Make Up http://www.makeupcoltd.co.jp/
Make Up 為1/43 套件少見的日本廠，但是一出手就不同凡響。
早期與Meri 合作推出部分掛名的 F1 套件，後來自行開發的都是超級精密套件，尤其以電鑄工法做成的 Ferrari 250 GTO, 車殼更是薄到不可思議的0.02cm，當然售價也是可怕的900 USD。
其它全開版本的 Ferrari 312T, T2, Ferrari 643 , Lancia Stratos , Cobra 427等等，也是動輒 3,4百美金的高價套件。不過根據個人收藏而言，以它稀有程度及作工之精細，絕對是物有所值。
可惜Make Up 已轉型成品製作廠，推出Eidolon 系列，以不輸BBR的高品質，卻只有一半的價錢繼續在模型市場佔一席之地。
Meri http://www.merikits.com/gb/home.html
Meri 為義大利另一金屬鑄件大廠，早期與Tameo 齊名，但是產品線略有不同，多為義大利法國及德國車係為主，反而Formula 模型較少。後期也有精密套件MKS系列，包含 Ferrari 126 C2/CK , Ferrari 312T3 , Ferrari 640/1 等等，就算是精密系列，也大約100 USD 上下，是物美的好選擇
Piranha http://www.piranhamodels.com/
由AMR 創辦者女婿 Mike Craig 於1998 所創立，至今只出過不到三十種的套件，不過開模傳承AMR的精細，車種選擇也以稀有車為主，其中精密套件較著名者為 Ferrari 250GTO Prototype, 以及 Mini Cooper Rally。 很可惜的，Piranha 也將於 2008年底結束營業。
FDS
相 當早期的義大利金屬套件廠，V.Bosica 也曾在此服務。FDS的價錢在金屬車模中算是相當平價，常常20-40 USD 就可於eBay上購得。車種大致以義大利市售車，賽車，及八零年代之前的F1賽車為主，不少車款並附上引擎套件，只是它的 white metal 很軟，又加上年代久遠，常常有車身變形氧化跟水貼遇水腐爛的情況發生，欲入門者不可不察。
Western & Hi-Fi
情況跟FDS類似，低價但是問題不少，除了有特殊車系非要不可，還是建議準備好極大的耐心來迎接挑戰？
關于W196R的和W196定義的界定，今天終于在《Silver Arrows in Camera 1951-55》得到了准确的答案：1954年Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix賽車的工厂命名是196R（其中R代表Renne），而運動型的版本（常被稱為300SLR）的工厂命名是W196S（其中S代表Sport）。同時，工厂稱流線型、輪子外漏的W196R為monoposto，用以區分首次亮相的W196R的流線型。
2. 接著我們了解一下這兩种車型參加的比賽。我看到不少帖子里說streamlined只參加了55年最后一站的Monza。這個說法是不正确的。事實恰恰相反：streamlined才是W196R最初的設計，并且在54年法國大獎賽的Reims-Gueux高速賽道中第一次露面就拿到了冠亞軍（Fangio 和 Karl Kling）。但同樣的車型在隨后的Silverstone賽道卻大失水准。其原因就是那樣的外形不夠靈活不适合彎道太多的賽道。因此在接下來的Nurburgring，W196R被改造成傳統的open-wheel(monoposto)樣式，Fangio駕駛著它拿到了冠軍。從此奔馳更多是使用monoposto車型參加接下來的比賽，只有54和55年意大利的高速賽道Monza才會用到streamlined（當然monoposto也同場競技）。
Jul.3 (Mercedes) Juan Manuel Fangio would have turned 100 years old on 24 June 2011. Mercedes pay tribute to one of the greatest Formula 1 race drivers of all time on the advent of this anniversary occasion.
Racing driver Juan Manuel Fangio was the leading figure in Mercedes-Benz’s campaign to win the Formula 1 World Championship in the 1954 and 1955 seasons. Fangio formed an almost symbiotic partnership with the W 196 R racing car: “It’s the perfect car. The machine which every driver dreams about their whole life long,” he once said of the Silver Arrow.
Fangio drove to a total of five Formula 1 world titles in vehicles from four different manufacturers. There was something very special about his relationship with Mercedes-Benz though. He had already been working as a dealer for the Stuttgart-based brand in Argentina since 1951. And following the end of his racing career, he became President of Mercedes-Benz Argentina S.A. in 1974.
He died in Buenos Aires on 17 July 1995.
It was at the French Grand Prix on 4 July 1954 that Mercedes-Benz made its first ever appearance with the new Silver Arrows from the W 196 R series. The victor at the Reims circuit was Juan Manuel Fangio, who had been world champion in 1951 and finished second in 1950 and 1953. The Argentinean was already aged 43 at the time, making him older than many of the other drivers in the field. He had furthermore suffered a serious accident in the 1952 season.
Yet far from being a fabulous finale to his career, Fangio’s win for Mercedes-Benz at the wheel of the W 196 R marked the start of an extraordinary success story. During 1954 and 1955, Fangio lined up on the starting grid for the Mercedes-Benz team for a total of 19 Formula 1 and touring car races, recording ten wins and a number of other impressive results.
