Welly 1/24 Riviera Gran Sport - ride height

[65VerdeGS]

During a recent trip to Portland, Oregon I came across a display of toy cars in a Rite-Aid pharmacy.  Lo-and-behold there were two 1965 Riviera Gran Sport 1/24 scale models among them, one red, another gold.  As these were only $11.99 each, I bought both!

 

This model is nicely detailed, with opening doors and hood, and black custom interior.  The front wheels can be moved by turning the steering wheel. The trim around the windows, door handles, and hood spear are painted silver - a nice touch, and the model is well-proportioned.  IMO, this model is excellent value for the money.

 

But one thing about the model just didn't look right. The car is 'raked', with the front tires sitting appreciably lower in the fenders than the rear, giving the car a jacked-up appearance.  Not sure if this was deliberate, but is surely isn't accurate.  Here's what the model looks like as bought: 

 

I set out to see if it was possible to change the ride height to give the car a level attitude.  The chassis of the car is affixed by 3 screws.  Removing them exposes the chassis and interior, which is removable:

At first I set out to modify the rear axle to lower it to match the front.  Alas, this isn't possible because the rear wheels are mounted on individual hubs molded to the chassis pan, and are not connected by a common axle rod.  Drat!   

 

However, the front moveable wheel set is mounted on two pins, with enough room to install a bushing on each side to raise the front wheels! 

 

So, I crafted two small grommets by cutting sections from a larger rubber grommet used to adjust the strap on a cloth face mask.  This worked like a charm:

 

Once reassembled, the model sits level and looks like what a real Riviera should look like:

 

Here's the gold one, similarly modified:

 

Final picture shows both models, the gold one  modified, the red as bought:

 

What do you think?

[EmTee]

Now, if you were a flipper, you'd list it for $23.98 and double your money! 

[RivNut]

3 hours ago, 65VerdeGS said:

During a recent trip to Portland, Oregon I came across a display of toy cars in a Rite-Aid pharmacy.  Lo-and-behold there were two 1965 Riviera Gran Sport 1/24 scale models among them, one red, another gold.  As these were only $11.99 each, I bought both!

 

This model is nicely detailed, with opening doors and hood, and black custom interior.  The front wheels can be moved by turning the steering wheel. The trim around the windows, door handles, and hood spear are painted silver - a nice touch, and the model is well-proportioned.  IMO, this model is excellent value for the money.

 

But one thing about the model just didn't look right. The car is 'raked', with the front tires sitting appreciably lower in the fenders than the rear, giving the car a jacked-up appearance.  Not sure if this was deliberate, but is surely isn't accurate.  Here's what the model looks like as bought: 

 

I set out to see if it was possible to change the ride height to give the car a level attitude.  The chassis of the car is affixed by 3 screws.  Removing them exposes the chassis and interior, which is removable:

At first I set out to modify the rear axle to lower it to match the front.  Alas, this isn't possible because the rear wheels are mounted on individual hubs molded to the chassis pan, and are not connected by a common axle rod.  Drat!   

 

However, the front moveable wheel set is mounted on two pins, with enough room to install a bushing on each side to raise the front wheels! 

 

So, I crafted two small grommets by cutting sections from a larger rubber grommet used to adjust the strap on a cloth face mask.  This worked like a charm:

 

Once reassembled, the model sits level and looks like what a real Riviera should look like:

 

Here's the gold one, similarly modified:

 

Final picture shows both models, the gold one  modified, the red as bought:

 

What do you think?

Great, find me a Silver one. Please!

 

Ed

[jframe]

Looks great! Think I have every color except the gold, but my silver one is a bit rough; it's been in a buddy's garage for years.

[65VerdeGS]

21 hours ago, RivNut said:

Great, find me a Silver one. Please!

 

Ed

Welly release the model in red, gold, dark blue, and silver.  Here's a listing for a silver one on eBay.  This one's reasonably priced, but once you add in the shipping, not so.

 

[RivNut]

Thanks.  At that price I’ll keep checking Walgreens and CVS when I buy toothpaste. 😀

[NC1968Riviera]

Cool presentation!

 

Thank you for sharing!