Review by CoMod Lotus Carrera DIGITAL 132 Bill Thomas Cheetah "Aluminum Car" " & No. 11", 1964 (Item No. 30648 & 30649)
Another one in chrome?
YES! Although, actually NO. Because they’ve never actually been chrome-plated—they’re aluminum-coated instead. But in the CARRERA community, they’ve been called CHROM-XXX ever since the first model (you can insert the respective model name for XXX). And there have been quite a few chrome-plated models in recent years: It all started with the legendary chrome Porsche (911 GT1 98), which was actually intended only as a test to see if something like this could be mass-produced—and which was then manufactured in small numbers in 1998 and subsequently given away all over the world. But that’s a story for another time. Next came the 132 300 SLR in 2001 and the two 124 streamlined racers, the AUTO UNION Type C and MERCEDES W125. In 2003, the Aston Martin Vanquish 132 was released as a production car, along with the extremely rare Bentley EXP 8, which—like the 911 GT1—was never sold commercially but was instead given away to deserving dealers or offered as a prize in the CARRERA racing competitions. For me, the 2004 DTM C-Class doesn’t count as one of the classic CHROMs, since the car competed so regularly in the DTM. The same applies to the DTM successors from 2006 and 2007.
But in 2006, four more treats were released: For the press event unveiling the following vehicles, Mercedes-Benz commissioned the production of four special models: the CL Coupe, the E-Class, the SL, and the GL SUV. Each car came in its own box with tracks; all four boxes together formed a complete racetrack.
Then the good times came to an end for a while; it wasn’t until 2013 that there was some news again regarding high-gloss cars: Exclusively for its 50th anniversary, a chrome Porsche 911 model was released for the CARRERA Club in the middle of the year; the gold-plated 911 was given away all over the world at the Toy Fair.
And now, of course, there’s the Bill Thomas Cheetah as an “Aluminum Car.”
You might think the designers ran out of ideas—after all, we’d had a few years’ break from chrome cars. Far from it!!!!!!!!!!!
The vehicle really does—or did—exist. As is well known, the Cheetah’s body is made of fiberglass. However, the first two prototypes of the Cheetah were fitted with aluminum bodies. One of the cars was apparently sold to Chevrolet for research purposes; according to Bill Thomas, the other was owned by Sonny & Cher (for the younger folks on the forum: they were a singing duo in the ’60s. That is, back when music still came in analog form from various devices or boxes, and the only media available were records or audio tapes). Rumors, by the way, mention a third aluminum-bodied car. There are now a few replicas, but none of the original vehicles are believed to still exist.
On the following page, you’ll find some good pictures of the aluminum Cheetahs as well as a brief historical overview: www.gatsbyonline.com
There isn’t much to say about the model itself: My test vehicle was superbly crafted (the “chrome plating” doesn’t forgive even the slightest flaw), though the tire sidewalls detract a bit from the overall look due to their fanciful name. Thanks to its very wide tires and wide track, the Cheetah sticks to the track like a board and is very hard to throw off course. It’s a great rival for the Cobra, which, in my opinion, doesn’t even come close to the Cheetah in terms of looks.
Have fun with the car!!!
Another one in chrome?
YES! Although, actually NO. Because they’ve never actually been chrome-plated—they’re aluminum-coated instead. But in the CARRERA community, they’ve been called CHROM-XXX ever since the first model (you can insert the respective model name for XXX). And there have been quite a few chrome-plated models in recent years: It all started with the legendary chrome Porsche (911 GT1 98), which was actually intended only as a test to see if something like this could be mass-produced—and which was then manufactured in small numbers in 1998 and subsequently given away all over the world. But that’s a story for another time. Next came the 132 300 SLR in 2001 and the two 124 streamlined racers, the AUTO UNION Type C and MERCEDES W125. In 2003, the Aston Martin Vanquish 132 was released as a production car, along with the extremely rare Bentley EXP 8, which—like the 911 GT1—was never sold commercially but was instead given away to deserving dealers or offered as a prize in the CARRERA racing competitions. For me, the 2004 DTM C-Class doesn’t count as one of the classic CHROMs, since the car competed so regularly in the DTM. The same applies to the DTM successors from 2006 and 2007.
But in 2006, four more treats were released: For the press event unveiling the following vehicles, Mercedes-Benz commissioned the production of four special models: the CL Coupe, the E-Class, the SL, and the GL SUV. Each car came in its own box with tracks; all four boxes together formed a complete racetrack.
Then the good times came to an end for a while; it wasn’t until 2013 that there was some news again regarding high-gloss cars: Exclusively for its 50th anniversary, a chrome Porsche 911 model was released for the CARRERA Club in the middle of the year; the gold-plated 911 was given away all over the world at the Toy Fair.
And now, of course, there’s the Bill Thomas Cheetah as an “Aluminum Car.”
You might think the designers ran out of ideas—after all, we’d had a few years’ break from chrome cars. Far from it!!!!!!!!!!!
The vehicle really does—or did—exist. As is well known, the Cheetah’s body is made of fiberglass. However, the first two prototypes of the Cheetah were fitted with aluminum bodies. One of the cars was apparently sold to Chevrolet for research purposes; according to Bill Thomas, the other was owned by Sonny & Cher (for the younger folks on the forum: they were a singing duo in the ’60s. That is, back when music still came in analog form from various devices or boxes, and the only media available were records or audio tapes). Rumors, by the way, mention a third aluminum-bodied car. There are now a few replicas, but none of the original vehicles are believed to still exist.
On the following page, you’ll find some good pictures of the aluminum Cheetahs as well as a brief historical overview: www.gatsbyonline.com
There isn’t much to say about the model itself: My test vehicle was superbly crafted (the “chrome plating” doesn’t forgive even the slightest flaw), though the tire sidewalls detract a bit from the overall look due to their fanciful name. Thanks to its very wide tires and wide track, the Cheetah sticks to the track like a board and is very hard to throw off course. It’s a great rival for the Cobra, which, in my opinion, doesn’t even come close to the Cheetah in terms of looks.
Have fun with the car!!!
