1978 Dodge Monaco CHP
Posts: 4,906
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Post by stanhas87 on Feb 4, 2004 16:09:12 GMT 1
Dear BillC:
Probably this is a thing of the past,but I heard that the Crown Vic/Grand Marquis had a very high costumer loyalty almost like no other car and it seemed that all age groups were discovering it.Probably most people think what I do-it is overpriced.
I agree with the Exolorer and also add the Tahoe,because police departments are also using the latter,not the Blazer as is currently done by Busch.
I still checking on Rietze news...........
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Post by Christian on Feb 4, 2004 22:35:30 GMT 1
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skunk
87thScale addict
5th B-day
Posts: 2,762
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Post by skunk on Feb 5, 2004 3:24:48 GMT 1
I agree wholeheartedly in being upset that herpa is wasting resources by developing the R16 and the TT. Very bizarre, not to mention taking sales from Busch (and Norev, but it probably affects them less). That said, at least the R16 looks a lot better than the Norev one. The TT looks a little different from the Busch one, but couldn't they just have released a Prinz or something a bit more different. Who or what is "Magic" anyways?
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BillC
87thScale addict
Posts: 2,541
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Post by BillC on Feb 5, 2004 3:31:36 GMT 1
Now I know why Herpa is having financial problems; they spend all their money on drugs. The NSU and Renault look like early Matchbox cars. And the Matchbox cars are at least collectible. I can understand Herpa going to Chinese diecast trucks to get promotional business, but this is beyond belief. If I want a diecast toy car, I will pay the four euros for a Schuco Edition 1:87. Roco had a very bad experience when they tried to outsource their manufacturing to China. Herpa is beginnng to send too much of its work to the same place. I already check every new model to see if it is really a Herpa or an "OstHerpa" imitation.
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Lee
Senior Member
Posts: 1,899
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Post by Lee on Feb 5, 2004 3:33:35 GMT 1
By the way, I don’t know if you have seen it, but Busch Airstream trailer will also be available alone (that is, two of them) and in kit form in a model kit named "Trailer Park". I just wonder how long it will take to become available in the States
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stanhas87
87thScale addict
1978 Dodge Monaco CHP
Posts: 4,906
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Post by stanhas87 on Feb 5, 2004 3:34:51 GMT 1
Dear Sirs: I was noticing that Herpa was offering less and less interesting models as compared to Brekina,Busch or Rietze;I wonder what is going on.I saw my Mercedes 500 from them and that is wonderful;even the rear lenses are separate pieces.Could not they do the Brabus Chrysler Serbring? Below,Rietze's new releases:http://s34462966.shoplite.de/shopdata/neuheiten.shopscript The Tatra and Avia seem to be Igra's Items. Roco is experimenting the same problem as Lionel had when they went elsewhere to build their products.
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BillC
87thScale addict
Posts: 2,541
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Post by BillC on Feb 5, 2004 4:01:21 GMT 1
Who or what is "Magic" anyways? "Magic" is Herpa's line of diecast models. Made of metal and plastic, they are much less expensive than the regular Herpa models. The secret is outsourced manufacturing. These days, when you get a Herpa that actually came from Dietenhofen, the box says, "Made in Germany!" with an exclamation point, as if that was something special. "Of course, it's made in Germany, you think; it's a Herpa model." Surprise! A growing number of their models are really "Made in China." Chinese manufacturers are capable of doing some very fine work, but that's not why companies go to them. They excel at doing "okay" work very cheaply. Frankly, the only thing magic about these two models is, "Poof! The quality has disappeared!"
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skunk
87thScale addict
5th B-day
Posts: 2,762
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Post by skunk on Feb 5, 2004 4:32:47 GMT 1
Due to the choice of color (and the level of refinement) the R16 looks as if it is made out of soap... Maybe ignoring collectors and aiming at pleasing the car manufacturers (and various companies that have "special edition" trucks made) seemed like a good idea once, but it appears that it has backfired. Busch, Brekina and others make desirable cars, cars that collectors will buy several of at a time, while Herpa produces a steady, completely predictable stream of modern German cars. Especially the Chinese models make me angry. If Norev or Euro Modell (or some other smaller company) had released the Alpine A110 and it had been made to the exact same quality as the "Herpa" one, collectors would have raved about the quality and how nice it was to see something this unusual. But when Herpa chooses to make the intriguing cars to a lower standard, it almost feels as if collectors are placed lower in their estimate of what is important. I believe that taking some risks would benefit Herpa immensely, to put some serious effort into something completely out of the ordinary. Make a PC Monteverdi or an Iso, dear Herpa! ok, I'll stop ranting now...
