| |
For half a century Corvette has been an American icon of automotive legend, design and innovation. Currently in its 5th generation of development, Chevrolet’s flagship of performance and styling has never been more popular stateside or around the globe. Originally built and raced to proximate Europe’s finest sports cars, the Corvette has eclipsed the life span of some truly enduring automotive marques.
FM essentially used the 1998 Corvette convertible tooling for this 50th Anniversary iteration. Specifically, they obviously used the same body tool from their 1998 Corvette convertible Indy 500 Pace Car diecast. Their 1997 models were coupes without body side moldings but the 1998 convertible models all had them. The Pace Car, however, was issued devoid of those extra center lines. The paint, “50th Anniversary Red”, a darker and richer metallic, serves to enhance that look. The bucket seats and ‘up’ top are offered in Shale, a light grayish-tan tone perfectly suited to the car’s exterior shade of red. A slightly darker hue is used for the dash, door panels, visors and trans tunnel. Wonderfully highlighting the car’s color palette are the Champagne colored aluminum wheels, complete with air valve stems, standard on the Anniversary Edition. Well scaled 50th Anniversary emblems are applied front, rear and on both sides of the car but special 50th Anniversary-logo floor mats, standard on all 1:1 cars, have not been added as was the case with the special floor mats applied to the FM Indy 500 Pace Car edition, my only nit on this otherwise beautifully done replica. The seats, however, correctly display the proper 50th Anniversary emblems. Interestingly, the CD, midway ejected from the dash, is more golden in tint than previous iterations.
As with the other FM C5 models, the paint is evenly applied, all parts fit well and operate properly and the ‘look’ of the car is excellent. The Goodyear® Eagle tires, seen on all of the prior C5 models, have been replaced with slightly different pattered, non-specific low profile street shoes. The Limited Edition plate is in the trunk and reads: “2003 Corvette® 50th Anniversary LIMITED EDITION xxxx/9900”. The limited number is stamped into the plate. This model rates a well earned 4 ½ stars in my estimation.
The issue price is $105.
(02/18/2003)
|
|
