Many of you guys may never heard about these toys. They are called the Choro-Q. First introduced in 1980 by Takaratomy ( previously known as Tomy ), it is one of the cutest toys you can get today. They all have shortened body and most of them have bigger rear wheels ( except for the smart car ). All are powered by pullback motors. Most of them are Japanese cars, but Choro-Q also makes many european and a few american cars. You may find some cars like the 1969 Mustang, Ford GT40, Chevy Corvette C3, Mk.5 Golf GTI, Mk.1 Golf, Fiat Panda, Fiat 500 ( both old and new ), Caterham Seven, and even Peugeot 205 GTI T16 ( Although they’re very very rare because they were made in the mid 80’s )
Precision is something it’s not. They make cars at a specific size, whether if the car is a Subaru 360 or a Hummer H2. I’m not kidding, a Choro-Q Subaru 360 is the same size as a Choro-Q Hummer H2. But you don’t buy these cars for it’s precision, you buy it because it’s cute. Choro-Qs mainly come at 1 size, but in the mid 2000s to somewhen near the 2010, they made smallers versions which are called the Chibikkos. And somehow, most of them are actually more precise, but not in the realistic way. I mean the headlights, the linings are better made, and the coloring is much better. Here’s a comparison to a chibikko and a regular Choro-Q.
Like other toys, Choro-Qs don’t come in 1 model. There are many editions of Choro-Qs. What you see above are 3 Choro-Q Silvia S15s from 3 different editions. The red Spec-S is from a J’s Tipo box set. The Silver Spec-R is from a detailed version of the original ( also with some personalization, like the spoiler, wheel, and exhaust ). And the green one, well it’s the D1GP edition. Pricisely, the Drift King’s car. There are many special editions, like the Real Gimmick Choro-Q ( RGQ), which has an astonishing detail. Some even have their bonnet open. Choro-Q also makes JGTC and Rally cars, including the Citroen Xsara and Nissan GTR NISMO GT500.
But wait, there’s more to it. Choro-Q also made 25cm long Choro-Qs to celebrate their 25th anniversary back in 2005. Yes, a jumbo Choro-Q. Being 25cm long it means that they are as big as 1/10 RC cars, just shortened. And guess what, they still have pullback motors, but you have to be crazy to play it indoors.But they were only 4 models, KPGC10 Skyline, R34 Skyline, Police R34 Skyline, and Baja bug. I’m lucky enough to own one, Although it costed about 60 GBP. Here’s a size comparison on how big the Jumbos are. I was surprised when I first saw it.
Takaratomy didn’t only make pullbacks. In the mid 2000s, they started on Q-Steers, radio controlled versions of the Choro-Q. It didn’t went very well so they don’t make many of it. In 2014, Choro-Q released something even cooler than Q-Steers, called the Q-Eyes. They are Choro-Qs, which have sensors in front of them, so they can turn on their own, like an autonomous car.
Getting interested? Well here’s are some bad parts of these cute little toys. Choro-Qs are getting very rare. The best place where you can buy one is probably eBay, and some aren’t cheap. Most Choro-Qs are over 5 years old, making them a bit rare to be found. Choro-Qs are still produced until today, just not in the same numbers is used to. There are 2 kinds of Choro-Qs you can still get today. First is the regular Choro-Q, this includes Q-Eyes. They are cheaper to buy and they are easier to get. The next one is the Choro-Q Zero, they are made by Tomytec, a division of Takaratomy which makes more detailed miniatures. They are not really meant to be played, they are meant to be displayed, as some parts of them are fragile and they are slow.
Shortly, Choro-Qs are very cute toys, they come in many shapes and not many sizes, but they are getting harder and harder to get. They are cute to look at and fun to play with.
