Sent.

 

+1.

 

Here is the reply. Looks like we will have to look elsewhere.

"Thanks very much for your attention and support for Paudi, we also really
like FTYPE, we had negotiated with L&J about the licensing production
issues, unfortunately, L&J authorized production licensing fees was far
beyond our budget. Therefore, we have to suspend this projct.

Thanks again for your attention and support.

Best regards
Kevin Liu
Product Manager"

 

Talk about a prompt, efficient, and courteous reply! Most impressive. Too bad they couldn't make it happen; although kudos to them for trying!

 

This might be a good candidate for crowd funding.

 

They're a small model company. Probably don't have the distribution to cover the high fixed royalty fee.

Maybe better off trying Autoart or Bburago. These guys have mass distribution and an existing relationship with JLR.

 

I received a very similar response and am too quite impressed with the immediacy of Kevin's response.
I think JLR marketing is taking a very shortsighted approach to this matter.

 

I'd also be interested in a high-quality die-cast. Crowd-funding is an interesting idea.

 

Good idea, Stealth. I'll drop a note to Bburago and see what comes back. I still have one of their e-Types on my credenza.

 

Make mine a V6S in Stratus Grey with Jet Interior & Camel stitching and, for crying out loud, don't forget to include Union Jack value stem caps!

I'm in!

 

How cool would it be if they offered replaceable wheels and all the OEM wheel options could be bought separately? Could extend that to chrome, black and CF exterior trim.

BRG/Camel for me please! Oh, and 3 pedals too.

 

And a little "Unhinged" figurine sitting inside double-clutching?

 

Why am I picturing Raj and Wolowicz with their 3D printer while I'm reading this?

 

Wolowicz, here! lol

 

Reply from Bburago/Maisto:

Thank you for your interest. We are not able to say what we will or will not make, however if you would like to keep up to date on new releases our website is updated frequently. You can also follow us on our social media sites for the latest news.

Maisto: www.maisto.com
Facebook.com/maistotoys
Instagram.com/maistotoys
Twitter.com/maistotoys

Bburago: www.bburago.com
Facebook.com/bburagocollezione
Twitter.com/bburago

We appreciate your suggestion! Our 2016 catalog should be online soon.

Thank you,
Customer Service/KC
Maisto International, Inc.

 

Amazing to me that no one makes a 1/18 model of what surely is one of the sexiest bodies ever created...just doesn't make sense.

 

It makes perfect sense to me. The overwhelming majority of diecast sales are to those with a personal connection to a particular vehicle. This is a small market car. Its the same issue that prevents companies from producing aftermarket parts.

If the F-Type hangs around long enough to become an icon or with many more units on the streets, someone will see the business case and build it.

 

I agree with your comments - although, they just signed an agreement with Ferrari, so it's not all about volume car sales. Also, they make at least a dozen variants of the e-Type, which were never high volume (although it qualifies in the icon category). Just keeping my fingers crossed.

 

As I said in my comment, any vehicle that has cultural icon status is marketable, which is the exception to the personal relationship rule. Anything with the Ferrari name on it is an automatic icon.

 

I just emailed Autoart. They are Chinese, and they also made the beautiful 1:12 scale D-Type models. They may be more aggressive than the others.