Welly 1:24 Jaguar F-Type Coupe




About a few months ago I profiled the Matchbox version of the Jaguar F-Type coupe.  I was anticipating this casting to come out as I know Matchbox can do a very good job on most car-based models.  Well that was back in the glory days of 2005-2011; today cost-cutting tends to get in the way of a possible fantastic casting.  What resulted was a casting that was far worse than even the superior Alfa 4C, a car I thought the F-Type coupe would benchmark.  For those disappointed on the rather pudgy Matchbox casting, and not bothered by larger scale models, take a look at this Welly 1:24 F-Type coupe.





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When I heard that one of the colors Welly offered for their new F-Type Coupe was Orange, I was hooked!  I love the metallic orange paint, and on a sleek F-Type coupe that would be a nice place to start.  Only I wish the wheels were the blacked-out 5 or 6-spoke wheels instead of the silver 6-spoke wheels, but at least the wheels are nicely done and feature detailed brake rotor slots and red calipers in typical Welly fashion.  The front has detailed headlights with silver on the lamp and LED running lights; they look more impressive on a straight-front look.  The lower grille is black with red cat logo and R-badge flanked by side scoops with inner black treatment, something that the Matchbox casting could not muster.  The hood and front fender scoops are in black, with the latter having Jaguar stamped on the scoop, while the lower black trim gives an athletic appearance for the profile.  The roof is blacked-out and it does allow some light, but only with a strong flashlight, while the exterior mirrors are painted orange (and mines has some nub on the driver's side housing).





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The roofline slopes to the rear where the fenders kick up and meet at the end of the rear window where the retractable spoiler hides; at this point you can note a few quality control issues on my tester with the missing chip near the rear window and some paint cracks nearby, but it is small and does not impact the car greatly.  The best part is the E-type-style taillights that give of the aggressive look of the rear along with the silver quad exhaust tips (note the detailed reverse lamps next to them), black Jaguar plate, and F-type badges.  Unfortunately for today's cars there's more covering than exposed mechanical bits, and that's no surprise here as all you can see from the forward-opening front hood is an engine cover masking the supercharged 5.0L DOHC 542 hp. V8 and 8-speed automatic transmission.  Same goes for the underbody, though you do get to see the transmission, exhaust system (with silver rear muffler), and rear suspension.





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The doors open up to the interior that is sporty but oh so could use some detail enhancement.  The seats are really supportive buckets with R badges on the headrests and a console that also conceals the cupholders.  The passenger just looks as a flat dashboard and grab handle, while the driver sees more.  The 3-spoke steering wheel is flat-bottomed and deep dished with leaping cat in the center, detailed gauges just behind, and inbetween is the paddle shifters.  The center stack houses the touch screen, radio and HVAC controls, and center air vents that retract when the car is started up.  The shifter area is nicely done with the small controls nearby, as is the floor pedals, but all could agree a touch of silver trim would do wonders to improve the interior.  Everything on the real car is power-operated, including the rear hatch that open and closes automatically and door handles that pop out as you approach the car with the key fob in hand.  Too bad this scale model cannot be driven like the real car to hear the engine snort, whale, and crackle and to feel the power of the R coupe.





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Welly did a nice job with this casting aside from an interior that could use some trim detail to break up the all-black look, and the other complaint about lack of detail in the engine bay is a common problem even with the real car.  Still for those looking a nicely-done replica of a Jaguar F-type coupe without having to pay too much or the restrictions of a smaller scale this Welly version will do just fine.





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Comments

  1. Yes the silver rims could have gone miles ahead than it is now... but a fabulous replica otherwise, nice review there too.

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