lambodiecast

Back in the days when this bright green Lamborghini Murciélago 1/18 model from AutoArt was widely available I didn't buy it, still don't understand why, but I think it could have had something to do with the price of these high end models … yep they have always been expensive and the fact I did get the stunning looking Balloon White shade, an amazing looking pearl metallic white version AutoArt released later on, together with the Gallardo 5.0 in the same shade … I have both by the way.

But when I received my first 1/18 Lamborghini Murciélago LP640 in Giallo Orion from AutoArt a while ago I suddenly discovered I didn't have the original Murciélago 6.2 version in this shade, while the yellow and black color was used to introduce this Diablo successor at the IAA in Frankfurt back in 2001. I was actually at the official unveil at the factory in 2001 when a bright green Murciélago 6.2 was driven on stage for all to be admired for the first time … this car was finished in Verde Ithaca over a black and grey interior.

You know I always take pride in getting the exact shade on my model cars as used by the factory for the show car or press release shots … so that should be Giallo Orion for the press release, but as the IAA saw two cars on the stand, yellow and black, I went on a quest to add these shades to the collection, which didn't take too long in fact, I found both a yellow one and a black one for a very decent price … but as I also wanted to have the Verde Ithaca version because that was the shade I witnessed myself, I kept looking.

Finding the original AutoArt Verde Ithaca shade on the Murciélago didn't go as planned to be honest, I did locate a few old stock models at online shops, but at a price I wasn't planning to pay for it, remember back in the days these were new they sold for something like 50 Euro or so, these days they are listed at 100 Euro and more … and I didn't want to pay that kind of money for it, I now had the limited edition 40th Anniversary edition from AutoArt and the white, yellow and black shades … adding the green one was just for fun in fact.

After a while I did find a second hand one online, rather decently priced … but without a box and the seller wouldn't confirm nor deny if the Lamborghini script at the back was still in place, so I passed on it and kept looking … to find a brand new in the box one for auction on the well-known site … my brother in law managed to snatch it for only €62, a very nice price for a BNIB Verde Ithaca Murciélago 6.2 from AutoArt … so we thought …

The box arrived from Germany after a few days and I was a bit nervous opening it, it was very well packed, no problem there, the plastic window was still in place and glued onto the box, something we actually expected to have been detached over the years. But the surprise was complete when we opened the AutoArt box itself … the Lamborghini script at the back was gone … it probably let go some time in the past and got lost in the box or on the shelve where it was stored … I looked around in the box but couldn't locate it … no problem in fact, as the black one I got earlier lost the script at the back too we already ordered metal decal scripts online, so at least I can fix it.

Note that this model is several years old by now, and this specific one has been sitting in the box for all those years, with the straps still intact, and more importantly with the stickers holding the doors shut also still in place … a very bad idea to be honest. Removing them posed a serious problem, the glue stayed in place so I had to revert to nail polish remover to clean the model, after that a nice wax and shine and all was back to pristine condition.

If I am to be completely honest I wasn't an instant fan of the Murciélago when it came out in 2001, I much preferred a Diablo GT or a MY1999 Diablo SV, both of which looked much more intimidating to me, naturally we should really be comparing this first release of the Murciélago with the original Diablo 2WD model shown in 1990 … and in that case this successor didn't look as bad as I thought, I for one would prefer the LP640 version over this one in fact, I don't think this 6.2 model aged nicely.

But this specific green model is an exact replica of the one used for the VIP show at the factory back in September 2001, and that is about all the reason I for one needed to get it in the end, and I have no regrets of it … but one thing to keep in mind when you are interested in this model … the green shade isn't correct ! That's right, the green AutoArt used for this model isn't the correct Verde Ithaca shade, it has a wrong hue of green which can be seen perfectly when put next to their LP640 version … that does have the correct color on it, hence looks a bit paler.

One thing I must admit is the fact the wheels on these original Murciélago 6.2 models are very impressive, especially at the rear the design is just mindboggling, and still in the classic three piece look that was so popular in early 2000, something we must give Lamborghini credit for … and AutoArt made a perfect 1/18 version of them to put on these scale models.

Keep in mind that on these early Murciélago models from AutoArt the doors do not have a spring to keep them open, so they just refuse to stay up long enough for a photograph … a classic needle does the trick, combined with some PhotoShop magic, so if you own one of these 1/18 models don't be disappointed if the doors or air intakes don't stay up like seen in some of our shots … it's not all without help.

Keeping in mind this model is nearing a decade in age I am still very impressed with the level of detail and finish on it, this AutoArt looks very close to the real car … and I have no problem putting it next the much more recent LP640 version in Verde Ithaca … a match made in heaven.

our RATING

Overall rating

8/10

Original price : € 62