Salvinos JR 1/20 Scott McLaughlin Dallara DW12, previewed by Scott Van Aken

The Dallara DW12 (formally named the Dallara IR-12) is an open-wheel formula racing car developed and produced by Italian manufacturer Dallara for use by the teams in the IndyCar Series. The DW12 was first used in the 2012 IndyCar Series season, replacing the nine-year-old Dallara IR-05 chassis. It is to be replaced by the planned Dallara IR-27, whose arrival has been pushed from 2027 to 2028 by engine-production delays, supply chain delays and money problems.

Under a deal negotiated by the IndyCar organization, each chassis costs $349,000. Since 2015, Honda and Chevrolet have offered alternatives to the Dallara aerodynamic kit. No IndyCar chassis has been used for a longer period of time.

The DW12 added safety features such as a partial enclosure around the rear wheels and a redesigned front section intended to prevent single-seater crashes such as the one that killed Dan Wheldon, the chassis' test driver and namesake. Wheldon was killed at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on October 16, 2011, the final race of the previous IR-05.

Scott McLaughlin (born 10 June 1993) is a New Zealander racing driver. He competes in the IndyCar Series, driving the No. 3 Dallara-Chevrolet for Team Penske, with whom he has won 7 races so far. He previously raced in the Supercars Championship, in which he won the drivers' title in 2018, 2019 and 2020.

THE KIT

Salvinos JR released their first Indy Car kit in 2024 with Josef Newgardens 2023 Indy 500 winning car. Since then several other modern Indy Car kits have been released, each kit apparently differing only by the decals included. This is a 2024 release featuring Scott McLaughlin's car from 2023. The kits all feature cars that ran in the Indy 500 and as such only come with the UAK18 universal aero kit, which is the speedway set up used since 2018. I personally would like to see other wing types included, but that is up to the manufacturer to decide.

The kit is molded in black for the chassis parts, and yellow for the body parts. Personally I'd rather see the whole kit in a grey, but I understand why it is done like this. Engine parts and the wheels are molded in grey and there is a clear windscreen. Four rubber tires are provided.

Based on my few Tamiya 1/20 F1 builds, this kit seems to follow a similar build sequence. There is a full lower chassis while the upper body is in sections and the rear bodywork pieces are 'no glue' parts so you can remove them to show the engine and suspension when the kit is finished.

Instructions are generic for all their Indy Car kits, which at this writing exceeds a half dozen. In the instructions are construction sequences for both the Chevy and Honda engines, though only one of the two can actually built with what comes in the kit. All paint info is provided with Tamiya paints. One will need to match the Pennzoil Yellow that is on the decal sheet. This is a kit that will need to be painted as construction moves along.

You are provided with three large decal sheets. One is for the myriad of carbon fiber parts that are the norm on modern race cars. This sheet is common for all their Indy Car kits. All the decal numbers on this sheet match the kit part number. The other is the unique markings for Scott McLaughlin's car. I'm sure most will also paint the bare plastic chassis and suspension parts with a gloss or semi-gloss black. An addendum sheet is included for the unique decal placement.

Bought this one from a Facebook model sales page as the price was quite good and this boxing is no longer available unless you want to pay $125-$250.00 for it (which I do not). In the box, this looks like a very nice kit. I can only hope that the engineering is as good as a Tamiya kit, but only building it will really tell.

KIT #:	2023SM
PRICE:	$55.00 Delivered
DECALS:	One Livery
REVIEWER:	Scott Van Aken
NOTES:	2024 release