What makes a car different?

[rcdice]

I'm curious on opinions of what people collect as different cars. Use the pic below as an example. Exact same car, both current available production, same manufacturer. Very different packaging. Would you collect both? Would you consider them as two items when you add up your total number of different Vipers?

Obviously, any model that has different paint, graphics, wheels, etc. is, well, different. I just seem to be running into more and more situations where the car is the same and the packaging is the only difference. Opinions?

Thanks,

 

[InjectTheVenom]

Would I collect both? Never in my life , I would rather save the money to buy more (different) models that I like, packaging does nothing to me if there are no minor differences between the models themselves. I guess it all depends on everyone's "collector level"
Last week this strategy enabled me to buy one of those rare Creative Masters 1:20 RT/10's from Ebay

 

[V10SpeedLuvr]

For $1 cars like Hotwheels, Matchbox, etc., yes I'd buy both (and actually have bought both that are pictured). If they sold for a higher price, I would only buy the one with the better looking card. I do count them as different because they are from seperate series. But, for someone who opens the packages (I leave mine sealed), I see no point in buying the same car just on a different card.

 

[propsail]

My experience is that anything that ever says the words "collector's edition," never is.

~Craig

 

[rcdice]

I guess I'm kind of in the middle of this too. I agree with you Chad. If it's cheap, why not? If they are loose, packaging goes out the window, it's just the cars at that point.

I'm just noticing it more and more. Another example, I've got two Johnny Lightning cars, both red RT/10's, exactly the same. However, two different Pam Anderson cards. In this case, I'm keeping both no question, but you get my point.

How about this one: Red SRT10 the from movie Fast and The Furious, Tokyo, available on a single card and in a three car set. Buy them both? Different? I only have/want the single card/car.

 

[ViperCollector]

I guess I'm kind of in the middle of this too. I agree with you Chad. If it's cheap, why not? If they are loose, packaging goes out the window, it's just the cars at that point.

I'm just noticing it more and more. Another example, I've got two Johnny Lightning cars, both red RT/10's, exactly the same. However, two different Pam Anderson cards. In this case, I'm keeping both no question, but you get my point.

How about this one: Red SRT10 the from movie Fast and The Furious, Tokyo, available on a single card and in a three car set. Buy them both? Different? I only have/want the single card/car.

There's technically a difference on the cars. The 3-pack version has some extra printing on the base in white.
http://www.mboxcommunity.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=8530

 

[1000.vipers]

As mentioned above, it basically comes down to whether, in general, you keep your vipers in the cardboard or display them loose. I leave everything in the package, so it seems like I have a lot more to collect then others. I'm also a completist so I like to have one of every variation made. For me, it is part of the fun of collecting. I enjoy following the different ways a given viper is packaged and released (single packs, 5-packs, foreign short cards, etc.) In a lot of cases, buying a viper in a different package will reveal differences in the car itself (i.e. wheels, bases, tampos). The Maisto vipers sold at Wal-Mart under the kid connection name are a good example. The white GTS-R has been repackaged so many times over the years, but some of them have different wheels and recently a new base surfaced listing the Maisto website. In these cases I do count them as different in my collection total. As long as there is something to make it different from the one next to it, it counts in my opinion. I do draw the line at errors though. Examples being those one-time manufacturing flukes like 1 different wheel or a viper packaged on a corvette card. At the end of the day it comes down to how die-hard of a collector you are and whether you'd rather spend your extra cash on a new viper or on a Coach bag for the wife.

 

[DiecastViper]

I'm curious on opinions of what people collect as different cars. Use the pic below as an example. Exact same car, both current available production, same manufacturer. Very different packaging. Would you collect both? Would you consider them as two items when you add up your total number of different Vipers?

Obviously, any model that has different paint, graphics, wheels, etc. is, well, different. I just seem to be running into more and more situations where the car is the same and the packaging is the only difference. Opinions?

Thanks,

I personally open almost all my cars so if it were only for the packing I would not but there may be a variation on the 2 you show as production moved from malaysia to thailand or something like that during the year the red viper was made so one will say one country on the base while the other says a different country on it. Check the 2 you photo'd here and let us know the paint should also be slightly different one country to the next.

 

[ViperArry]

I'd say..... buy them both. If you keep them inside the packaging. These smaller scales are not sold for big bucks, so if you have the room to store them. Buy em both.

In the bigger scales there is a similar thing.
The 1:18 Bburago's were often changed, for most with the colors of the seats.
But, would you collect 5 different Red RT/10's because they have a different seatbelt/seat color combo?
I'd say.... find out wich one is the rarest and stick with that.
Spend your money on a model you don't have yet!

(And....... seems like AA is going to produce some great models for us soon!)

 

[InjectTheVenom]

(And....... seems like AA is going to produce some great models for us soon!)

I'm hoping that finally includes proper gen 1 & 2 models

 

[ViperArry]

From what I've heard only today's models....

There is going to be a CC in race livery, and a CC with an updated aeropackage on it.

 

[magviper3]

I'm just noticing it more and more. Another example, I've got two Johnny Lightning cars, both red RT/10's, exactly the same. However, two different Pam Anderson cards. In this case, I'm keeping both no question, but you get my point.

rcdice,
Check you JL VIP Vipers. If you are talking about the card itself and not the Picture card included, they are different. Pants card and skirt card the Viper tampo is different with respect to the card. One is silver w/black outline and the other is black w/silver outline. If you were referring to the picture card included, disregaurd.

 

[rcdice]

Great feedback, thank you.

Ok, I think I've further refined how I'm going to collect going forward. Mostly, I only collect 1:64 (or close to it) and 1:18 scale. Although, 1:24 seems to be thrusting itself forward in the stores. For me, there needs to be a noticeable difference in the car or major difference in the packaging. I'm not really interested in the country of manufacture stamped on the bottom or a "key hole" design so small you can barely see it.

Personally, I probably won't care as much about packaging differences in 1:18 scale because of cost and storage/display limitations. Of course, I always reserve the right to override myself on any of the above.

Two examples of what I WOULD collect are below: The first on is a common blue/white striped RT from Hot Wheels. However, this one was made for the Japanese market and the card reflects that. The second is a red 1:18 scale RT with red interior. That's a pretty obvious difference over the standard gray. I was told that this car was only distributed in Australia but don't know if that's actually true or not. I'm not sure I'd go to the trouble for a seat belt buckle, but the entire interior is pretty obvious. Just my $.02

BTW, I did check the undersides of the two Matchbox CC's above. One was made in Thailand, the other China.