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BillC
87thScale addict
Posts: 2,541
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Post by BillC on Feb 5, 2004 7:53:32 GMT 1
To my knowledge, every "real" Herpa car model you will see this year will the the general release of a model made for one of the German car companies.
Like some other members of this list, I already have the Mercedes SLR McLaren, BMW 645Ci (in both coupe and cabrio form) and X3 SUV. I just ordered the 5er Touring version. These are all promotional models.
To be sure, the same is true of some Wiking models, but Wiking also produces other models.
I don't know anything about their inner workings (other than if your name is Wagener, you are an absolute monarch), but it seems to me that Herpa has become a more of a promotional product company than a model company like Brekina, Busch and Rietze. That's not a bad business model until the beer companies discover they can get trucks cheaper from China or Opel discontinues its promotional model program.
Heaven help Herpa if BMW decides to shop its promotional model program around or DaimlerChrysler decides to emulate its American component's attitude toward 1:87 scale models.
There are hundreds of cars begging to be reproduced in miniature with the skill that Herpa undoubtedly has. Yes, some of them may require licensing. Some of them might even entail trying to appeal to a market outside of Germany. And all of them will entail some risk. But that risk could be minimized with just a little research.
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BillC
87thScale addict
Posts: 2,541
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Post by BillC on Feb 5, 2004 8:19:50 GMT 1
Probably this is a thing of the past, but I heard that the Crown Vic/Grand Marquis had a very high customer loyalty almost like no other car and it seemed that all age groups were discovering it. Probably most people think what I do-it is overpriced. Actually, civilian customers usually prefer the Grand Marquis, which would continue to be available to the general public. As to their being overpriced, the price is quite reasonable for a large, V8-powered sedan capable of seating six. Most amenities like automatic transmission, air-conditioning, cruise control, CD player etc., are standard on the base model of the Grand Marquis, which lists for US$24,125 and sells for less. I would like to see Busch make a new model that does badging like the real manufacturers do. Make a single chassis, interior and glass insert and two body shells with appropriate parts. They've gotten a lot of mileage out of the old Praline Dodge/Plymouth; time to try it again.
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Post by h0collector on Feb 5, 2004 10:54:27 GMT 1
I must say I'm a little disappointed about the announced news for 2004 so far. In my opinion, the only real interesting news so far is Brekina's Volvo Amazon Kombi (wagon) and Opel Rekord P2 (why will they make it as a coupe? - I really want a Olympia/Rekord P1 or P2 in a 4-door version now !) and Busch' Toyota Landcruiser J4 (+ the hardtop 64/65 Mustang - but I still wonder why they haven't brought this version to the market long time ago - when can we expect the fastback coupe', Busch?). Regarding Herpa; the most interesting news so far is several new wheel sets - this is very welcome when Wiking does not deliver wheel sets at all anymore, and other manufacturers only lists a few sets. Don't mistake - I like Herpa's Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren and I will buy one or perhaps two of these, but that's all. How many such cars do you see in daily life ? Let's hope Herpa some day also discover the other half of DaimlerChrysler - what about the all-new Chrysler 300C ? The 2004 Toy Fair starts today at Nürnberg - I hope there are still some positive surprises.......
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Post by Alan on Feb 5, 2004 11:31:14 GMT 1
After reading all these comments about where herpa is going, I am going to have to agree with most of it. I just recieved my online newsletter from herpa extrashop this morning, and all they seem to harp on about is the efficiency of their online shopping. I have read into their manufacturing processes and believe they are more than capable of going off into new areas other than the promotional side of their work. As for the details on their trucks, they seem to have the same generic chassis structure for all their models, and just two or three types of engines. I have started collecting Rietze trucks now because of the better chassis details, and because, in the case of the Iveco tractor units, you can have a choice of a high or low roof cab just by removing the cab top. Genius! Onother reason is because Rietze had the sense to expand on their range and make Eurotech-cabbed Seddon Atkinson Strato tractors. When herpa, however, brought out the new MAN units, they made a Steyr version for the Austrian market, but not an ERF version for the UK market, which I am not best pleased about! I wonder if any herpa representatives are reading all this?
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Post by only87 on Feb 5, 2004 14:52:51 GMT 1
Does anyone know if the body Renault 16 from Herpa will be made in diecast? Otherwise I would find this one very attractive! The shape seems quite right and I like "penny toys".
Anyway, what's so wrong about the Herpa Renault Alpine? It's no Herpa standard, but its also not a standard Herpa. I think a high tech model of this type wouldn't pay. This one would have fitted the I.M.U range for some reasons, so I compare with their other products. If I.M.U had made this model, it wouldn't have been better ...nor for us, nor for them. That's some excuse for minor quality I can accept.
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