I remember being at the Matchbox Gathering in Albuquerque a few years ago when Felix Holst announced that Matchbox would do the Fisker Karma. Hearing Felix say "Fisker Karma" in his Sean Connery-like voice instantly made it sound cool, even though I had never heard of it. It did not take long for me to do a small bit of research and get very excited about this model.
Now there seems to be a rule of thumb when it comes to me and Matchbox models I am excited about. That rule is if jtl really wants a new model, it must come in the last batch of the year, just to make him wait. And wait I did. The model was announced at the Gathering in July 2009, and it was not until January 2011 that I finally got my hands on it. And that was after it appeared in Australia around Thanksgiving, and not in the States until two months afterwards. Pure torture.
There is a lot to like about the Fisker. First off it is a great choice for Matchbox. A unique car, a bit on the groundbreaking side, that looks good on the streets and in miniature. Also, the Fisker licensers have been adamant about the treatment the model gets, so it will always have the solar roof panel, and I assume front and reast detailing and logos. Matchbox obviously obliged, and has even adorned it in great colors (including white very soon). One other thing they did for Fisker is create the wheels they wanted. The Matchbox Fisker wears the large 5-spoke wheels. This 5-spoke style had already been on other models, but not this large version. Fisker liked the 5-spokes, and asked that a set of large 5-spokes be used on the model. Once again, Matchbox obliged, and we collectors have been all the better off for it. The Matchbox 5-spoke is one of the best plastic sports wheels out there, and the large wheels allows for some creativity on models like the Ford GT and Range Rover Sport.
This new version comes in a nice metalflake charcoal. I would put it behind the black and blue versions in terms of looks, but it is still quite attractive. Actually, all of them are quite attractive
(Remember to check out the variety of Matchbox models available over at MVE Collectibles, our Matchbox Monday partner...)
Matchbox Fisker Karma PHev (2012 mainline):
The family so far (There is a white version coming out soon in the 2013 range. As soon as it does I will post close-ups of all of them...):
