Car enthusiasts attend Historic Grand Prix in Mexico City
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Car and Driver
18 minutes ago
- Car and Driver
Honda Celebrates First F1 Win with Pricey but Cool Model Race Cars
Honda's racing division is releasing a limited run of highly detailed model cars at Monterey Car Week. Honda's famous RA272 race car is available in 1:18 and 1:8 scale, with the latter limited to just 30 examples at nearly $30K apiece. While they're eye-wateringly expensive, the level of quality and detail is world-class. In October of 1965, Honda's RA272 race car emerged victorious at that year's Mexican Grand Prix, becoming the first Japanese team to win in Formula 1—a historic event. Now, 60 years later, the company can point to numerous F1 victories, including providing the power unit for last year's championship-winning Red Bull R20. To celebrate its first win, Honda will now sell you a scale-sized bit of that history, but it does not come cheap. Pricey but Realistic Boy howdy, does it not. Just 30 examples of a 1:8-scale RA272 model will be made, built by Amalgam Collection models of Bristol, U.K., and Honda will charge $28,995 for each one. That's enough for a very nicely equipped Honda Civic (almost enough for the Si version, in fact), and you can actually drive around in a Civic. The scale-sized RA272 is just for looking at. Honda Having said that, this is as accurate a model as you can get. Amalgam's team was granted access to the actual RA272 at Honda's Collection Hall in Motegi, Japan, where they digitally scanned every detail. It was deeply obsessive work, taking a claimed 4500 hours of development, and stretching to 1600 pieces. Assembling it takes 450 hours. A More Affordable Model If you're a die-hard Honda performance fan with a slightly less chunky wallet, there's also a 1:18-scale model that's limited to 300 examples. It's still relatively pricey at $1735, but at least that's more like a freight charge on a full-size Honda rather than paying for an entire car. Honda Honda Both sizes of the model come with a display case, certification, and a booklet signed by the president of Honda Racing Corporation, Koji Watanabe. They'll both be made available during Monterey Car Week, at The Quail show and the Rolex-sponsored vintage races at Laguna Seca. Car Week has no shortage of deep-pocketed enthusiasts, so both scales of RA272 models will likely sell out quickly. Amalgam is very well respected in the modelling hobby, and even the 1:18-scale car is finely detailed enough to get a place of pride in any display. Honda If you miss out or if neither model is within budget, then there is one other option. Tamiya, the longtime Japanese model kit maker, started out with models of early Honda F1 cars and currently offers a 1:20-scale RA272 for less than $50. You'll have to do your own gluing and fine-tuning, though. Brendan McAleer Contributing Editor Brendan McAleer is a freelance writer and photographer based in North Vancouver, B.C., Canada. He grew up splitting his knuckles on British automobiles, came of age in the golden era of Japanese sport-compact performance, and began writing about cars and people in 2008. His particular interest is the intersection between humanity and machinery, whether it is the racing career of Walter Cronkite or Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki's half-century obsession with the Citroën 2CV. He has taught both of his young daughters how to shift a manual transmission and is grateful for the excuse they provide to be perpetually buying Hot Wheels. Read full bio
Fast Company
18 minutes ago
- Fast Company
EV sales are surging ahead of tax credits ending. What to know if you're one of the buyers swarming dealerships now
The clock is ticking on tax credits for electric vehicles—and that's pushing a lot of people who were debating whether or not to get one off of the fence. Sales are surging at dealerships for EVs, and likely will remain high for the next month and a half. That's because on September 30, the $7,500 tax credit for new EV purchases (and $4,000 for a used one) will disappear, a move that will add challenges to an industry that already has plenty. Wait times for a new Tesla are currently hovering between four and six weeks, but over the weekend, the Tesla site was reportedly showing waits of four to six months. (It's unclear if that was a mistake or glitch on Tesla's part. Tesla did not reply to Fast Company's request for comment on the matter.) Ford and General Motors, which also make EVs, have not reported extended wait times, but customer interest is growing. Subscribe to the Daily newsletter. Fast Company's trending stories delivered to you every day Privacy Policy | Fast Company Newsletters Analysts say that's to be expected, but once September comes to an end, the party may well be over for EV companies. The July 4 signing of the Trump budget bill marked the death knell for EV incentives (and also spurred a feud between the White House and Elon Musk). That puts the EV industry at something of a crossroads. Last month, consumers purchased 130,100 new EVs, the second-highest total on record, according to Cox Automotive. That was a 26.4% jump from June, and roughly 20% higher than last July. Used EV sales came in at 36,700, which was a record high. Tesla is emphasizing the expiration of the tax credits on its site to encourage potential buyers to commit to a sale. The company has also increased lease rates of the Model Y by as much as 14% and done away with a free upgrade incentive for the Models Y and 3. But the sales numbers won't remain that high, experts say. 