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The Lamborghini Huracan LP610-4 has been unveiled at the 2014 Geneva Auto Show as the successor the Gallardo, safe to say this new V10 model became in instant hit and sales numbers for this 'Baby Bull' have been high ever since ... the same applies to the various scale model builders that have released a model of this new Lamborghini.

Bburago was the first to offer a 1/18 model, in fact you could buy one of these at the Geneva Show already, at a hefty premium, but still you could see the real car for the first time and take home a scale model the same day ... very nice, and the 1/18 Lamborghini Huracan by Bburago sure wasn't too bad considering the price.

The initial production run from Bburago came in four shades, yellow, silver, green and a special white metallic ... naturally up next was MR with their sealed resin 1/18 model of the at the time brand new Huracan, priced very high as usual I didn't really get one of these models and decided to wait a while for other makes and AutoArt to come around ... Kyosho released their 1/18 Huracan model in the Ousia series ... sealed models like MR but made in metal instead of resin, and available at a seriously lower price.

At the time of writing Kyosho had two shades on their 1/18 Lamborghini Huracan LP610-4, metallic yellow and metallic red, both really nicely done for about €70 each, but their biggest flaw was their attention to detail on the grilles ... either only showing a flat black space, or a sealed grille with the detail printed on top of it ... this led to mixed feelings about these models in the collector's society.

Shortly after the Kyosho models became available in Europe the Welly 1/18 Lamborghini Huracan was listed too, at first in Rosso Mars, or red metallic, but later on the Verde Mantis green metallic shade also became available ... at a very competitive price many buyers would tend to prefer these Welly models of the more expensive Kyosho version and the similar priced Bburago models ... Welly had done a very good job on replicating the Lamborghini Huracan on a 1/18 scale ... and now everybody was waiting for AutoArt to come up with the best, all-opening 1/18 model for the new Huracan.

The first two shades AutoArt released on the Lamborghini Huracan LP610-4 were metallic white and metallic orange ... and while white was very tempting to me because of the use of the Bianco shade on the press release ... the AutoArt combination with full red seats didn't match the press cars at all ... add to this the very high price of €199 by the time these models arrived in Europe and the fact one of my Bburago models was white too just kept me from buying one of these AutoArt initially.

But when I saw the first decent photos on the Arancio Borealis, orange metallic Huracan from AutoArt I just couldn't resist ordering one ... I didn't have an orange Huracan yet, and this shade looked really nice on those photos ... so after paying €199 and waiting for a few days my first 1/18 scale AutoArt made Lamborghini Huracan LP610-4 arrived ... I couldn't wait to open the box and unpack this long awaited model.

First impression

So is the Lamborghini Huracan LP610-4 in 1/18 scale by AutoArt worth the wait? In one word: YES ... and now the second question. Is this composite AutoArt model worth the €199 asking price? Now that's a totally different question ... it all depends on your personal situation. If you can easily spare that kind of money on your hobby, by all means get one of these AutoArt Huracan ... however, if you, like many other collectors out there, are on a budget you should really read on and decide for yourself.

Me personally ... I think it is too expensive, I already found the €145 price tag for the 1/18 Gallardo GT3 FL2 from AutoArt too high for a sealed model (only the doors open on that Gallardo) so asking €199 for a plastic model (let's face it, that's what it is, you might call it composite, but in the end it's made from plastic ... and it shows).

A closer look

I have red the weight on this new composite series from AutoArt is already an indication, it doesn't weigh as much as the earlier diecast models, now that doesn't really bother me too much, I usually admire my models up close, take photographs and put it on display ... so whatever she puts on the scale I don't really care ... I want her to look good, not feel like a block of steel.

So how does the AutoArt made Huracan look? She looks amazing, the stance and angular lines of the real car have been really nicely scaled down, the wheels look good, the carbon ceramic disk brakes look real and those orange brake calipers are just amazing, love those combined with the orange metallic bodywork ... with the first photos I've seen of the exhaust tips on the AutoArt Huracan I was a bit disappointed, but on the model I received the exhausts look fine, there is a nice thread on the tires, but as usual no Pirelli script on the side (AutoArt never had this in the past either, so I'm not taking this as a bad point).

Do note the AutoArt Huracan model comes with a few options, like the front and rear parking sensors ... which also include the rear view camera nicely integrated into the rear bumper, unlike on their Aventador model, AutoArt didn't miss this detail on the Huracan. Also the side lights look real on this AutoArt model, no painted silver but showing a real part with a grid on them, just like the taillights ... those three white sections might look a little too bright compared to the real car, but the grid on these more than make up for that detail, while the headlights look spot on too ... AutoArt did a great job on the exterior styling of their 1/18 scale Huracan.

This model comes with the optional Mimas wheels, the lightweight, forged counterpart to the standard Giano wheels (as seen on the Bburago models) ... and while they look nice and are scaled to perfection I have to admit that Kyosho did a better job with these ... the tires on the Kyosho aren't as nice as these from AutoArt, but the wheel itself looks better on the Kyosho model.

Another option on the AutoArt Huracan model is that glass engine cover ... and that option comes with the Forged Composite finished engine bay surround that AutoArt did show on their hand built prototype ... but it just didn't look too good so they went for a normal black finish on the production model, a pity as it would have been nice to see AutoArt come up with a nicely scaled down Forged Composite pattern.

