All along, I wanted a red car, the idea was before I bought my first car in 2012, all these years later, through the game of angels and devils, I have two, and I am still looking for the third one.
Tracing back to the source, my first impression of the red car was established in 2003. After piano lessons every Saturday , my grandpa would take me to a model store nearby. At that time, although I’m a die-cast lover, the varieity of plastic kits were much richer, and many cars had never been seen in books. I was in the third grade of elementary school and I didn’t have the mind to assemble kits. When I opened the box and saw the gray plastic parts, my interest was greatly reduced. Therefore, it is enough to look at those pleasing covers in the shelves. Until one day, there was an 2002 TAMIYA catalogue in the showcase, with a blue cover. I asked the clerk of the store to take it out and look through it. Because there are not many die-casts, and we have hardly consume here, so the clerk was kind of reluctive. The large square booklet is full of color pictures of various assembled models, and its exquisite printing surpasses all car magazines available in the market, so I asked grandpa to buy it out of desire for new information, Â¥80. When we pay, the clerk mentioned that there was another 1997 catalogue with a discount. Although the cover was not as attractive as the 2002 one, I compared the two books and found that the models of the two books were interchangeable. Many 1997 products were discontinued in the 2002 catalogue. So I begged grandpa to take it together. After I learned fairy tale by Valentin Kataev in elementary school, these two books are the most frequently used items for me to use the seven petals. I always use the last petal to make a wish and get a new bunch of seven color flowers, dreaming there are endless toys to choose from.
IIn the 1997 TAMIYA catalogue, the regular 600 SEL was painted in silver, the AMG 600 SEL was painted in red, and the interior was also red, which was a good contrast to the black 140 sedans on Chinese roads at that time. There is a huge difference in style, and I don’t know the meaning of AMG, I just think it looks good. In fact, there are not many photos of red samples, because the actual model cover painting is black. To be precise, I only saw red in the 1997 catalogue, and they did not appear in 2002 anyomre.
Many years later, I know that the TAMIYA model is based on the press car # 016988. It is in 199 Pearl Black, with 265 Beige leather interior. By the way, this is the only 140 in the entire production with the SA code 990 : AMG version. It seems that Daimler envisioned setting a standard for AMG models.
Contrary to the current state of mind, after looking at this photo repeatedly for many years, I have not even been tempted by the 140. I just remembered the image of the red car. In short, it is a psychology of avoiding attachment. In that era when road models were monotonous and boring, it was difficult to adore any car that was often seen. The most direct manifestation was that I did not collect any items related to it, and the first time I got its peripheral products was just for economic considerations. After entering junior high school in 2006, my parents seldom sponsored me to buy models. The school is very close to the store, and I couldn’t bear the desire in my heart. Whenever I was free, I went to look at plum blossoms to quench my thirst. In the long run, compared with alloy models that cost hundreds of yuan , the assembly model with a lower price and can kill time has entered my wish list. As a starting point, I need the most economical kit to practice hands, and the cheapest kit on the market is the 600 SEL knockoff of TAMIYA by LEE Shanghai. Considering that the fake brand has a good reputation and only costs ¥20 , I didn’t hesitate. The tendentious choice I made was only to choose dark red from the three color seals (the other two are black and white), which is obviously influenced by the impression of the red car. I hope my assembled kit can be as lovely as the samples in the catalogue. Things often backfire. LEE kit is only close to Tamiya in covers, the poor accordance made me unable to complete it. I also stopped thinking about playing with assembled models, just the dark red car on the box made me think a little more: it looks better than the red one in TAMIYA catalogue.
After going to college in 2012, I semi-accidentally chose Octavius as my first car, 040 Black and 261 Black leather interior. Because of the tortuous search, I became very interested in 140, thinking about red and that thinking blind me. I didn’t even care about the paint and interior when I review cars , because I wanted to recreate it as the red car in my memory. The desire accumulated in my heart for 10 years was never compromised with reality. In the hot afternoon when we drove Octavius back from the used car market, I sat in the passenger seat and looked at everything that was unfamiliar in front of me. My head is sweating profusely, but the neat instrument panel makes me unable to imagine how much aging it is than it was 19 years ago, and I may not have the right to change the fact that it has been stubbornly preserved for 19 years. Even though I conceived various modification plans with my friends before buying the car, the red car plan was shelved without any suspense. Having said that, compared to my changes to Octavius, it changed me more.
For a long time after Octavius came up, I had no wish or condition to own a second car. During this time, I was fascinated and disappointed about a red one. It was a 600 SEL found by a friend when I was in university in Nanjing. The color is really close to the dark red in my brain, but it was actually repainted from orignal black.
The true opportunity to buy a red car is living in the United States. According to the plan, I will start studying from August 2018, so I started looking for a red car from April 2017, because all aspects are relatively convenient. Buying a car, the location is not limited to the US, but can be anywhere in the world, which is very important for finding special models. In different eras, mass-produced cars have a total of 6 red options. The following statistics of the standard V12 model (140.057) 6 red productions reflect the probability of finding each color.
