Digest 3

In this week’s Digest…

We have more from the Scalextric catalogue, plus imminent arrivals from SRC, Sideways and Scaleauto – and future releases from Fly and Policar. There’s also our pick of slot publications, scenic accessories, news from the slot car racing scene and the world of automobiles and motor sport.

Slot Cars

• Racer Sideways Ford GT GTE The new Sideways Ford GT has already proved itself a formidable competitor. Now a works-liveried model from the Le Mans 24 hours is being prepared to hit the shelves this month. It looks to us like the #68 Ford Chip Ganassi Team USA entry, driven by Sébastien Bourdais, Joey Hand and Dirk Müller – finishing fourth at the 2019 race and later being disqualified for the same fuel tank irregularities as the #85 Keating Motorsports Ford.

• Scalextric Range Launch 2022 The big news of last week was the launch of Scalextric’s 2022 catalogue. The team have followed that up with this video review – including lots of footage of prototype and pre-production sample, plus designer Caitlin talking about the fabulous Bluesmobile. You can catch-up with our SlotRacer coverage in the News section of the forum.

• Policar Classic Formula One Policar have three classic single-seaters lined-up and ready to go in the first half of 2022. There’s Ronnie Peterson’s Monaco-winning JPS Lotus from 1974, Mario Andretti’s 1972 Ferrari and the first of the BRMs – Jo Siffert’s Grand Prix winner at the Österreichring in 1971. You can read more about the BRM project in the News section of the forum.

• SRC Toyota TS050 Hybrid Le Mans 2018 Shipping now are pre-ordered SRC models of the Toyota TS050 Hybrids from the 2018 Le Mans 24 hours. Another batch of Toyotas will be ready in April, so get your orders in… if you haven’t already.

• Fly 1993 Campeonato de España de Turismos Newly announced from Fly are two BMW M3 E30s from the 1993 CET season. You can catch up with more 2022 Fly announcements over in the News section of the forum.

• Scaleauto Porsche 911.2 GT3 Cup Available very soon is a new 1:32 scale Porsche 911.2 GT3 Cup Version in five different liveries and equipped with R2.0 mechanical parts.

• Scaleauto 1:24 scale Corvette Le Mans Also available very soon are two 2015 Le Mans liveries on the 1:24 scale Corvette C7R body. The bodies will be available, plus two cars – a RTR version with the HS124 chassis and an RC2 car complete with SC-8003 GT3 chassis.

• Mick ‘Duffy’ Collard Escort Hot Rod One car that might have passed you by in the Scalextric catalogue is this Escort Mk2 modelled on Mick ‘Duffy’ Collard’s 1980 World Hot Rod title-winning car. You can read more about the Escort – and watch some video – in our extensive SlotRacer coverage.

Publications

• Slot Car Magazine January 2022 There are several SlotRacer members who regularly contribute to Slot Car Magazine… This month there’s two rally features from Hub, Ron talking about his 3D printed figures, Andy focusing on new stuff from Scalextric and Gary giving us part 2 of the MRE story. You can read the full contents in ePilot’s awesome Magazines thread on the forum.

Tracks & Scenery

• VW Bulli T1 Samba 1:24 Here’s a lovely example of Revell’s kit of the Volkswagen T1 Samba Bus, modelled by Swen Galle. Ideal for your trackside if you model in 1/24 scale.

• New from Airfix in 2022 Airfix have announced three new models in 1:43 scale, a Bugatti Chiron, a Pagani Huayra, and a Jaguar E-Type, which are all expected in the spring.

Proxy Racing

• Scalextric Sidecar Proxy Here’s a challenge. Can you make a Scalextric sidecar run well? If so you might be interested in this new proxy event which is currently being planned.

Slot Car Racing

• NSR British Grand Prix Rescheduled from last November, the official NSR British Grand Prix will take place at the Molesey Scalextric Club at the end of March. The race is for the NSR Formula 86/89 models, running to an international NSR competition rule set. If you’re interested in taking part, get in contact with the club asap.

Clubs

• Looking for a club in the centre of France? Then check out the video above from SRC42, based near St-Etienne, or find out more on the forum.
• Club Maps If you are looking for a club in your area, then SRC42 are featured in our club maps section, along with many more from the UK, France and Belgium

Automobiles

• Brooklands TV Series Starting in March 2022 on UKTV, a new documentary series goes behind the scenes at the fabulous Brooklands Museum. Focusing on cars, but also featuring bikes and planes, the ten episodes are a must-see for anyone interested in the history of motor racing, motor cars and British engineering.

Motor Sport

• Dakar 2022 The Dakar Rally is over for another year. The annual race through the Arabian desert was as spectacular and heroic as ever – with elation and heartbreak in equal measure. There’s all the results and plenty of images, video and reportage on the official website.

• Brands Hatch Winter Stages 2022 A full entry of 100 rally cars raced at the Brands Hatch Winter Stages on Saturday. Round 4 of the 2021-2 MSN Circuit Rally Championship started in early morning fog and ran through into darkness. You can catch up with the action and results on the MSN Rally Championship Facebook page.

• 24H Dubai 2022 Some of the biggest teams on the GT3 scene sent cars to compete in the 24 hour race at the Dubai Autodrome last weekend. Interrupted by a sandstorm on Saturday morning, the multi-class race saw a race debut for the customer BMW M4 GT3 – a trial run before the Daytona 24 hours in two weeks time.

• 36th Annual Chili Bowl Nationals Tanner Thorson defeated three-time winner Christopher Bell and reigning Nascar champ Kyle Larson to become the undisputed North American dirt racing champion. Under huge pressure from Bell, Thorson stayed ahead on the indoor quarter-mile track in Tulsa to win by 0.6885 seconds and collect his first-ever Golden Driller trophy.

• Monte Carlo Rally 2002 Twenty years ago, controversy hit the opening round of the WRC. Four-time champion Tommi Mäkinen – making his debut for Subaru – and Citroën new-boy Sébastien Loeb both thought they’d won… David Evans takes up the story on the DirtFish website.