The attention to detail AutoArt brings to the V10 engine is second to none, it just looks great, none of the other 1/18 Huracan I own has an engine bay this nicely detailed ... keep in mind the engine surround when ordering the Huracan with the glass engine cover is styled differently from the one with the normal 'louvered' cover ... AutoArt used the three vents on the sides, which is the correct form with the glass cover ... on the vertical side next to the engine there should also be three vents when opting for this cover, AutoArt used an indent here, not a real, open vent.

Let's take a look at the front, the luggage compartment ... when opening the cover you have to be really careful, this is plastic, and AutoArt used a scaled down mechanism as seen on the real car ... looks amazing, but it feels fragile ... both the engine cover (which comes with a similar mechanism and the two struts) and the front hood do stay open without help ... an advantage of being lightweight I guess.

Now take a look in that luggage compartment ... there are two magnets to keep the hood down when closed, but look at the two 'pouches' on either side ... that's real attention to detail, that is so correct to the rear car I almost got goose bumps from looking at it. The filler cap for the windshield wipers is there too ... this is really, really good!

Let's open the door and take a look inside ... on this Arancio Borealis finished model AutoArt opted for orange seats, or Arancio Leonis as Lamborghini calls it ... but there is a problem with this interior. The seats are entirely covered in orange leather, which would mean this is the optional Bicolor Elegante treatment ... but that is not possible as an option, only Bicolor Sportivo offers Arancio Leonis, and that would mean the sides of the seats are Nero Ade, or black with only the center section finished in orange.

Now there is the Lamborghini Ad Personam option too, which does make it possible to get the entire seat covered in the same, orange leather, so while I wouldn't judge it as a mistake on this AutoArt model I would say it is strange ... and if you would order the Bicolor Elegante in Arancio Leonis you would also have more orange on the central console ... the 'floating' part that holds the start button should also get some orange leather in that case ... so the AutoArt Huracan interior is a bit strange to say to least.

Add to that the visible cast lines on the side of the dashboard and the fact the orange paint isn't applied too nicely on the doors, dashboard and central console ... while I like the details on the interior and the fact it does look rather nice altogether ... I think a €199 model should show a better interior.

Bottom line

I have to admit I love this Arancio Borealis 1/18 Lamborghini Huracan LP610-4, it has a very nice look and feel next to my other models on display, but I still feel it is too expensive ... anything between €125 and €150 I would feel a lot better with, at €199 there are just too many imperfections to warrant such a high price.

Remember everybody was commenting the sealed grilles on the Kyosho model ... well guess what ... take a closer look at the central grille at the front of the AutoArt Huracan ... it is sealed too, while the bodywork in front of the lower side grilles in front of the rear wheels shows a seam, also note the hexagon mesh design used for the large front intakes isn't correctly shaped when compared to the real deal.

So this 1/18 scale AutoArt made Lamborghini Huracan LP610-4 isn't perfect either ... but can we expect a scale model to be perfect, even at this price point? I'm not sure, so for me the bottom line is this : this is probably the best 1/18 model of the Lamborghini Huracan LP610-4 on the market today ... is it worth the €199 asking price? That's up to you, I've bought this Arancio Borealis one and I will probably get the Grigio Titans shade too because I love that matte grey.

Comparing to the Gallardo

I just couldn't resist putting this new 1/18 Huracan model next to the same shade, original Gallardo model ... both AutoArt but an entire generation apart ... one cost €80 back in 2009, the other costing €199 in 2016 ... what is the verdict when comparing both side by side.

The first thing I noticed was the orange metallic paint itself, both models should be finished in Arancio Borealis, but it looks like the hue is slightly different between the Gallardo and the Huracan, the Gallardo shows a deeper, more saturated orange shade ... which looks more correct compared to the real shade on an actual Huracan, it seems the paint on the AutoArt Huracan doesn't quite capture that vibrant look a pearl metallic orange should.

Could that be one of the differences between a diecast model (like the AutoArt Gallardo) and a composite model (the AutoArt Huracan) ... that deep shine, almost liquid look of the paint just isn't there on this 1/18 Huracan. Remember both the Kyosho and the Welly ones in Rosso Mars showed a very deep, high gloss finish ... this orange Huracan shows a nice shine, but it just seems to miss something. As always I did wax the model before taking photos, but while the orange sure has a nice gloss, there isn't that deep shine in this case.

Which actually brings me to a strange conclusion ... in real life the Gallardo and the Huracan are about 10 years apart, a lot has changed over the years and while some still prefer the Gallardo over the new V10 model you have to admit the Huracan is a much more modern car, both in performance and in looks ... but did the scale model evolve in the same way.

The price more than tripled over the years, but I have to admit the 'old' Gallardo from AutoArt can sit next to this brand new Huracan without any hesitation ... there is no way you could say the Huracan is a much better, more evolved scale model next to this Gallardo ... just look at the wheels and disk brakes on the Gallardo ... they look easily as good as those on the much newer Huracan.

Also fit and finish of the Gallardo does not show this model is many years older than the Huracan ... I would even say the orange metallic paint on the Gallardo looks better than the same shade on the Huracan.

Would the AutoArt Huracan be cast in orange metallic and just receive a glossy top coat ... that could explain why there is no depth in the paint...

our RATING

Overall rating

10/10

Original price : € 199