Revell 1/25 '66 Chevelle Station Wagon Kit First Look

By Ken Kitchen

First Look

Engine: The 23 piece 396 C.I. V-8 engine is molded extremely well. It has an excellent level of detail typical of the current new releases. The engine block and transmission are molded in the traditional halves, everything else on the engine is depicted by individually molded components. It includes a fuel pump, coil and fan clutch that are not typically included in an engine.

Chassis: The floor pan is molded with the chassis. The front suspension is represented by seven pieces including separate upper A arms and disk brakes all around. The rear suspension consists of 12 pieces. These include a three piece differential, separate upper controls arms and a sway bar. The exhaust system is a one piece dual exhaust which will require minor clean up of mold lines.

Wheels and Tires: Large diameter wheels with low profile tires.

Interior: A platform-style interior, with 2 piece front bench seat, 2-piece rear seatback, the bottom is molded as part of the platform. The dash is a well done two piece unit with a three piece steering wheel. Well detailed separate side panels complete and tailgate panel complete the interior bucket..

Body: In a word “Beautiful”. No mold lines! No sink marks. Four well done separate door handles are also included. One minor irritation here was the choice to mold the battery as part of the inner fender well. A separate piece would have made detailing easier but it’s a minor nit. The engraving on the Malibu script on the rear quarters is a little light but this is made up for by the inclusion of Malibu scripts on the decal sheet.

Decals: Consist of wood grained flames for either side and all of the external scripts and badges. Dash gauges, radio and heater control decals, disc brakes and 2 “Waygone” license plates complete the sheet.

Comments: Cleanly molded, attractively packaged with excellent photos of the model on the box top and end flaps. The instruction sheet is well laid out with each part label by name and with painting suggestions. One short coming of this kit is the lack of stock building options. That can be countered by obtaining the 66 El Camino kit for the stock wheels and tires. You can use the hood from the El Camino with some modifications as its a little narrow, or purchase a resin hood which is available from several sources.

In spite of the lack of stock build options the design and quality of this kit make it a must buy for anyone interested in getting a beautiful example of a mid-60’s wagon.

My sincere thanks to Revell for supplying this review sample!

Ed Note: Ken is a member of Front Range Auto Modelers.