Tamiya Avante 2001 Project

Here we have the inaptly named Avante 2001.  The original 58072 Avante came out in 1988 and was called the Avante 2011 when it was re-released as 58489 in that year.  You might assume then, that the 58085 Avante 2001 came out in 2001.  Nope, it came out in 1990.  I can only assume that "2001" seemed like a nicely futuristic name in 1990, but in hindsight it just seems strange.

So why release another Avante only 2 years after the original?  Some of the answer can be found by comparing the models.  The 2001 loses all the metal rod ends and the gold anodized shocks and replaces all those bits with plastic.  It also loses the Technigold motor and replaces it with a Sport Tuned.  The front shocks have been greatly lengthened and a shock tower has been added.  The rear shocks have been moved behind the suspension so they don't block the body.  The wheelbase has also been stretched by 15mm compared with the original like the Vanquish and the Egress.  The same DNA is there though.  This model seems to have been built to make the Avante cheaper as well as address some if its more annoying flaws.  It achieved that goal fairly well, though at the cost of some of the charm of the original.

This is a shaft drive, 4WD buggy designed to be competitive at the racing circuits of the time, even though that didn't end up being true.  It is a great looking and driving buggy, though some of the fragility of the original remains, especially in the front hubs.

Most of my historic Tamiya fleet consists of model re-releases of classic models, but the Avante 2001 has never been re-released.  I was so smitten by the Avante though, that I wanted to display as much of the family as I could find.  I have the Egress waiting in the wings, but I still need to find a Vanquish.  I could not find a model New in Box for any price I was willing to pay, and finding one in any condition whatsoever is not all that easy.  I got fairly lucky with this one because, although it was already built, the original builder had painted it such a hideous color that it did not get many bids.  This allowed me to swoop in and pick it up for a decent price with the intention or replacing all the ugly parts with reproductions.  It came out excellent.

Update:  This model was destroyed in the 2022 fire.  It has not been replaced.