UT BMW Z3
Okay, I'll say it up front: this model isn't in my collection. It lives on the bookcase in my boss' office, and is indirectly responsible for my involvement in this hobby. But it has on occasion come to visit my collection in the form of temporary trades (he really likes my Bburago Viper!), and we've become well acquainted.
A brief recap: My boss got a BMW, a 1998 323is. His wife gave him this model, since he expressed a liking for the Z3. When I looked it over, I commented that I would have to get a Boxster, since I couldn't let this Z3 go unchallenged. I started looking for one, but they beat me to the punch, and gave me my Boxster at a company picnic. That's how I got started here.
When I compared my Maisto Boxster with his UT Z3, I started seeing things: first the obvious, then the less obvious. Both cars had weaknesses and strengths. I've covered the Boxster's already, so it's the Z3's turn now.
UT models have many names attached to them. If you haven't heard of UT, you probably haven't heard the full name, Unique Toys. But maybe the company that produces them -- Paul's Model Art, or PMA? Or perhaps the parent company, Minichamps? How about some of their other lines: AutoArt, at the high end; Gate, an entry-level brand; or Biante, specializing in Australian cars?
Oh, well -- this model is sold as a UT, so that's what we'll call it.
UTs are priced a little higher in the market than Bburago and Maisto -- one company promoting them on the Web claims they are the best made anywhere. Claims to the contrary would suggest the Japanese models from Exoto and Kyosho, and the selling prices seem to bear that out. Still, if we call UT an upper-middle market brand, that will pit it (in price, at least) against the likes of Guiloy, and Jouef. It's clearly better than either of the two Jouefs I currently own, but against my Guiloy Ferrari 250GTO -- well, it's close.
This particular Z3 is red. Not the same hide-yer-wimmen-and-younguns red as my Bburago Viper RT/10 or Maisto F50, but a slightly darker, subtler red. The wheels and tires look great at first glance, but on a closer look -- they still look great. The rubber tires are all the same, but the tread is beautifully molded and the look and feel is right. The sidewalls are plain, without any identification -- the real ones are Michelin Pilots. The brake rotors lack calipers, but the color is a metallic grey, much more realistic than the chromed rotors on either Maisto's Last C4 or Bburago's Ferrari 550. As on Bburago's 550, the lug nuts can be seen to be finely cast individual hexagons. Points for UT here.
The two "nostrils" in the BMW's nose each have individual grilles, and here we find our first quality control quibble: the grilles are misaligned, enough that it's obvious. I would have used a single piece of plastic to maintain alignment. The headlights, by contrast, are very impressive in their detail, and the bumper sports two headlight washers, highlighted by black paint. Nice touch.
The side vents on the fenders are nicely represented, but they don't cut all the way through -- they don't even look like they do. Let's pop the hood and take a look inside:
The hood lifts easily and slips into a detent, so you can display the engine. Immediately you can see another nice touch: the underside of the hood is painted flat black, with "Z3" in huge red lettering. This is obviously not an M Roadster, nor even the 2.8 Z3. This is the original 1.9, and the BMW engine looks nice at first. There are several colors visible: a yellowish, milky white for the brake-fluid and windshield washer reservoirs; a shiny black, a metallic brushed-aluminum color on the head. But something doesn't look right. Finally it becomes clear what it is: almost the entire engine is a single extruded plate -- you can't see through the engine bay at all! The variety of colors tricks the eye for a while, keeping it busy, but it can't hide the trickery forever. To be blunt: this is not really a model of an engine in a model of an engine bay. It's a fake, but it's a pretty good one.
Somewhat disappointed, we try to close the hood. WHOA! Careful there! A careless press on the hood could leave the struts in the detents, potentially bending them. A gentle push toward the hinges, and it closes with no harm done.
The paint throughout the model's sheetmetal is generally very good. It does have one major visible blemish, on the left rear fender, almost the size of the fuel filler door. Looking at other UTs around me, I'd say this blemish is an irregularity, and UT's paint is generally first-rate.
