Stock# 23902
Collector# 1113
CB's Die Cast Review: July 16, 1999
1999 First Editions #21
360 Modena
Now that SAMs Club and Costco have
brought back the 20-car packs of Hot Wheels, the northeastern quadrant of the United States is
starting to see some new cars after a very long drout. Unlike previous years, the majority
of cars Mattel has put in these assortments are either new castings or new paint schemes on older
castings. As a result, I was able to acquire 1999 First Editions #21, better known as the
360 Modena.
The 360 Modena is a beautiful representation of the new Ferrari sports car. I have
three nit picks however. The first is that the plastic glass piece is very thick, which is
distracting when the car is viewed from the side. The second is that, except for the engine
and seat cushions, the interior has only moderate detail. And third, the nose tampo was crooked
on all four samples I viewed. The all-metal design and low profile
should make this a good performer for the kids. And, for the adults, it will look sleek in the
display case.
The 360 Modena was designed to be the successor to the very popular Ferrari 355. Named after
the town where Erizo Ferrari was born a century ago, the Modena is noticeably larger, yet only 175
pounds heavier, than its predecessor, due to the all-aluminum body, chassis and suspension.
The car is powered by a 400-hp 3.6 litre 40-value 8-cylinder engine with a six-speed manual
transmission. This aerodynamically designed power-plug can muscle from 0-60 mph in just over
four seconds. The car made its debut at the 1999 International Geneva Motor Show in March,
and will be available for sale this summer.
Mattel has captured the look of the prototype well on its First Editions model. The metal
body is well detailed, and compares favorably with pictures on the web of the full-sized car.
The black plastic interior can be seen through the clear plastic glass and includes an intricate
rendering of the powerhouse engine, as seen through the rear glass. At first I was fooled,
thinking the chassis was plastic, but it is metal, painted semi-flat black enamel. The car
body is painted bright red enamel. Following the current practice in force regarding Ferrari
replicas, the 360 Modena has minimal tampos - only a small nose herald and, on second-run issues, a
small HW logo on the rear license plate mount. The car rides on standard five-spoke wheels,
and was manufactured in Malaysia.
