Airfix 1/24 Peugeot 905 review

Heller 80718 (1992 probably) also in French 2011 Heller catalog	Airfix 06419 (1993 to 1996)	Gunze Sangyo GX-419 (1993)

Warped or not?

Heller issued a 1/24 scale model of the Peugeot 905 in 1992, followed by an issue of the same model by Airfix in 1993, and the same year it was reissued by Gunze Sangyo. Among builders of sports car models, this kit is often mentioned as a model that is very difficult to build, and actually not worth the trouble. For example, Bill Via commented: "The Heller 905 EV1 Bis kit is the absolute WORST kit I have ever seen in my 30+ years of building kits. Out of 1000+ kits I've built during my entire life, it's the only one I simply could not fix and ended up throwing it away, not even saving anything from the box for my parts stash. Not only should this kit be shunned by moderate builders, but folks who can scratchbuild should leave it alone as well. I've had two of them (the purchases separated by 5 years) and the only good thing about them is the boxart." Bill described the following problems of the two Heller kits that he owned:

1. Every flat panel is warped (chassis pan, body coverings)
2. Every curved panel is warped (driver greenhouse, engine coverings)
3. Parts not symmetrical: left side parts are smaller, shorter, more curved than right side body parts
4. Angle of chassis pan incorrect to angle of all other body parts, you cannot close the body if you build it off the chassis pan
5. Tires were rectangular in cross-section, almost a perfect 90 degrees from the tread to sidewall transition. Opening is too small to fit over wheels
6. Glass is undersized for the opening in greenhouse
7. Decals exhibit Moire effect and fall apart when introduced to water

Bill's review confused me greatly, since my Airfix kit didn't look too bad, and dry-fitted reasonably well. It's not a great kit, but it looked far from unbuildable. It took a long time before it became clear where the confusion originated. It appears that there is a large quality variation with this model, both in the Heller and Airfix packaging, and that these can be attributed to the injection molding process. This process has lots of variables, such as mold temperature, material temperature, pressures at several stages of the process, and injection and cooling times. Mike Kendel commented that problems 1 through 6 all could be caused by the injection molding variables. Even with a perfect mold, the wrong set of variables can produce bad products. Back in 1992/1993 when this kit came out, Heller did all the molding of Airfix models. It can therefore be assumed that both the Heller and Airfix versions were made in the same injection molding plant. Possibly the kit's molds required a very specific set of settings, and that these were not always adhered to. It's most likely that Heller produced good and bad batches of this model. So much for quality control!

I shot the following photographs of my dry-fitted model to show that points 1-3 and 5-6 don't apply to my Airfix kit. Bill Via commented: "My two examples were NOTHING like the photos of yours". The monocoque could be slightly too tall (point 4), but I haven't tried reducing its height.

I removed the upper and lower wishbones from the monocoque, and put pins in the parts for easy reassembly.

The main bodywork fits relatively well without tape. Closing the gap between the sides and the floor deforms the floor slightly. Maybe this can be solved by removing around 1 mm of the monocoque's height. As far as I can see, the engine will accept this drop too, since there is some space between the sump and the floor panel.

Some gaps exist between the monocoque and the bodywork.

The lower nose part (#14) was described in one review as being 2 mm oversize on both sides. Yet it fits relatively well here.

The rear bodywork fits reasonably but could use some fine tuning.

The transparent parts fit well, except for the door window on the rear side, which shows a step.

The engine air inlet also fits well even when just dry-fitted, contrary to complaints by other modelers

The floor panel seems to lack a cover for the gearbox and some vanes in the tunnels.

The wheels fit perfectly in the tires, but lack a locking nut. The tires are glossy and feel like plasticised plastic.

What version is it?

There is some debate whether the model represent an 'Evo 1' or 'Evo 1 Bis'. The problem starts with the question whether there ever was an 'Evo 1'. The book 'World Sportscar Racing '91' from late 1991 calls the model introduced at the Nurburgring race on 18 August 1991 already an 'Evo 1 Bis'. This suggests an 'Evo 1 sans suffix' was not raced. The model manufacturers contribute to the confusion by calling the same model 'Ev 1' (Airfix, Gunze Sangyo) and 'Ev 1 Bis' (Heller) on the box top.

In 1993, parts of the never-raced 905 Evo 2 were fitted to the Evo 1 bis, including transverse gearbox, rear suspension, bigger tunnels. This version is sometimes referred to as the 'Evo 1c'.

Based on this information, I believe the model correctly represents an 'Evo 1 bis' version.