'Volatility is anticipated, as EV share mix from July-September is expected to advance, followed by much lower take rates in the fourth quarter of 2025,' S&P wrote in a blog post. advertisement A June report from AAA showed flagging consumer interest in EVs. Only 19% of the people surveyed by the organization said they were 'likely' or 'very likely' to purchase one as their next car. The number who were adamantly against buying an EV was up, with 63% saying they were 'unlikely' or 'very unlikely' to buy an EV. That's the highest number since 2022. Tesla, meanwhile, reported a 16% drop in vehicle sales in its second quarter earnings. (The company's stock is down 10% year to date.) What to know if you're thinking about buying an EV If you're one of the people who was considering an EV purchase, experts say you should figure out which car you want soon—and not hesitate on the purchase. Those who do could find themselves at the mercy of the dealers. 'Electric vehicle demand and sales will absolutely spike between now and September 30,' says iSeeCars executive analyst Karl Brauer. 'I expect the typical last-minute rush between September 20 and 30, and I expect those buyers will be left with the dregs of the EV market. Dealers will be happy to leverage their advantage if they still have a desirable EV on the lot on September 29 and 30.' An alternate scenario could see a stand-off between dealers and consumers in the coming weeks. Dealers, who know sales are about to plummet in October, could be willing to come down much further on pricing as September 30 approaches if they still have a surplus of inventory. (To receive the tax credit, consumers must not only purchase their vehicle before the September 30 deadline, but must also take delivery by that date.) The good news for potential buyers is that in July, at least, EV prices are still coming down. Kelley Blue Book says the average new EV cost $55,689, down by 2.2% from the June average and 4.2% lower than the year prior. Tesla saw the biggest price drops. 'The urgency created by the administration's decision to sunset government-backed, IRA-era EV incentives was expected to create serious demand for EVs in the short term,' said Stephanie Valdez Streaty, senior analyst, Cox Automotive. 'If last month is any measure: Mission Accomplished. . . . At this pace, Q3 will be the best ever and then some, as buyers jump in before the big incentives dry up.'
The Drive
18 minutes ago
- The Drive
Is This Ford's $30k Electric Pickup?
The latest car news, reviews, and features. Ford made big waves Monday morning with news that it intends to bring a new $30,000 battery-electric pickup to market as soon as 2027. It was more of a strategic announcement than a formal introduction of a new pickup truck; that bit will have to wait for a while. In the meantime, we're naturally inclined to speculate as to what exactly Ford intends to build at that price point. Perhaps this patent application gives us a clue. The application itself is for a deployable roof tent, but as clever as it appears, we're far more interested in the trucklet they've hypothetically installed it on, because, well, just look at it. The built-in latch system leveraged here would be right at home on one of Ford's compact truck or SUV offerings, but this design looks nothing like the Maverick. Instead, it's much more… uh… Cyber-trucky? There are only two angles of the truck among the sketches included, but the blunted nose and raked bed cover are elements not found anywhere in Ford's truck lineup. Normally we'd say that's of little consequence when it comes to a patent application, and even in this case it's mostly true, but this roof tent gizmo requires latch receivers to be pre-installed on the vehicle in order for it to function, as you can see in the final slide below. Whatever Ford designed this for, it was meant to be a plug-and-play setup for which we've yet to see the receptacle. On those grounds alone, it's a safe bet this was conceived with a future vehicle in mind—a small future small vehicle with a pickup bed designed for outdoorsy types. Sounds an awful lot like the electric equivalent of a Maverick, does it not? Hmm. Got a tip? Let us know at tips@