Prodcuction number of Color (limited by model year)
180 of 512 Almandine Red
16 of 540 Barolo Red
23 of 568 Signal Red
66 of 572 Ruby ​​Red
10 of 582 Imperial Red
70 of 587 Cabernet Red
Of all the reds mentioned above, 512 Almandine Red is most common. It is the main red from 1991 to 1995. Due to the longest production cycle, it is relatively easy to find . However, compared with other options, this red is brighter, and the contrast between the two-tone car paint and the color of the lower half is obvious. So I personally prefer: ①587 Cabernet Red, although the output is not low, this color is only supplied from 1991 to 1993, it is the representative single-tune paint before the facelift, it is the most darkest red of all. ②572 Ruby ​Red, this is the color of 1996-1999 models succeeding 512 Almandine Red, and it is also the only main red in this period, which is darker than Almandine. As I mentioned earlier, I prefer dark red, and in the entire 140 production does not provide a nominal purple, and in dim light, this color can provide the visual perception of purple. The remaining three reds have strong customization attributes. On the one hand, they are scarce in quantity, and on the other hand, they need different opinions on aesthetics.
Left to right Fig. 1: 512 Almandine, 540 Barolo Fig. 2: 568 Signal , 572 Ruby Fig. 3: 582 Imperial, 587 Cabernet
There are two situations when buying a car. One is obsessed with a specific car, that is, a specific VIN, so there is no choice, such as Beatrice, #294941. And the other is a coincidence. In the second case, subjective efforts are important, but the historical itinerary must also be considered. Since its operation in February 2017, the FuryGoose system has collected a total of 12,000 VIN photos. According to the capture rate, I have observed about 36,000 vehicles, close to 1/10 of the total production, but interested VINs can count them with one hand. For the red car, I am not obsessed with a specific VIN or even the color. The real archetype of TAMIYA AMG is #016988, and the LEE car is #000016 or #000026 (that is, the S-KT 4186 twin). So if you can only choose one, it can be either 587 Cabernet Red or 572 Ruby ​Red. If you encounter a model with special significance, you may also consider other reds, such as 512 Almandine Red, preconceived.
The ideal object that appeared first was #052990, the first set of photos was saved in my PC on June 9, 2017. It was a 1992 Japan-spec 600 SEL, 587 Cabernet Red with 967 red velour interior, the combination was produced in total 4, and the remaining 3 orders were placed in 225 Mannheim , 575 Soviet Union, and 873 Saudi Arabia, so it is also rare for Japanese orders. I have a set of pre-facelift AMG kits in hand, and this car meets the conditions of “red in and out”. Combining them together can realize the long-cherish wish of a red car with a high probability. After all, the TAMIYA sample is just a concept, no real car exists.
The reason why it could not be purchased at that time was that my US life had not yet been put into practice , and there was a certain risk in importing from Japan to the US one year in advance, so we had to hope that “it would not be sold for half a year.” In the three auctions held from June 9th to August 31st, there were no bids in the first two times. Because the mileage was low and the starting price was not high, I was worried that it would be bought by someonw and disassembled. One night in June, a nightmare embodied this concern. I dreamed that when I arrived in Hong Kong, I saw a set of red velour seats being packed onto the ship. After asking the boatman, I learned that the car was disassembled and sold, so I shouted loudly: “What have you done!” Then began to collect the sold parts in an attempt to rebuild it. Although it was just an unfounded nightmare, it didn’t wait long for me in the end. After the third auction on August 31, 2017, it was marked as sold.
The second less ideal object is #315413, a 1996 US-spec S 600, 572 Ruby ​​Red with 565 beige exclusive leather, the first set of photos was saved on September 9, 2017. The first time I saw it was on eBay, the first impression was very contemptuous, the condition of the car was obviously contradictory to the price, and it was an US-spec, so I didn’t pay attention to it after filing. The reason is this. American cars and Japanese cars are bulk commodities imported by dealers to ensure sales speed. It is rare for car owners to option their own cars. They are “children without fathers”. Even if I will live in the US, I don’t regard US-spec as my ideal goal. It wasn’t until I saw it again on the craigslist in Minnesota that I first became interested in how much of this color combination exists in the US. In my previous impression, red is not uncommon in the US market. At least 512 Almandine Red is very popluar among non-V12 cars. The statistical results are unexpected. There are only 4 of the same year with the same paint. As we all know, US-spec cars are also re-exported to all over the world, and the actual number in US may be even lower.
There were only 15 of S 600 in the US that were 572 Ruby ​​Red, 4 in 1996, 5 in 1997, 5 in 1998 and 2 in 1999.
The reason why it is not so ideal is that it does not have the red interior in the red car concept, and secondly, the appearance of the facelift is also different from the TAMIYA sample, even though I also have the facelift AMG kit. I don’t remember the exact day when my attitude toward #315413 changed substantially. I went on a business trip to Guangdong at the beginning of December, and when I received a notice from the director of the school in the hotel, I saved the photo of #315413 in my phone. In the days after she becomes Ruby, I did not regret the expected condition. Compared with the objective fact that I did not encounter the 572 Ruby Red V12 model again, the more important psychological comfort is that my choice can save this unicorn.
On December 16, 2017, I went to Shanghai for a business trip. It was raining all the time, so I found an Internet cafe to wait for my friends to get off work, and collected VIN as usual. When I opened mobile.de, I saw the lost #052990, which was previously sold in Japan, was for sale in Poland now. As one of the people who have paid attention to it from the beginning, I am naturally unwilling to go around half a circle of the earth to redeem it, so this farewell actually strengthened my decision to abstain, and since the destination is way better than my nightmare, I can be truly relieved.
