Tecnomodel 1-18 1979 Lotus 79 diecast model car review

Tecnomodel recently announced no less than six different versions of the 1879 Lotus 79.

And we wouldn’t be surprised if the most popular subject amongst collectors turns out not to be a race car, but a test car. That’s because it’s not just any old test car, but the very first Formula One machine that 1992 Formula One world champion Nigel Mansell ever drove, in a test at Paul Ricard. The Englishman would then make a couple of race starts for the team in 1980, before driving for it full-time from the following year.

As far as the race versions go, two are for that year’s reigning world champion Mario Andretti, from the Argentinian and Italian Grands Prix. He finished fifth in both. These are supplemented by his team-mate Carlos Reutemann’s car from the Monza race, in which the Argentinian placed seventh. Finally there is the #55 car that Jean-Pierre Jarier retired from the 1978 Canadian Grand Prix with an engine failure, and the #31 machine that Hector Rebaque failed to qualify for the Brazilian race.

Click Tecnomodel 1-18 1979 Lotus 79 to order.