1/64 Diecast Update: Week of 7/13

​We’re back at it  after a nice 4th of July vacation. We have got a good amount to recap this week in the world of 1/64 scale Nascar diecast. There are two week’s worth of raced won diecast to go over. Both Chase Elliott and SVG have found victory lane. There's also just one standard ARC 1/64 that has been announced as well. The most interesting preorder announcement is a 'Nascar Classics' 1/64 scale Chevy Silverado from 1995 that represents Terry Labonte's only Truck win. For a closer look at what Lionel Racing has announced, read on…

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Raced Versions: (Atlanta)

The dark side of being Nascar’s most popular driver has to be when the wins stop coming. Chase Elliott has been enjoying a very strong, and very consistent season, but it has been well past a year since his most recent win in Texas last year. In true storybook fashion, wearing the special livery created by a pediatric patient in partnership with Napa, and in his hometown, Chase delivered a huge win solidifying his run for a championship in 2025, and breaking a long dryspell.

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Raced Versions: (Chicago)

When Nascar developers designed the Chicago street course, they couldn’t have known about the kind of strom they’d attract in SVG. In 2023, the Supercar driver from New Zealand was not much more than an afterthought. Justin Marks brought van Gisbergen into the fold at Trackhouse as part of the team’s ‘Project 91’ program. A first start, first win combo at the Chicago streetcourse was all it took to propel the Kiwi into a full fledged nascar juggernaut who is the current standard on tracks that have both right and left hand turns. ​

What SVG did on Saturday was just a precursor to his big Cup win on Sunday. Utilizing a partnership between Trackhouse and JRM, van Gisbergen would skillfully pilot his number 9 WeatherTech/RedBull JRM ‘celebrity car’ to a big win having only to outdrive young up and coming talent and teammate, Connor Zillisch. The JRM design group did a great job drawing up the two Chevys that carried the Red Bull and WeatherTech logos. Those cars are also offered in a two pack which I mentioned last week.

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Standard Versions (Cup)

Chevy:
​Senix Tools, which is a multiyear partner of Richard Childress Racing provides power tools to the teams under the RCR umbrella. As part of that partnership Kyle Busch has had Senix Tools as the primary sponsor on his number 8 Chevy for one race during the 2025 season so far, the All-Star race at North Wilkesboro. It remains to be seen if the tool brand is featured again later in the year. This is one of Busch’s better looking liveries in my opinion.

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Nascar Classics: (Trucks)

In 1995, Terry Labonte drive this number 5 Dupont Chevy Silverado to his first and only Truck series win. The victory came at Richmond International Raceway  on September 7th during the FasMart Supertruck Shootout. He drove the truck for Hendrick Motorsports. This is an interesting subject because Lionel already has these full production photos. The Truck appears to be based on the same casting that the Racing Champions brand used back during that same time period. This demonstrates the depth of Lionel's mould catalog. 

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Notes:
Aside from the raced diecast, this was certainly a quiet week for Lionel, no doubt a result of the holiday weekend. I do anticipate a flurry of 1/64 standard ARCs to be announced this week to catch up. I'm pleasantly surprised by the Terry Labonte classic, but I think I'd really be impressed if Lionel actually developed a new casting. This one looks pretty long in the tooth as it pertains to the windshield, body/tire ratio, and truck bed roll cage. I think it's a good idea, that's being executed somewhat poorly. Don't forget that each of these diecast cars, aside from the Dupont Silverado will be produced on the all diecast chassis. You can read more about that here. That's all for this week, we'll see yo back here next Monday!

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