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Prototyp : Model :
Toyota Eagle MkIII Index

Dan Gurney's All American Racers had been working with Toyota's little two-liter turbo for many years, developing it to produce competitive power reliably. The carbon-tub MkIII was a new design introduced at the end of the season in 1991, coupled with the fully-developed Toyota engine, the car was an over-achievement. The MkIII was simply better than everything else running at the time, winning 21 races and a record 17 in a row, right up to the very end of the IMSA GTP series. More on the MkIII in Prototyp : Car > >

Our kits portray the car as it debuted for its first race at Laguna Seca at the end of 1991, and then as it appeared in its final form nearly two years later at Laguna Seca in 1993. While they look similar, nearly 50% of the parts are different between these two kits. Future releases will be the 1993 Daytona 24 Hours endurance winner and possibly a Sebring version.


( pE-004 ) MkIII Laguna Seca IMSA GTP 1993
( pE-009 ) MkIII Laguna Seca IMSA GTP 1991
Thinking about purchasing a kit but curious about how to build one first? Have a look at Construct, the online photographic building guide > >

Gallery

MkIII Laguna Seca 1993 > >
or alternate full-screen gallery

Project
02 DEC 03 : Toyota Eagle MkIII 'Laguna Seca' 1991 (Debut) kit is available.
24 NOV 03 : Debut version of the MkIII in final development. Test-builds being done for the kit's many new parts or revised parts; entirely new wing, wing struts, transmission, nose artwork, and rear wheels, add new side exhaust parts, change markings on all bodywork panels.
17 APR 03 : Toyota Eagle MkIII 'Laguna Seca' 1993 kit is available.

07 MAR 03 : The first MkIII kit is done and out for an independent test build. Work continues preparing two other variations, 1991 Laguna Seca and 1993 Daytona versions... Printing is a bit of a concern, as the first run of the XJR-11 turned out to be more expensive than planned. Efforts are underway to find a possible printing sponsor, as well as further research on printing technologies. It's a difficult challenge, finding the finest quality possible for the least amount of investment. All for better kits to you.

22 FEB 03 : Pre-production build nearly done. Bit of distraction from getting our house sorted and looking for work, but progress is good on all fronts. Bodywork builds up smooth and crisp, no problems with fit anywhere... even the nose diveplanes fit on perfectly. It does all take a little 'race-engineer' work as everything is quite precise and requires careful building. Good fun though. Construct illustrations nearly done, as is the online photo version. Next to do are parts numbers throughout, an independent test build, and then printing.
24 JAN 03 : Pre-production build going very smoothly. All the parts fit perfectly and the building process is pleasantly challenging without being terribly oblique. Shooting photography while building slows things down a bit, but so far the chassis build has taken about 8 hours, taking care to touch up all the paper edges and giving things plenty of time to dry. I glued the core 'tub' panels (an egg-box construction) to thick paper which when mounted makes the finished floor and chassis assembly extremely strong and stiff (good shipbuilder's technique). I piled a considerable amount of weight on it while it dried to see and it held true (and dried good and square). Working now on the building instructions for the chassis as well as continuing photography for the bodywork build.
20 JAN 03 : Revised nearly every part of the MkIII over the last couple weeks. Made some mistakes and missed some things when drawing up the source illustrations... things which really only became obvious when the model was built up and in three dimensions. Tweeks also occurred to help the model come together as a nice solid piece and to smooth the building process. Parts sheets locked down and the pre-production print is ready to be built up. Photographs from the build will create both the online photo construction guide as well as the illustrated version included in the kit.
10 JAN 03 : Quicky-build of the MkIII model in progress. Loads of new/revised parts now all singing together nicely. The bodywork is crisp and relatively simple to build, the new angled and curved parts fitting perfectly. The chassis has quite a bit more complexity compared to the XJR's and requires more accuracy and careful assembly of the builder. Next step is a high-res pre-production print and a final build for Construct.
28 DEC 02 : A last round of model to real-car photo comparisions revealed some missed subtlties in the bodywork. So, a whole new rear deck and roof were formed to correct this, as well as modifications to the rear section of the undertray. Livery and detail variations in progress for final bodywork parts sheets; different wing configuratons, nose/headlight graphics, rear bodywork panels.
20 DEC 02 : Last parts detail fiddling. Parts sheet layouts worked out in preparation for pre-production test build and Construct illustrations. Release will comprise 1991 Laguna Seca (debut race), 1993 Daytona (endurance winner), 1993 Laguna Seca (one of the last GTP races).
07 NOV 02 : Project resumes as XJR Easy-line project is wrapped up; MkIII left off working on last body parts (vented back part of rear fenders) and detail variations for different races.
07 AUG 02 : Final body graphics completed. On pause as the XJR-11's are finished.
02 JUL 02 : Wing and wheelset built... making rather quick work of this model.
25 JUN 02 : MkIII test build gallery
28 JUN 02 : Body parts test beta build. Wing, rear end, and wheelset being produced.
23 JUN 02 : Body parts test alpha build. Revisions being made...
29 MAY 02 : Easy version chassis revs include steerable wheels and better construction.
Many chassis parts will carry over to the Full version.
09 MAY 02 : Easy version body parts design underway. Chassis is well resolved now.
20 APR 02 : Easy version chassis engineering evolving. Early versions are too floppy...
02 APR 02 : Easy version parts design underway.
27 MAR 02 : New full-version tub and tunnel builds, work begins on "easy" version engineering.
06 JAN 02 : Work resumes.... new tub created from revised (accurate) technical illustrations.
02 MAR 01 : Trip to AAR a total success: excellent photos and measurments to work from.
04 JAN 01 : Planning trip to AAR to shoot and measure the actual car.
22 SEP 00 : As certain dimensions for the MkIII are unavailable, I've made a 'flat-side' simple box model to visualize my estimated proportions.
It came out sort of strange, and the photos are equally creepy. I think I'll wait to get real dimensions before continuing work. Model Preview > >