NEVER SAY DIE - BLUE BEETLE RETURNS AS THE BLUE BANDITO 1:24 SCALE MONOGRAM CUSTOM CAR

THIS IS ONE OF Monogram’s classic 1:24 scale Hot Rod kits, originally released in 1964 as the Blue Beetle, but now renamed the ’29 Ford Street Rod Blue Bandito.

A TALE OF TWO BEETLE KITS: WOULD YOU LIKE TO BUILD ONE IN PLASTIC OR METAL?

Here we have two 1:24 scale Beetle kits, the Revell item a traditional plastic injection kit, the other a Maisto offering in a mixture of diecast metal and moulded plastic. Which one is best?

‘BIG DADDY’ ED ROTH LIVES ON WITH THE REISSUED REVELL ‘OUTLAW’ CUSTOM CAR

Mat Irvine goes custom crazy

Although the wacky cartoonist and car customizer Ed Roth died in 2001, his legacy of amazing ideas and art - and not forgetting the infamous ‘Rat Fink’ character - lives on. Since Revell started making kits of Roth’s ideas in the 1960s, they have rarely been off the shelves. 

REVELL TRABANT - SOME WILD CUSTOM IDEAS

David Jefferis reports
After Mat’s look at the Revell 1:24 scale Trabant (top picture) it seemed in order to trawl around to see what people have done to their East German oily smokers. The Trabi had a 30-year production run and more than 3 million were made, so there have been plenty of opportunities to ring the changes on the old Soviet-era workhorse - and provide food for thought if you’re into custom car kit-bashing.

As the next picture shows, workhorse it was with this Trabi, sawn in half to make a fine pony-and-trap for an East Berlin couple.

The Trabant also attracted the rock band U2, who had custom-painted Trabis on stage for their 1992-3 ZooTV tour. The cars shown now hang in pride of place at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, US. The RARHOF is highly recommended if you’re into pop music btw.

Stretch limos are a part and parcel of many a partygoer’s ‘big night out’, though whether the average glammed-up girl would rate a Trabi-Stretch is questionable - this one hardly puts a Hummer to shame!

Last but not least, Trabis have even fallen into the hands of the customizers - and if you half close your eyes, this wide-wheel car could (almost) be taken for a 1980s-era BMW 2002.

The Revell Trabant is available from model stores and online suppliers, including Amazon here.

Visit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame here.