A Maxi model

It's been far too long since my last blog as I've been very busy and going through some tough times at work. There has been some very good news amongst all of this though: my prayers for a 1/76 scale model of the Austin Maxi have finally been answered by Oxford Diecast so I am looking forward to adding one to my collection soon. The Maxi has been overlooked by the model manufacturers for far too long and has been requested countless times, not just by me, so the news of its addition to their programme has been received with much enthusiasm and I'm sure it will be a good seller.

At long last, an affordable model Maxi

Surprisingly given how common they once were, this will be the first ever mass-produced diecast model of a Maxi as it was completely ignored by the toy manufacturers at the time. Back in the 1970s, Airfix made a 1/32 scale plastic kit, which is now rare and sought after but apparently can't be reissued as the tooling was left outside and damaged beyond repair. More recently, Silas Models from France have produced a range of expensive hand-built limited edition 1/43 resin Maxis, comprising the original cable-change car and the 1750 HL, but these are the only Maxi models currently available and are beyond the reach of all but the most dedicated collector.

That certainly looks like a Maxi

There has long been promise of a 1/76 scale Maxi but it never materialised. Railway modelling supplier Taylor Plastic Models have listed the Maxi as a future addition to their 'Carkit-4' range for many years, but although I have seen photos of a largely complete master it has never been released and with the advent of the Oxford model is now not likely to be. Indeed, the whole TPM business appears to be defunct as the website is still stating that they are closed and hope to reopen during 2013!

The bumper is there in the CAD file

So to the Oxford model. which was among the new releases announced by Taff to the Oxford Diecast Collectors Facebook group on 8th June. Described simply as an 'Austin Maxi', the CAD renderings suggest it may be based on a twin-carb HLS with the shield badge, bumper underriders and fancy hubcaps. The line drawing appears to be missing its back bumper but this is present in the CAD file, based on a 3D scan of a real Maxi. The model hasn't even reached the pre-production stage yet so these drawings are the only illustrations available at the moment.

Shield badge and underriders suggest it's an HLS

The first release, coded 76MX001, will be finished in Tara Green, a metallic shade that is definitely one of the best British Leyland colours, and is due for release in the fourth quarter of 2018 so by the end of the year I should finally have a Maxi in my collection. No other variants have been announced yet but I'm naturally hoping for a Carmine Red one, and if they put YDU 590S numberplates on it even better. Oxford have modelled one of my actual cars before: their Nevada Beige Ford Fiesta (76FF002) has the identity of BLC 660S, the very car I passed my driving test in, so I know they use my Flickr site for reference.

I haven't yet seen a Tara Green Maxi so here's an Allegro to illustrate the colour

What great news for Maxi fans! Our favourite car has finally made it out of the doldrums and been recognised by a mainstream model manufacturer, and in my preferred scale too. I can't wait to see the finished product...