REVIEW: AUTOart Chevrolet Corvette 1970 • DiecastSociety.com

REVIEW: AUTOart Chevrolet Corvette 1970

Yes I’m on a Corvette binge to say the least lol…  A few more models arrived this week the first two to be officially reviewed is the 1970 Corvette Stingray C3 – Monza Red.  This is another AUTOart release from their Millennium Series, released back in 2011.  Car is a limited edition of 6000 units worldwide and comes with official certificate, which my model is numbered 1500.  I originally was set on the Laguna Grey but at the last minute I went with the Red with beige interior.  I’m glad I did…

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Being that the C3 platform is my favourite to date this AUTOart release was at the top of the priority list Corvette wise.  The exterior is wonderful, execution is top notch.  Panel gaps are excellent, paint and chrome work are perfect.  Checkout the groovy pin-striping on the hood, awesome!  As you will notice none of the 24 photos have the t-roof installed.  I couldn’t figure out how to mount them without damaging the paint.  The supplied instructions are useless.  If you know the secret please email me!  Other than this I have no other complaints about the model.  One thing I found interesting about the t-roof from this model when compared to the 25th Anniversary Edition C3 Corvette, the ’82 model roof is made of plastic and the earlier ’70 model made of diecast.  A cost saving measure by AUTOart, most likely.

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The decals and chrome as noted above are beautifully done as well.  Two things I especially love about the model are the front bumper mesh grilles with the headlights visible behind.  Second are the OEM Rallye wheels with pin stripping, so cool!  I don’t know what it is about Corvettes but I very partial to their wheels, and I don’t know why.

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The interior is another strong point, as the rest of the model beautifully executed.  The beige coloured interior brings back memories of driving in my cousins ’79 Corvette (beige coloured interior).  The black steering wheel is a nice touch and contrasts well with the rest of the interior.  Full carpeting and detailed dash round it up nicely.

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Motor is better detailed than the 25th Anniversary Edition.  The hood prop is here and functions just like it would on the real deal, well done AUTOart!  The LT1 seems to be well equipped and mirrors the 1:1.  I’m no authority on Corvettes so please forgive me for any oversights.  The buck doesn’t stop here, flip the model over and you’re treated to a well equipped undercarriage. Painted block, exhaust, and suspension bits surprisingly are replicated in high detail.  Well done AUTOart!

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With no hesitation I would highly recommend this model to any casual collector or the die-hard Corvette fan.  Absolutely perfect other than the t-roof dilemma.  Again if you know the secret to install please send me an email.  Enjoy the pics!

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9 Responses to "REVIEW: AUTOart Chevrolet Corvette 1970"

  1. Josh says:

    I like your review great photos as always, however as a vette nut I want to point out some flaws with this model that you should know about. First let me say that I have this very same model, same color and all, however there are some issues. First the exhaust tips and the area around them are all wrong, look up some pics of the rear of a 1:1 and you will quickly see the issue. Also the wheel caps are wrong for this car, they should be chrome as well. The air clener appears to be mounted directly on the block, as there is no manifold, and of course you have encountered the problem with the T tops that do not fit into place. I paid 136 for this model and that was about 6 months ago, I feel that it is a good model despite these small nitpicks, the paint and body lines are amazing and it is probably the best C3 vette out there other that a carousel 1 racer. I wish autoart would do a proper 57 and 67 vette.

    • DS Team says:

      Josh, thank you for your feedback. I just looked at some photos of the rear exhaust, yes absolutely an error on AUTOart’s part. How is something like this over looked and signed off on? So I’m not the only one with the issues on the roof, shaking head. Again thanks for the education piece, must appreciated!

  2. Josh says:

    You bet I really like your site I have made it apart of my daily routine. Feel free to ask about any other AUTOart Vettes I have quite a few of them.

    • DS Team says:

      That is great feedback, thank you. I do have another job for you, please educate me and others on the latest review: AUTOart Corvette Sting Ray Coupe 1963. Cheers!

  3. Ilya says:

    Got that one in white and love it.

  4. Brian says:

    I just recently acquired my Autoart 1970 LT1 but since I already have a dozen red cars, I chose the Laguna Grey – love it
    I don’t know if you ever figured out the Top fit or not, but I did. You have to fit the front edge into the windshield location first, then carefully apply a little forward pressure against the windshield until you can get the rear portion of the T Top to pop down into place, and after both sides are located on top of the vehicle, if you have a little gap between the T Tops, you can gently squeeze them together. The end result is that the T Tops fit very nice and snug just how they should, and are so snug in fact, they wont even fall off if you hold the car upside down

    Nice job Autoart!
    Hope this helps

  5. JZ says:

    I also couldn’t get the t-roof installed. So I searched the Internet and found your article.

  6. Matt says:

    My ex boss’s husband has a real LT-1 corvette that is a ’70 or ’71….It is red with the pinstriping just like this one…I think his interior is camel color…He has side pipes on his which actually look good on it to me…He also has the rims from the 25th anniversary corvette on his, which I think really adds something since Im not a fan of the plain rally rims…The only bad thing is it’s not all original motor wise…He has tried to hop it up over the years…..But still a beautiful car….sorry, don’t have any pics…

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