Hasegawa 1/24 Subaru Impreza 1993 Rally
By Tommy VanNess
Intro
Hasegawa has a new release on the market, the 1/24 1993 RAC Rally Subaru Impreza. The Subaru Imprezas debuted during The 1993 World Rally Championship. Prodrive, a British company, was commissioned to develop and build the car. Subaru introduced the car at the 1000 Lakes Rally in Finland, the 9th race in the World Rally Championship. Driver Ari Vatanen finished second. The success led to a lot of popularity for Subaru and the Legacy. Production versions of the car in WRX trim came with a 250 hp tuned turbocharged boxer (opposed 4 cylinder) engine. The iconic blue and yellow colors would don the Subaru Rally cars for the next 25 years.
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The Kit
Hasegawa has really been putting out some exciting kits with great box art lately. The box art for this kit is magnificent. It is an accurate representation of the 1993 Rally car in a desert setting. The artwork serves as a useful a guide for decal placement during assembly.
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The kit is 1/24 scale and it contains 133 pieces. The parts trees are molded in 3 colors; gray, white and blue. There is a clear parts tree for the windows, headlights and tail lights. Since Hasegawa is a Japanese company, the Japanese instructions are listed first. The English instructions are followed closely after.
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The instructions are clear and relatively easy to follow. The color codes are listed on each part in the assembly instructions, and also refer to Gunze paint codes. The decal sheets are extensive, which is to be expected on a rally car. I did some some research on this subject and I learned that in 1993 both Ari Vatanen and Colin McRae drove the car that year in the RallyChampionship. What is especially cool about the kit is that the decals allow you to build the car as the No. 2 Driver Colin McRae car, or the No. 5 Ari Vatanen car. It's a really nice touch by Hasegawa to include both options.
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Because this is a curbside kit, most of the detail on this kit is on the exterior and interior. The tires are soft and they have great detail with well-defined Rally tread. The kit thoughtfully includes a set of window masks. Another great addition to this kit are the photo-etch parts that Hasegawa included. Hasegawa also included red vinyl material, which is to be used for the seat belts.
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The instructions provide measurements for you to cut the seatbelt material to size; apply the photo-etched buckles and you'll have full 5-point seatbelt detail on your finished model. This is another great addition by Hasegawa to get the most detail out of your finished kit.
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Conclusion
I am really excited about building this kit. Hasegawa has done a remarkable job in recreating the Subaru Impreza Rally car. The detail looks amazing and mold lines are minimal which should make for a really great kit to display. Even if you are planning on making this part of a diorama, the detail on this kit will really add to the display. One thing that is worth mentioning is that kit is labeled as a Limited Edition. It is a Skill Level 3, so don't take this one lightly. Take your time, have some fun, and many thanks to Hasegawa USA for providing the kit for review.
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Happy Modeling!