From Z Wheels to Motormax: the lifeline of the 1:24 scale Chevy C-1500 454SS and GMC Sierra GT pickups

Wanna know the longest-serving 1:24 scale diecast vehicle of all-time? It's this GM trucks from Motormax. This might be true or not, but these trucks have been in production over two decades with several manufacturers before settling with Motormax permanently, and in those years it also encountered changes that reduced sharp details while improving the strength of the casting. I have seen them and even owned a few of them, so with the latest release found at Wal-mart (the red GMC Sierra GT) it's time to pull them out and give you the history behind them.

1995: Z-wheels introduces the only 454SS pickup

In 1990 Chevrolet revived the SS badge long missing after the turmoil days of the 1970's and 1980's with the C/K regular cab, fleetside pickup transformed into the 454SS powered by the 7.4L V8 (or 454 CID) and producing 230 horsepower through a 4-speed automatic transmission. It was not much and wasn't offered for long (only three years), but it did spart Ford to create the F-150 Lightning and Dodge to reinvent the Ram and introduce the VTS concept truck (a Viper-powered Ram would not appear until the next decade). While not the first large-scale model of the C/K pickups, Z Wheels was proud to be the first with the 454SS and even a GMC Sierra version. This white version has been in my collection for years and what I love about this one is the level of details that even includes a picture of the real truck on the sides of the box (even continued under the Redbox brand). The truck sits low with chrome six-spoke wheels, blacked-out grille with split and separate headlights and signal lights, and a lower chin spoiler that is black and has foglights. The sides are monochromatic with 454SS on the sides of the bed and old-fashioned truck mirrors in black (which tend to break off easily as seen here). At the rear is clear red taillights, CHEVROLET on the lower right of the tailgate, and even a trailer hitch on the body-colored rear bumper (though it never towed anything related from Z-wheels).

The hood opens, the tailgate opens (and does so rather freely at times), and the doors open with full frames. The hood opens up to show the big block V8 motor as a separate black block with a silver air cleaner housing attached on top. Even the drive belt, A/C compressor, Alternator, and the cooling fan are detailed as separate components. Even the hood gets its own hood prop from the engine bay! This is the high point of this model. Even more so is underneath the truck where the details continue with the separate engine and transmission, the separate driveshaft (that comes off easily), lower control arms with working coil springs and steering, exhaust system with dual tip exit in silver, and the rear axle with working coil springs and even the leaf springs flex with the movement of the axle. The downside is that those working springs are a weak point and can break over time (I had to repair one of the broken springs already). Also note the missing spare tire in the back. Also the front steering setup is rather weak and causes the wheels to camber inwards over time.

The interior has the proper cab layout with bucket seats that feature detailed ribbed patterns and even headrests, the center console, and detailed door panels that are separate plastic pieces. The dashboard has nicely detailed controls and a 4-spoke steering wheel with the proper stock setting, and as an added touch a cool CB radio below the dash (I removed it on the Chevy, but the silver GMC still has it). The one odd thing is the 5-speed manual shifter: why need it if this is a 4-speed automatic truck and that clearly shows under the base! As mentioned before the weak points on the base were one of the problem areas of the early Z-Wheels castings, so a slight update was made just as the GMC Sierra version arrived. I used to have the green version and liked it, though it didn't last as long as the Chevy version and finding one today is like finding a needle in a haystack; luckily I found one last year in silver. The Sierra just goes for a plain truck look with no sporty graphics, GMC badges replacing Chevrolet, and a chrome grille that has the large grille opening and GMC in the center. Other than that this is the same truck as the Chevrolet version. Another interesting observation is that this silver GMC has a plastic fleetside bed with no opening tailgate (I thought my green Sierra back then was metal with opening tailgate, but I could be wrong).

1997: Redbox takes over, new interior and stepside GMC

In 1997 Redbox bought out Z-Wheels and refurbished their prior castings that not only includes the Chevy and GMC pickups but also the Chevy Blazer and GMC Jimmy castings from 1996. What's more is the fact that both trucks got an overhaul to improve manufacturing of the trucks and the strength of them overtime. The plastic base is now a one-piece unit that elminiates the smaller fragile parts while still echoing the past Z-wheels casting details. The suspension still works on coil springs, as does the working steering. The engine bay looks the same but up close you can see the engine is now part of the engine bay pan. The interior is overhauled to reflect the 1995 interior update that now has a driver's side airbag lifted from the Chevy Blazer, rounder center console with hidden cupholders, new seats, door panels, and the elimination of the manual transmission shifter that had no business being in there in the first place. Sadly the excellent dashboard control layout is replaced by a full-width gauge cluster that is generic and covers off the area to the right where the radio and HVAC controls reside. Probably the biggest change is the GMC casting as this teal green version shows: for a more sporty and diverse look the Sierra gets the GT package that also adds a new stepside bed style in metal and body-colored grille and bumpers for a more sporty look. This is one of my favorite models and I love the teal color. The 454SS still continues on with the same metal body and bed, but now with the updated interior, engine, and chassis found in the GMC.

1999: Redbox becomes Motormax, and variations abound

In 1998 Redbox becomes Motormax and from what I recall it was a force to be reconed with back then as a low-buck diecast manufacturer who offers the best detailing in the business, no matter what scale. The Chevy and GMC truck twins continued one with no major changes and would do so for the next decade right down to today. Still there were a few enhancements and additions (or deletions) along the way. A cool feature was in 2000 when Motormax joined Testors to offer a model kit of the Chevy and GMC. Both trucks were offered the same Candy Apple Red paint and featured one item that was only seen in the Testors model kits: a tonneau cover over the bed! Looking at the gorgeous red Chevy you can see that it sits much better and has a few minor tweaks: the exterior mirrors are replaced with modern body-colored ones casted into the metal on the doors and look much sleeker on these trucks. The rear tailgate gains tabs to better secure it to the bed and the steering system is replaced with a beefier setup that improves the front-end stance. I loved the model kit design and the extra features and shows how much the GM trucks have improved over the years of updates.

But a strange circumstance happened at the same time: When supplying the twins in the Motormax boxes back then a problem emerged as the trucks were longer than the inner box liner. Instead of redesigning the box liner Motormax just simply eliminated the rear bumpers on these trucks during this short time period. The result is a rather confusing design that probably had a few customers returning the truck because of the rear bumper, but in other instances it gives the truck that smooth rollbar rear bumper look that was common on custom trucks. The GMC looked rather odd without it and still has its metal stepside bed, yet on the Chevrolet it looks good and the plastic bed comes back here giving the Chevy a lightweight, possible racing truck setup. The good news is that the side pictures from the Z-wheels era still continues on the sides of the box. Into 2018 Motormax has finally updated their boxes to fit larger vehicles and in return the rear bumpers return. Quality has slipped from 2000 where my bright red GMC has a warped rear bumper attachment (near the taillights) and i've seen a few GMC trucks in black that have Cheverolet 1500 on the doors, but overall the truck still stays solid and still looks good. Recently Motormax has lifted the trucks for a new 4x4 series last year. What could improve? How about a redesigned gauge cluster that is smaller and incorporates the radio controls and more colors would be nice (it seems to be stuck in the endless black, red, and silver cycle), but overall it still has it going on even after twenty years!