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1998 Renault Sport Spider
(Anson)
by Eugene Birman
Staff Reviewer
Exterior Features, Quality:
As an homage to successful racing and rally cars built by Renault, the Sport Spider captures the essence of its racing heritage (lightweight hi-tech body, rear-mounted engine, minimum driver isolation from the environment) with a voluptuous body. Anyone who has ever seen one or driven one can attest to the fact that the Sport Spider is a true racing car for the road, especially the aeroscreen version.
The model I'm looking at is yellow. No, not just an eye-catching bright yellow. It's more of a yellow that you can't tear your eyes off, especially when it happens to be located on such a beautiful car. This model is so unique, so attention-grabbing, one could easily forget about any shortcomings it has. And, that paint is of a really high-quality - I've never been tremendously impressed with Anson paintjobs, but this is the real thing. It's really well done. Shutlines are fairly close all around, although the engine cover could be attached with greater precision. Scale is of course spot on, with my model being about half the height of an Autoart Mercedes-Benz G500. I could only imagine how glued the 1:1 would feel on the road.
The Renault logo is a separate chrome piece, although I wish the chrome work would be neater. Headlights are quite well done without attachment posts present, but the lights themselves are just pieces of chrome - not very attractive at all. The tiny air ducts located at the bottom portion of the nose aren't perforated or textured. However, the bigger mistake would have to be the huge air ducts directly behind the scissor doors, which aren't replicated at all, and just painted over with the superb carbon-fiber-like finish that covers the entire rear of the model. I was pleasantly surprised with the detail found on the wheels, which is commendable. However, the tires have no sidewall markings and brake discs and calipers, while present, have little detail to speak of. The exterior turning indicator light is a sticker, and hard to make out anyway, because of the small color change from bleak orange to vibrant yellow.
Anson, however, did do a great job with the gas cap, where the complex shape and details were modeled very well. Looking at the rear of the model, the badging is done courtesy of tampos; while this is better than decaling, I would have really liked to see separate chrome pieces, like the Renault badge on the front. Rear lights look terrific with great detail and a realistic finish. The license plate is accurately applied and is the vibrant yellow that is found elsewhere on the model, a really cool feature. However, one more complaint must be issued on the subject of the exhaust pipe, which looks very rough and is not hollow. In fact, it's just a blunt piece of plastic that protrudes out of the undercarriage. Not very sophisticated at all, and certainly not setting any standards for the price class.
18/25
Interior Features, Quality:
While the interior of the 1:1 Sport Spider is spartan at best, I have a feeling that Anson took that thought a little too far with its replica. Not that the interior isn't well done. In fact, it's one of the better details in this model. The seats are really worth writing home about: the shape is superb, with "Recaro" printed across the top; they're soft but not overly soft and the finish feels like that of leather. In fact, these are probably the best seats that I've seen in a budget model yet. The floor is uncarpeted, but this is, for once, correct. In order to conserve weight (this is a true sports car, mind you), such things as carpet and actual windshields were sacrificed. The dashboard is one area that could use a lot more detail: a lot of the switches and controls are just replicated as squares of various colors, or just molded into the panel. However, the steering wheel is well done, with firm padding and acceptable detail. The pedals are very detailed, with actual rivets that represent the complex shapes. Still, it's the seats that make this interior special - they're probably the neatest part of this model.
24/25
Features:
The Sport Spider features opening doors and engine cover. The front compartment cover doesn't open, which is definitely disappointing. The scissor doors open on nearly unnoticeable hinges, even though it's not the newest design, which is almost identical to what an actual 1:1 car uses. However, the doors here have no problem staying up or closing, meaning that the design is tried and true. The engine cover opens up to reveal a surprisingly well detailed engine, which is plumbed and marked. I would have appreciated more "sharpness" in the details but what Anson has provided is definitely enough, especially for the price.
22/25
Value:
Due to the fact that Anson has filed for bankruptcy, prices for its models have steadily gone up, especially for the older releases. However, the Sport Spider was a more recent release, but I would still predict that its value will increase over time, especially due to its originality and uniqueness. At the moment, they are still available for affordable prices, which makes these models an acceptable low-cost investment for the future. Furthermore, Anson received an "exclusive license" to produce the Sport Spider, meaning that if you're a fan of the car, as I am, Anson is your only bet, and that's definitely not bad. Considering that, the Sport Spider has terrific value. The detail is quite good, the model is affordable, and future rarity is almost assured. Plus, the choice also covers a wide base, with both race and street models available. For street models, red and yellow is available for models with windshields, and blue and yellow is available for models with the aeroscreen. Furthermore, a multitude of race versions is available. With choices like those, it's hard to go wrong.
24/25
Overall:
Quite impressive, especially for a budget model. There's not a whole lot of detail here to rave about, although the engine detail is good, and the interior realism is surprising. Plus, the Sport Spider has excellent paint and an affordable price, not to mention Anson's demise and what that will add to the steadily rising prices for these models. Still, this is not to say that the Sport Spider is without flaws. Cost-cutting is still evident, and more time should have been spent working on giving the air ducts actual detail and definition. However, the Sport Spider is probably the best Anson model I have, and it is a very good one. Even if the detail doesn't satisfy you, you've still got one of the most eye-catching models around.
88/100
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Renault Spider (Anson)
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Total diecast model cars in Renault Spider (Anson): 0
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