We’ve just fallen down a Slot Mods rabbit hole. In case you didn’t know, the Michigan-based company creates bespoke, handcrafted 1:32-scale slot car tracks for the rich and famous.
If you have the funds, Slot Mods will create your dream track or replicate a real-world track, complete with aluminium Armco crash barriers and little details from a moment in time or a notable event.
A ‘Custom Scenic Megatrack’ will set you back at least $75,000 (£60,500), although a more ‘affordable’ ‘Standard Scenic Raceway’ is available for $50,000 (£40,300). In both cases, you’re looking at a long wait before you can get your slot on.
Which is where the Slot Mods Porsche 917 Le Mans Slot Car Raceway comes in. It’s advertised for sale via auction on Bring A Trailer, so you won’t have to join a queue, but at the time of writing bidding had reached $90,000.
The track is built in the style of the 24 Hours of Le Mans course as it appeared in the 1971 movie Le Mans and is housed in a replica Porsche 917 body.
Remember that Scalextric set you yearned to find under the Christmas tree as a child? This is that with the coolness level cranked up to eleven.
Cool enough to tempt the Scalextric social media team into tweeting about it.
The 917’s body features a clamshell design that opens via remote control to reveal a 13ft long by 6ft wide layout with hand-painted track surfaces, structures, signs, landscaping and spectators. Note the Dunlop bridge, Esso ‘Mr Drip’ and Martini barn.
The set, which has been owned by the vendor for a decade, also features trackside lighting, grandstands, hay bales, trees, shrubbery and 19 slot cars.
Highlights include a Ford GT40 modified as a camera car, Ferrari 512S Coda Lunga, Lola T70 and a Porsche 917 in Martini. Naturally, the 917 driven by Steve McQueen in the 1971 film is also present and correct.
The auction closes just after 10pm on Tuesday 4 April, so there’s no time to waste if you think this set could find a slot in your life. In 2012, it was available for $125,000, so grab a bargain.
Read more
Groove rider: Slot car racing is back
Why everyone wants a Slot Mods 1:32-scale race track
Model builder’s incredible Lingotto slot-car track
