Tamiya 1/24 scale Ferrari 360 Modena

Manufacturer: Tamiya, imported by Tamiya America, 2 Orion, Aliso Viejo, CA 92656-4200, 800-826-4922 www.tamiya.com
Kit: No. 24228
Scale: 1/24
Price: $41
Comments:Injection-molded, 120 parts (7 photoetched, 8 vinyl), decals
Pros: Excellent detail, clear belly pan to show engine detail
Cons: Interior window masks are thin and some paints may bleed through

Ferrari has long been revered as one of the best sports car manufacturers in the world. When Tamiya announced that they would be producing a kit of the 360, I couldn't wait to see the result.


Tamiya's Modena is molded in flash-free red, silver, black, and clear plastic. Each sprue is packaged separately to minimize damage in shipping. The crystal-clear parts have no scratches or distortions. Also included are four all-new rubber Pirelli tires and a sheet of gorgeous metal foil transfers for all the car's emblems.


The body had a few mold lines that needed to be removed, but I had to be careful with the windshield pillars as they are rather flimsy and easily bent. I painted the car with Tamiya spray-can Italian Red and highlighted the panel lines with a technical pen. Tamiya even includes a piece of mesh to use behind the air intake openings on the rear fenders.


The engine assembly is simplified, but still well detailed, capturing the look of the Ferrari V8. With a little detail painting it really stands out. The chassis pan includes the full ground-effect tunnels of the real car, with the portion that runs under the engine molded in clear to show the engine detail. I decided to paint this part black to match the rest of the chassis. The front and rear suspensions include separate coil-over shocks and disc brakes on all four corners. I drilled out the molded dimples on the brake discs for added detail.


The chassis is easy to build, and with the beautiful satin chrome wheels and rubber tires, it looks good when done. The interior is also quite simple with a lot of molded-on detail. The instructions give excellent interior color information. I painted mine black, but added flocking to the carpeted areas for realism. A nice touch is the metal transfer for the emblem on the dash.


Final assembly revealed a couple of small problems. Tamiya's pre-cut adhesive masks assist in painting the black borders inside the windows. They fit beautifully, but were so thin that the paint I used ate through them, leaving marks etched into the windows. Be sure to use an acrylic paint here to avoid this problem. I also had trouble getting the rear of the chassis pan to meet up with the rear of the body. I must have misaligned something during the earlier assembly, but a little epoxy solved it.


Tamiya's Modena was a pleasure to build, taking only 16 hours to finish, 14 without drilling the brakes. It looks right from all angles and has all the visual impact that the real car has. Now all I have to do is build another one - only this time in silver.