Background:

The 4th generation (ST162) Celica would be my preference of all the Celicas. Elegant and understated and very Japanese - just like the Supra A70 I've recently built. The kit is very much like the Supra A70 from Tamiya and I bought and built them both at the same time.

Pros:

Nice proportions, easy to assemble. Headlights open. Comes with two dashboards in case you want to put the steering on the wrong side - I'll leave the reader to decide which side is "wrong". Box doesn't take up much room in a stash.

Cons:

It's a very simple kit with metal axles front and rear - so no steering. No brake discs/calipers are supplied with the kit either as they'd be entirely hidden by the stock wheels. Curbside so no engine either. The pop-up headlights don't like staying up - in fact they're worse than the aforementioned Supra kit for staying awake, more trouble than they're worth. The interior door cards lack depth and detail. The seats have no backs and have to be filled. No pedals. Also there's a lot of masking to be done - so many semi-gloss black parts on the main body that are not moulded separately.

Verdict:

A good kit for beginners. It's an easy kit to build with an easily achievable good result but I can't help but wonder if Hasegawa will release a kit of this car given their current form, which coming 30+ years later, would be better.

Build notes:

Built over the course of 7 weeks in August/September 2021. Other kits have been started (and in one case completed) whilst I was debating whether or not to strip the Audi Cosmos Blue (I didn't). I've changed the wheels (Fujimi wheels from their NSX-R kit), added brakes from a Toyota Crown kit, textured the parcel shelf, Aside from that it is as-supplied. Painted in Audi Cosmos blue from Halfords - a colour I'm still not 100% sure I like. Clearcoated with Mr Hobby Gloss. This is my 100th build. The 101st will be something more special.

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