Fangio was born to Italian immigrants on 24 June 1911 in the small country town of Balcarce in Argentina – seemingly a very far cry from a future career as a five-time Formula 1 world champion. But the youngster, who did an apprenticeship as a mechanic, was inspired by his fellow countrymen’s passion for motor racing.
He came into contact with the local racing driver scene at an early age, gained some experience at the wheel himself and learned how to rebuild vehicles for racing. In 1932, he opened his own car workshop, and four years later Fangio competed in his first race in a converted Ford taxi.
After the end of World War II, Fangio made the switch from rebuilt standard passenger cars to thoroughbred racing cars, and entered the international racing arena. In 1950, he came second in the World Championship driving for Alfa Romeo, before going on to win his first world title for the Italian car maker in 1951. 1951 also marked the start of Fangio’s close ties with Mercedes-Benz, however, as it was the year he opened a sales outlet for the Stuttgart brand’s cars in Buenos Aires.
And it was not long before he was sitting behind the wheel of a Silver Arrow for the first time; in February 1951, Mercedes-Benz came over to Argentina, bringing with it three overhauled pre-war W 154 racing cars for a guest race appearance. Fangio was on the starting grid for the “Premio Presidente de la Nación Juan D. Perón”, along with Karl Kling and Hermann Lang. However, the Silver Arrows were unable to reach their top speed on the modern circuit with its many chicanes, and Fangio only managed to finish third.
During the 1952 season, when the World Championship was switched to Formula 2, Fangio suffered a serious accident in Monza. He spent the remainder of the year convalescing from his injuries, most notably from one he sustained to his spine. He was already back in the racing seat in 1953 though, when he finished second in the World Championship with Maserati.
International motor racing was made all the more spectacular in 1954 by the return of Mercedes-Benz to the grand prix arena. Racing director Alfred Neubauer signed the Argentinean driving ace as the captain of the racing team.
The Stuttgart-based outfit had been developing the W 196 R racing car for the new Formula 1 season since 1953. It was powered by a 257 hp (189 kW) inline eight-cylinder engine with a displacement of 2.5 litres, desmodromic valves and direct petrol injection.
Apart from the Streamliner version, a classic Formula racing car with exposed wheels was also created. The new Silver Arrows were not ready for the start of the season, so Fangio still competed in a Maserati in the first three races. At that time, the Formula 1 World Championship consisted of just a drivers’ title. The constructors’ championship was only contested from the 1958 season onwards.
On 4 July 1954, Fangio lined up for his first ever grand prix in a Mercedes-Benz: exactly 40 years after Mercedes driver Christian Lautenschlager drove to victory in Lyon, the Stuttgart team returned to the fray at the French Grand Prix in Reims. Fangio took the chequered flag ahead of teammate Karl Kling.
The apparently effortless switch from Maserati to the W 196 R once again underlined Fangio’s immense ability to adapt: ever since taking part in the tough endurance races in his home country, he seemed to be able to extract the very best from every vehicle. It was this virtuoso improvisational skill that led to victory for the Argentinean time and time again.
The 1954 season turned into a great triumph for Mercedes-Benz and Fangio: he followed up his victory in France with further wins in Germany (Nürburgring), Switzerland (Bremgarten) and Italy (Monza). Fangio was crowned Formula 1 world champion for the second time, with almost double the points of his nearest rival.
The Argentinean dominated the 1955 season in similar fashion, winning the grand prix races in Argentina, Belgium, the Netherlands and Italy, and finishing second behind teammate Stirling Moss at the British Grand Prix.
Other exceptional performances by Fangio during this season included second spot at the Mille Miglia, driving solo in a Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR (W 196 S). Winner Stirling Moss, on the other hand, was accompanied by a co-driver, Denis Jenkinson, as was most of the field.
Following Mercedes-Benz’s withdrawal from motor racing at the end of the 1955 season, Fangio went on to win two more world championship titles with Ferrari (1956) and Maserati (1957). The following year, the Argentinean called an end to his racing career at the age of 47.
In 1974, he assumed the post of President of Mercedes-Benz Argentina S.A. His five Formula 1 world championship titles remained a record until his death in 1995, which was not surpassed until Michael Schumacher achieved the feat in 2003.
Today, tributes to Juan Manuel Fangio include five identical life-size bronze sculptures depicting the exceptional racing driver together with the W 196 R. They can be found in front of the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart, outside the Mercedes-Benz headquarters in Buenos Aires, as well as at the Nürburgring, Monza and Monaco circuits.
There is also a Fangio Museum in Balcarce that is run by a local association. Featuring numerous vehicles and other exhibits, it is dedicated to the racing driver’s whole life story.
Juan Manuel Fangio’s races for Mercedes-Benz
Juan Manuel Fangio’s races for Mercedes-Benz
Date
Race
Vehicle
Placed
17.2.1951
Gran Premio Presidente de la Nación Juan D. Perón (Circuito Costanera Norte, Buenos Aires)
W 163
3rd
24.2.1951
Gran Premio Maria Eva Duarte de Perón (Buenos Aires)
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