Revell's 1/24 Bill Elliott #9 Dodge Intrepid R/T

Overview

Bill Elliott is a well-known name in NASCAR racing and this year he has his sights set on the Winner's Circle.  Winning his first major NASCAR race in 1983, Elliott has managed to stay in the top ten in all but two of the following fifteen years.  With this impressive string of success, Elliott decided to start his own team and raced under a different number than #9.  Unfortunately he didn't do very well, so he started racing with the New Dodge Racing Team, returning to his lucky #9.  Qualifying third in the year 2000 Daytona 500, this was upped to pole position in the 2001 Daytona 500, with an eventual finish in the top five.

The Kit

This model depicts Elliott's #9 Dodge Intrepid as seen in the 2001 Daytona 500.  The kit comes molded in white, with rubber wheels, a few metal parts, a sprue of chrome-plated parts, and one of black rubber parts.  A large decal sheet provides all the various stickers is included and the clear parts are pre-painted with the black areas, a nice touch.   There's a total of 103 parts, including a full interior and engine.

Speaking of the engine, this is made up of fifteen parts, including headers, carburetor, separate valve covers and more.  A bit of wiring will really set this engine apart, as most of the other plumbing is included in the kit, including air hoses and radiator hoses.  This assembly fits into the chassis, which also has plenty of detailing.  The main chassis piece includes much of the interior floor, with the roll cage sides including parts of the engine bay, making up a rather complex-looking final assembly.  The seat is molded as one piece and fits onto the chassis, with the firewall and crossbar filling up the empty space.

The suspension is well detailed, with separate springs and shocks starting the rear suspension, finishing up with a rear suspension assembly incorporating bracing and drivetrain, with a separate panhard bar.  The front suspension has separate A-arms plus a one-piece front suspension piece including the steering mechanism and wheel mounts.  The final bit to finish the underside is the two-piece exhaust pipe, with the final bits being the two-piece wheels fitting onto the metal rear axle & metal front axle pins.  The final step is to fit the separate hood and the two roof spoilers.

Painting this vehicle will be really simple, as it's overall red with black trim.  The only challenge will be matching the body color to that of the roof #9.  Alternatively, you could just trim out the red from that number and just the white outline.  Decals are also included for the driver figure.

Conclusion

Revell's NASCAR kits are some of the best out there, and this one is no exception.  The overall red color will make finishing it a bit easier than some of the more flamboyant cars out there.  This is a nice replica of Bill Elliott's return to #9 and a great representation of the NASCAR Dodge Intrepid.