Monogram BMW 635CSi Exotic Car Series 1/24 scale

[polybius]

Keeping up with the momentum of clearing out the works in progress shelf of doom, this build finally made its way to the display case.  I started it a couple years ago and was mostly awaiting the body and trim work.  It's an old Monogram tooling from the late 70s and early 80s that I believe was first tooled as a race or rally variant.  With other "better" kits of this E24 BMW that were made by Fujimi and Tamiya, this one from Monogram is a bit underappreciated.  It fits together mostly well but the instructions are vague with identifying attachment points of some parts.  It seemed to me the tooling represents a 1979 or 1980 model year, with the absence of the passenger side mirror being period-correct for these early-ish 635CSi coupes.  I regretted not fitting and gluing the sunroof closed before body prep and paint, and it turned out to not fit very snugly so the tilt-up position was represented and would have been accurate for the 1:1 design.  This was one among three BMWs that was stuck on the WIP shelf, so it was nice to finally finish it up and move it along.  Thanks for looking!

[grodudulle77]

Clean job !! ??

[Mattilacken]

Beautiful build m8!

[Classicgas]

Nice. Any engine and chassis pics?

[Rich Chernosky]

Nice color choices for both the exterior and interior.  Nice to see someone clearing out their shelf of doom.  I have one...I think we all do. 

[espo]

Beautiful looking build. This is a car I have always thought I would buy if I hit the lottery. The paint and interior look great together and all the body and trim detailing looks great as well.   

[polybius]

Thanks for the comments!  This was a kit I tried building as a kid but it turned into a glue bomb and it likely met its fate in a scale model crash test ? Here are a few more pics as requested, and thanks again for the great feedback!  

[ChrisR]

Very nice!

[Jim B]

Great looking BMW.  Well done.

[slusher]

Beautifully done!

[89AKurt]

When those were new, thought they were super cool.  Congrats on getting it done!  Monogram did some decent kits, your comment about the sunroof should help anyone in the future, scrape down the edge for clearance.   Came out nice.

[Can-Con]

Very nice build.

I remember doing this kit when it first came out in '80 or '81. It didn't seem to fit in with the other kits Monogram were coming out with at the time,, the first muscle car kits they would be doing like the Hemi Cuda, '69 GTO and '70 Chevelle SS.

It may have been reissued at some point as a race car [I don't remember ever seeing one] but the first issue was definitely the same as your build.

[polybius]

Thanks again for the great comments!  I was curious about the tooling's lineage because there were two distinctive molded-in rivet looking things along the rear fenders that needed to be sanded smooth.  It turns out the '88 release of the Exotic Car Series was the third issue of the kit, with the originals being in '81 with the stock 635CSi first and then the Group 2 version.  It was certainly a departure from Monogram's typical US muscle car subjects.  In the 80s as a kid any kits from Tamiya or Fujimi were much harder to get a hold of, so it was a real treat when something like this would pop up on the K-Mart shelf for under $6.  

[mrm]

Love the car in real life. In my opinion on of the classiest and best looking cars BMW has ever made. And your model does it justice. Grey metallic on red- perfect!