CMC Porsche 901 review, January 2009

Available versions:

• Baliblue (only through Porsche dealers)
• M-067C Ivory white
• M-067B Irish green LE 5000 pcs.
• M-067A Champagne yellow LE 5000 pcs.
• M-067D Emaille blue LE 5000 pcs (not yet released). 

About the Porsche 901/911 

The original Porsche 901 was first presented at the IAA in Frankfurt in 1963. A year later, ready for production, the 356 successor was presented at the Salon de l’auto in Paris. Peugeot claimed that they had the exclusive rights to use threedigit model names with a zero in the middle, so Porsche had to change it. They decided to name it 911. By then 82 cars with the 901 designation had already left the factory. Who would have thought then that the 901/911 would become such a big sportscar legend as it is today. The very talented designer, Erwin Komenda, did a superb job on which Porsche would be able to thrive for many years to come. The basic form is clearly visible in todays 911's and still sells very good. A pity though, that the Porsche family tried tot erase a lot of Mr. Komenda's achievements for the company from their history books.

The reproduction by CMC 

Early 2008 excitement amongst modelcar collectors grew fast when word got out that CMC would launch the 1/18 Porsche 901 in the same year. Though many 1/18 diecast models of Porsches 911 had been made by several manufacturers, a high quality brand had never produced the early 911. Seeing the first pictures of the preproduction models at the Neurenberg Toy Fair in February 2008, I knew I had to get one. It still took a while, but in august the first ones in Light Ivory colour were delivered to the shops.

CMC started with the Light Ivory through their regular sales channels and the Bali blue version through the Porsche dealers. The Porsche version is about € 100 more expensive for only a different colour. To me no colour is worth this amount, more so if it isn't a limited edition. I decided to wait for the Irish green limited edition of 5000 pieces, which looked like a very nice colour. It was a long wait after the first announcements, but I felt very lucky when I received it in december 2008. 

Packaging 

The model is securely packed in the typical grey CMC box, with the description of the model and pictures of previous CMC models on the lower side of the box. Inside is an efficient polystyrene box, in which the model is packed without screws. The model is wrapped in soft and thin paper, to protect the paint on the model. When you unwrap the model you feel you've got something special in your hands. Once unwrapped the model gives an amazing overload of details like the wheels that can be replaced by the spare wheel. The tool needed to unscrew the 5 wheelnuts is provided in a neat stainless steel box, which also holds the 4 magnetic wheelcaps with embossed Porsche logo and a plastic tool to open the doors and the fuel cap. Other items in the box are a card with the serial number, which comes attached to the model by a cord, a small pamflet with instructions and a cleaning cloth.  

Exterior

The model feels very heavy and has an excellent paintjob, with perfect thickness everywhere and realistic gloss. It has a very smooth appearance, like you would expect on a perfectly restored 1:1 1964 Porsche 911. De bodyshape is very accurate and width, length, height and wheelbase are accurately scaled down 18 times.

I was a little disappointed though to see several very tiny scratch marks in the paint on my sample. It looks like it's caused by polishing the model before packing. The marks are only visible under a certain angle. I've never seen this on any other CMC model I own. I hope it's only on mine but I have no other CMC 901's yet. I expect to receive a Ivory white version within a week or so and will write down here if it has the same marks. (addition 30-1-2009: I received the Ivory white Porsche 901 a week ago and unfortunately, this has the same tiny scratch marks in the paint.)

The body has the right stance, which ofcourse in the 60's was much higher than we are used to with todays sportscars. The wheel lining and width looks accurate and well within the bodywork. No mouldlines on the bodywork. At the official CMC forum somebody made a remark about the fenders which are straight on the CMC model, while all photos of the real 1964 cars show curved bodywork. I've consulted Arthur Smid about this. His 1964 Porsche 911 was used by CMC to reproduce the 901. He has done extensive research and knows very much about the history of Porsche and the 911 in particular. He confirmed that all production 901's and 911 had slightly bended bodywork above the wheels. He mentioned that the prototype shown at the 1963 IAA in Frankfurt had straight fenders. Since CMC has replicated the production version the model is incorrectly shaped. Perhaps CMC started of intending to make a model of the prototype?  

On the front the headlights are of exceptional quality. They're clear and look very realistic. You can even read markings, but to see the Bosch and government approval markings you will probably need a magnifying glass. But it is there for you. The chromed rings around it fit excellently to the body. Behind the glass the inside looks good. The blinking lights look slightly less convincing, but nevertheless acceptable. On the right side the border of the blinking light is a bit oddly shaped. I assume this is a mould error. On the left side it looks good, but the border is a little too thick. Next to the blinking lights are vent holes which have been assembled from metal strips. The bumper has rubber on top of the chromed strip, just like the real car. The Porsche logo looks spot on and is made of several different materials.

The fuel cap can be opened with the supplied tool and has two leather flaps to prevent damaging the bodywork when refuelling. The metal antenna can be extended and windscreen wipers are made of many metal parts and come with real rubber blades. I would like to remind here, that I'm reviewing the model, not the real 1964 901.

The windows are perfectly clear without scratches or mould marks. The large windows in the doors however are way too thick. To make them fit within the chromed borders, they're bent inwards at the edges. This gives an awkward prespective looking through the glass and looks cheap when seen from the inside. CMC could have done better to my opinion, and usually does. The windows and doors have rubber strips in the places where it can be found on the real car, so no desires left here. 

At the rear end the details are stunning. The real metal soldered stainless steel grill on the engine hood looks fantastic, as does the Porsche sign. Doors, hoods and fuel cap fit exactly and have very smal shutlines.

The wheels look so real, they surprise me each time I look at them. The supplied wheel caps are magnetic and cling on to the metal wheels perfectly. The Porsche logos on these caps are printed in a very realistic manner. Tires look spot on, whith a nice thread pattern and lots of markings on the side walls.   

 

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