Let's move on to the cockpit. One of the first details to catch the eye is on one of the visors: there is a tiny vanity mirror! (My brother-in-law calls this the "wife mirror.") The center and side rearview mirrors aren't perfectly aligned -- in fact, the mirrors aren't really very good. The reflective surface is ripply and cloudy. This contrasts poorly with the mirrors on Maisto's Boxster, which look, well, mirrorlike. The two door-mounted side mirrors are not part of the door castings. Instead they're plastic pieces, and while the paint is nicely matched, the actual mounting is lumpy and untidy -- as if stuck on with a glob of glue.
The seats are nicely done, with a very real look. The rather thin-rimmed steering wheel looks very nice, especially the finger-grip knurlings. The illusion begins to fail on the console, however: the brake lever is nice, but the shifter is unrealistic-looking. The controls for the radio and heater are raised parts of the casting, and the machine that painted them seems to have been somewhat misaligned. Everything is slightly offset.
The pedals are well placed and nicely textured -- including a dead pedal for the driver's left foot. These are still some of the best pedals I've seen in a 1:18 model.
What at first appear to be separate pieces for the door handles turn out on close examination to be simply surface modeling, painted flat black. This is so well done that I can't fault UT on this score -- it really looks good. The action of the doors is nice and smooth, and they close with a little positive detent, giving a real feeling of quality. The door liners are quite well done, with very good handles. They even have map pockets! Too bad we can see the sheetmetal of the door inside -- a simple colored decal covering that area would have preserved the illusion. Still, it's worth an extra point.
The folded top is represented by a slightly amorphous cover. Moving on to the trunk -- we find that it doesn't open. In fact, there is no trunk on this model; just a shallow scribed line to represent it. I know Bburago managed to get an opening tunk on their M Roadster model. And if UT can't give us that, they can at least get the scribed line deeper, so it looks real. Or maybe fill it with some of that precisely applied black paint they love so much...points off for UT.
As a consolation prize, a little dab of black paint draws our attention to the "retracted electric antenna." Nice, but it doesn't make up for the lack of a trunk.
The fuel filler door is portrayed by a shallowly scribed circle on the opposite fender. Not really much of an effort.
The taillight lenses are nicely rendered, but their edges are a little rough. This is almost concealed by a thin line of black paint representing a surround around the lenses. The guys at UT really like using paint to replace extra parts, but at least they do it well.
The middle brake light is completely missing -- but there is a groove in the "trunklid" to accomodate it. This should have had a lens, or at least a decal to represent one.
Turning the car over, we see a nicely detailed underbody. The most noticeable feature is the silver-grey exhaust system. This is enhanced by the spare tire neatly tucked under the trunk: it's a real rubber space-saver spare, with a different tread pattern, narrower and on a smaller wheel than the other four. What irritates me in a real car delights me here -- they went much farther than they needed to. Extra points here; this is the best spare tire I've seen yet. The fact that it's not just another production tire from the line shows another attention to detail you don't see often (though you can't fault the makers who include a full-size spare, either). The wheels roll easily, but the steering is stiff and heavy-feeling. The turn range is narrow, but still perhaps a bit too much: the wheels stop when the tire scrubs against the inside of the fender. This is more likely due to an offset scrub radius than to any inaccuracy in scaling. In any case, putting in a "lock" to limit the wheel's travel doesn't seem like such a hard concept. UT isn't the only company guilty of this -- the steering should always stop before the fenders.
Taken on the whole, this model is quite nice. I'm looking forward to getting Bburago's version of the M Roadster for a more direct comparison. We'll see how well the little Bimmer from UT stacks up against an Italian cousin.
To sum it up:
Strengths: Excellent paint overall, especially on details; crisp moldings, details generally well planned and executed. Best spare tire I've seen yet.
Weaknesses: No opening trunk, oversimplified engine, sloppy paint on interior console, misaligned grilles.
Overall: A very good model, just shy of excellent.
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