REVIEW: CMF Isdera Commendatore 112i • DiecastSociety.com

REVIEW: CMF Isdera Commendatore 112i

I can’t speak for the masses but I sure love supercars.  At first sight, the 1:18 CMF Isdera Commendatore 112i had to join my collection.  I didn’t know much of the car prior, but any car enthusiast can appreciate the beautiful lines and engineering behind the vision.  The car itself was engineered and built by Eberhard Schulz.  In total two cars were made before the company, unfortunately, went bankrupt.

Imagined in the early nineties the car did feature some unique elements of engineering, style and design, some of the 112i’s interesting features include innovative speed sensitive suspension which lowers the car at high speed, an extending air brake, gull-wing doors, gull-wing engine covers and a roof-mounted rear view mirror which can be viewed through a glass panel in the roof.

As for performance the car was no turtle, mid-mounted Mercedes V12 6.0-liter (402hp) coupled to a Porsche 911 turbo 6-speed manual transmission propelled the car from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.7 seconds, with a top speed of 342 km/h (213 mph).  Impressive!

Since this is our first CMF review it is customary for us to include a few comments of the model’s packaging.  CMF in typical form consists of an outer cardboard box in Grey tones, very basic in design with a monotone theme. The CMF logo is found on five of the six panels and inner styrofoam shell houses the model.  Two screws secure the piece from underneath to minimize damage during transport.

The exterior is finished in Metallic Silver – small flakes are visible in person.  The paint application is flawless throughout.  This model is crafted on resin with a sealed-body design.  This usually equates to excellent panel gaps and shutlines, the Commendatore 112i is no exception.  In fact, they are most likely too perfect based on the original production pieces.  The aerial comes shipped separately from the model.  Instructions ask to use a little glue to hold in place.  I choose not too and she holds up well.

Overall the exterior lines of the Commendatore 112i are captured well.  However, the rear glass above the motor does include a couple of vents/openings, though included they don’t support the same overall shape as the original design.  This might be due to the limitations on the glass material itself.

All the cooling elements such as the side intakes, opening just in front of the front glass and cooling elements side of the door and rear upper area are capped with solid bits.  At $226CND retail a little more perforated metal would have gone a long way.

The front is all Porsche at first glance.  Based on Eberhard Schulz’s history with Porsche and Mercedes-Benz it is a given the Commendatore 112i would see parts from both brands.  The headlights are pop-up by nature; though the model features them in the closed position.  Headlight and turn signals are crafted with quality materials and fit and finish is excellent throughout.  Lower intakes are capped again with solid plastic.

The rear is better defined than the front; here we see our first metal and perforated grilles.  Note the quality decals left and right.  Taillight and other applicable lights are once again crafted with quality materials.  Well done!

The motor is visible through the glass; one could imagine a fully opening representation of this car with gull-wing style panels and exposed tubular chassis.  What a great sight that would be!  The motor here and surrounding areas are little primitive based on price point.  It is very one dimensional.

Wheels are nicely executed by CMF.  The BBS style with Gold centres is nicely mated to Black calipers and solid rotors in behind.  There is no script on the side wall of the tires either.  Front wheels are not steerable but all four wheels do spin without issue.

Inside the Commendatore 112i, you’ll find a Black and Blue colour theme.  All elements of the interior are available; this includes the detailed dash, centre console, and door cards.  What is missing and should be there is interior flocking/carpeting and seatbelts.  At north of $200CND, this is a must.  Some may ask where is the rear-view mirror found, well as mentioned, the Commendatore 112i features a pop-up mirror that reflects the image into the glass mounted within the roof.  Extremely cool!

At first glance, the CMF Isdera Commendatore 112i is a well-executed model.  Bodylines are very good as well as fantastic paint and decal work.  Where the model falls short are some of the finer details and lack of photo-etched parts and interior refinement.  One can detract this is likely cost-saving measure due to low production and unique subject matter for CMF, as the team has built a following based on their classic European assortment to date.  This one is for my personal collection which a large portion consists of supercar and sport cars.  Will you ever see the Isdera Commendatore 112i represented in scale again, probably not.  On the uniqueness factor alone I do recommend the model.  Enjoy the pics!

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11 Responses to "REVIEW: CMF Isdera Commendatore 112i"

  1. Yi Fan Yeow says:

    A very interesting product and subject matter indeed. This one holds a very nostalgic place in my childhood as it was featured in Need for Speed II.
    ^^ Damn feels.

  2. Atalante says:

    Cool model I like it.

  3. Roger Lodge says:

    Great review. I have this and agree there’s some room for improvement, but it’s easy to overlook the shortcomings because overall it’s a good representation of a cool car that was unlikely to ever be modeled in the first place.

  4. Alex says:

    Nice but if it had opening parts it would be an instabuy! But sadly being a sealed body model is a no deal..

  5. Patrick says:

    Now that’s a Speedtail! Shame it’s closed, but nevertheless a great subject with decent execution. Would def buy it when on discount.

  6. Carasutra says:

    Great Review. And I Agree. This Is a Great Model Car. It Looks Fantastic In Your Pics And Even Better In RL.

    Few Days Ago a German Seller On Ebay Launched Like 10 Auctions In a Row Or So. I Believe He’s Still Doing It Right Now. So If You’re Lucky, You Can Get One For Less Then 100 Euro. I Managed To Get One For 80 Euro.
    The Model I Received Is Almost Flawless. I Did Have One Issue Though. Both Rear Wheels Did Not Spin At First, But Thanks To Your Review I Knew That They Should, So I Tried To Make Them Spin Again But This Time With a Lttle Bit More Force And The Wheels Made a Crack Noise. The Sound Made Me Nervous To Be Honest But It’s Okay. The Wheels Were Just Stuck For Some Reason. And Now All Four Wheels Do Spin As They Should. I Believe This Stuff Happens Often With Resine Models.

    Anyway. Actually, I Don’t Like Resine Model Cars, But I Definitely Love This One!

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