Problems

The kit has some problems:

• The only shape problem noted so far are the louvers on the front fenders. They start too far forward and stop short of the real position, and they are placed slightly too low in the fenders. This problem is very difficult to solve, maybe it can be done with the aid of a second model. Alternatively, some photos show a blanking plate instead of louvres (LM 1992 and 1993 at least).
• Reportedly, the rear wheel wells need to be enlarged to clear the rear tires. I checked it on my model but didn't see a problem there
• The engine air inlet is sometimes reported to be positioned too low on the engine, leaving gaps with the bodywork. Yet again, a dry-fit on my model showed no problems! Maybe the builders with problems ignored the pins on the front end that attach to the rear of the monocoque, and glued the engine to the floor
• For a car relying heavily on ground effects, I find it unlikely that the floor is cut away in the gearbox area. Although 'under the skirt' photos are rare, I found one that shows the gearbox to be covered by the floor. But of course that could also be a later modification
• A building tip is to attach the exhaust pipes to the engine before gluing the engine to the floor panel
• The colors of the Airfix decals are rather subdued

Room for improvement

Possible improvements:

• The body has raised lines where body panels meet, these are best scribed in
• The tires look pretty bad: shiny soft plastic with sprue attachments that leave unrepairable traces. Some shopping in Tamiya and Hasegawa Group-C kits will undoubtedly yield suitable replacements. The rear tires of the Tamiya Toyota 88CV fit well and are only marginally larger. The front tires of the Hasegawa Nissan R89C fit well. But maybe there are better matches to be found
• The model has no headlights, which is correct for the decal options of the Airfix version (Magny-Cours 15 Septemer 1991 and Magny-Cours 18 October 1992) with different color stripes and numbers. The Heller version only has the decals for the 1991 race. The 1992 car didn't have side exhausts except at Le Mans so these need to be removed and the exhaust pipes re-routed to blow the tunnels from the outboard side (see Gurney Flap link)
• The engine is a rather basic representation, and some essential suspension parts (springs/dampers) are missing. The engine bay needs a lot of detailing before you can park the model next to a Tamiya model
• Inside the tunnel sections in the floor panel, a vertical strake (slight curved in plan view) is missing. It is easy to make. 'Race Car Engineering' Volume 2 Number 4 from 1992 has an article ('Last of the Longtails') on the Peugeot 905 with an aerodynamic analysis
• The rear wing endplates feature a diagonal structure on the inboard sides, and a slight sandpaper structure on the outboard sides. They probably try to represent carbon fiber, but do a bad job. The endplates are better sanded flush and decaled with carbon fiber decals
• The front wheels are not made to steer, leading to a rather static appearance
• Aerials on the cockpit roof can be added
• An electrical cut-off handle can be added at the right-side rear of the windscreen
• The many red arrows on the decal sheet point to quick-release fasteners that can be represented by small photo-etch parts (or similar)

Alternatives

Profil24 produces two resin 1/24 905s: Le Mans 1992 Evo 1B (P24004) and Le Mans 1993 Evo 1B (P24005). They are curbside models without engine details and a one-piece body. They feature headlights and the front fender louvers are closed but positioned correctly. It is reported that the model is based on the Heller/Airfix kit, but a couple of parts are integrated and some are changes to meet new specs. It is also reported that the Profil 24 models are more accurate than the Heller/Airfix kit.

Spark / Redline issued a 1/24 die cast Peugeot 905, the Le Mans 1992 winner (catalog number 07-2008). This model is based on a Le Mans Miniatures master.

Museum examples

Seven Evo 1 chassis were built according to Martin Krejci's chassis number list. Museum examples are reportedly to be found here:

Peugeot Museum in Sochaux. Peugeot 905 Evo 1 bis (Le Mans winner 1992), Peugeot Evo 2
• Musée des 24 Heures in Le Mans. Peugeot 905 Evo 2
• Musée National de l'Automobil in Mulhouse. Peugeot 905 'sans suffix'
• Manoir de l'Automobile in Loheac (French Britanny). The website doesn't show or list a 905 however, possibly the report is not correct

Decals

Aftermarket decals are limited to two suppliers:

• Shunko sheet SHK-D120, covering 1991-1993. Beautiful printing, colors are much more vibrant than the Airfix decals
• Patto's Place for 'Pugeot 905 EV 1 Le Mans' in various scales

Airfix	Skunko	Patto's

Modeling links

• Heller Peugeot 905 by Steffen Hübner
• Heller/Airfix Peugeot 905 on Britmodeller forum
• Heller Peugeot 905 on Modelclub Greece forum
• Heller Peugeot 905 on De Paddock forum

Links

• Ultimate Car Page on the Peugeot 905 Evo 1 bis
• Gurney Flap page about the Peugeot 905 Evo 1c
• Gurney Flap page about the Peugeot 905 Evo 2