This is a model of the 250 TR58 (chassis #0728) that Phil Hill and Olivier Gendebien drove to victory at the 1958 24 hours of Le Mans. The first of a long and prolific partnership that would add 2 other wins in 1961 and 1962.

Moss, in his usual flamboyant style, led the race with a comfortable lead in an Aston Martin DBR1,but to see his engine fail. The race conditions were appalling during the night and Phil Hill showed his wet weather driving skills. Duncan Hamilton, on his private D-Type, a great wet weather driver  too, took the lead but lost it to change brake pads. Gendebien, then, just had to follow the one lap down D-Type. Torrential rain made that race very difficult and Hamilton, trying to catch his one lap delay, ran faster and faster, while Gendebien eased off a bit to avoid taking too much risks. Unfortunately, the D-Type left the race when Hamilton had to avoid a slower car and went off in a big accident. Gendebien-Hill just had to nurse their TR58 to the finish to secure the Scuderia first Le Mans victory since 1954 and the 1958 Sports Car World Championship.

The 250 TR58 is the third 1/8th scale  curbside model in this range. It does not feature opening parts, but, as for the two other models, everything that is visible on the car is minutely and realistically detailed. The paint is made of several rubbed and polished coats to achieve a non-too glossy finish that would not be correct for that period. The cockpit area is full of interesting details. Interesting also is the shape of the bonnet bulge that makes you wonder of its efficiency as a forced air intake for the engine.  The wheels are painstakingly made by hand spoke by spoke as on the real Borranis and are painted green at the front and pale blue at the rear as it was in use at the time.  To achieve realism we did not necessarily use the real material as leather for leather parts or tissue for seats or wood for the steering wheel, paint techniques are far more rewarding and give a far better result.