User:Neiltopaz/Sandbox

Autofest City, is India's largest collection of authentic scale models founded by brothers Clyde (DOB:2nd November 1963) and Neil (DOB:3rd November 1968) D'Costa. The collection has authentic replicas spanning over 140 years of transportation history, with special on automobiles.

Autofest City, has received special acclaim for its unique displays and being the only collection to be housed in a dedicated 720 sq. ft. building at the brothers' home.

The Early Years
This is more than just a collection of scale models – it is a profound passion shared by brothers Clyde and Neil D’Costa. From small beginnings – two Scale 40 models by Maisto bought at a store in Mysore in early 1996 - the collection has over 1,200 replicas of historically important automobiles today.

The collection began in a small showcase – sharing space with their mother’s crockery. When space ran out, it was moved to its own showcase on the first floor of their home. The brothers always liked to add value to their models on display with diorama – petrol pumps, car washes, dealership buildings and theme parks. So the next move to a 5-level, 16 ft. showcase for the Scale 40 and 43 display offered an unlimited opportunity to add more diorama – a truck stop, railway station, church, police station, construction site, club-house and business park. The collection on display resembled a city complete with roads and road signs in miniature – so the brothers named it Autofest City.

The Big Move
Moving up to Scale 24 and 18 models, necessitated more space for displays. After the two bedrooms on the first floor of their home proved insufficient, it was their ever-supportive mother who gave them the great idea of constructing a separate building just adjacent to their home for the collection. And so it came to be that Autofest City moved to its own premises measuring 720 square feet, which the boys named in her honour, ‘Tessy Block’.

Unique Displays
Since the early days, Clyde and Neil have strived to make their hobby interesting and informative rather than just collecting in numbers. Their Scale 24 and larger models are displayed under hand-crafted glass display cases. Within each display are •	technical details of the real automobile with a list of highlights, •	detailed photographs of the real automobile •	printed logos •	photograph of the automobile company’s founder (if available) •	a miniature flag of the country of origin •	any other piece of information to enhance the value of the model on display.

The brothers have resourcefully used the abundant information on the Internet to enhance their collection’s intrinsic value.

Autofest City's Firsts
The collection is from among the very few in the world that has authentic replicas of the world's first combustion engined automobiles, airplane and steam-engines.

Scale 8, 1885 Daimler Reitwagen (the world’s 1st motorcycle) http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ThePioneersPart1/photo#5128158158488845298

Scale 16, 1886 Daimler Motorcarriage (the world’s 1st 4-wheeled automobile) http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ThePioneersPart1/photo#5128157144876562594

Scale 8, 1886 Benz Patent Motorwagen (the world’s 1st 3-wheeled automobile) http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ThePioneersPart1/photo#5128157866431068914

Scale8, 1893 Duryea Power Wagon (America’s 1st 4-wheeled car, which participated in and won the 1st automobile race in the world) http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ThePioneersPart2/photo#5128160894383013922

Scale 6, 1896 Ford Quadricycle (Ford’s 1st car) http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ThePioneersPart2/photo#5128160267317788210

Scale 21, 1903 Wright Flyer One http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ThePioneersPart2/photo#5128159756216679522

Under construction is a replica of the world’s first practical steam engine – Scale 26, 1829 Stevenson’s Locomotive. Being added to the collection very soon is the world’s first steam engine, the Scale 38, 1804 Trevithick's locomotive. Both are kits from Minicraft Models.

Autofest City's Series
Autofest City is a specialized collection. Only replicas from leading marques like Ferrari, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Lamborghini, Porsche, Jaguar and Volkswagen, with specific technological or historical importance find a place here.

The brothers have also created their own series - The Decade Series, The Value Addition Series and The Nostalgic Cinema Series.

The Decade Series (20th Century) featuring at least one outstanding automobile from every decade in the 20th culminating with Motoring Around The World, featuring three outstanding automobiles from three major automobile manufacturing continents. http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/TheDecadeSeries19002000

The Nostalgic Cinema Series featuring automobiles either owned or used by film celebrities or in films we have seen. http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/Cadillac1939Present/photo#5119933054133386082

The Value Addition Series featuring automobiles which have been customized by us. Our workshop scene displays too are a part of this series. http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale24

The collection also has a good number of the final 100 nominees of the Car Of The Century.

Models from Kits / Partially Scratch-built
Clyde loves to build scale models from kits – there are quite a few intricate kits that he has assembled, in many instances using the Internet clubbed with his own reasoning and skill.

Clyde has also undertaken some customization on standard kits or scale models Scale 18, 1956 Chevrolet tow-truck from a basic pickup by Mira. http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5203052427597257506 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5203052449072094018

Scale 18, 1954 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLS modified from a regular 300SL model by Bburago. http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/MercedesBenz19561957/photo#5124830034972457074

Scale 16, 1930 Lincoln Towncar from an R Dietreich dual-phaeton body kit. http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/Lincoln/photo#5124066733384605938

Scale 24, 1934 Rolls Royce Phantom II Towncar from standard open top kit by Minicraft Models. http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/RollsRoyce/photo#5127013987791120066

Scale 24, Freightliner Tractor Trailer from wrecking truck kit by Minicraft Models. Scale 24, 2000 Volkswagen Beetle by Bburago with dual body paintwork http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale24/photo#5129300289077105458

Autofest City's Diorama
Their mother Tessy and Neil’s wife, Deena, are both instrumental in giving the collection the proverbial ‘shot-in-the-arm’. A host of displays at Autofest City are graced with creations from the D’Costa women who are both skilled artists. The backdrops they create almost make the displays come alive. A few of Autofest City's models are displayed with real-life diorama – Hummer H1 & H2 SUT in Operation Desert Storm; http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/HUMMER/photo#5122165777153877234

Camping site http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/Cadillac1939Present/photo#5119932830795086450

two motorcades (American & German) complete with out-rider motorcycles, lead cars, limousines and security vehicles – given here are links to the American Motorcade scene http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137060127129383362 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137059805006835890 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137060140014285266 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137060109949514162

automobile workshop for classic era cars (Scale 18). http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137060238798533170 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137059882316247282 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137059843661541586 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137059899496116482 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137059989690429778 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137060157194154466 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137060221618663970 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137060307518009970 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137060273158271570 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale18/photo#5137060324697879170

Workshop scene (Scale 24). http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale24/photo#5129299915414950498 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale24/photo#5129300044263969442 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale24/photo#5129300100098544306 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale24/photo#5129300151638151906 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale24/photo#5129299979839459954 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale24/photo#5129300190292857602 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale24/photo#5129300276192203554 http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/ValueAdditionScale24/photo#5129300336321745746

Recognition
Autofest City has made it to the Limca Book of Records 2006 which is a remarkable achievement for the D’Costa brothers. Since 2007 the collection took a step forward in the Limca Book of Records, joining an exclusive club of noteworthy museums across the country. This year the collection has been declared the largest in the country and conferred with a National Record.

The collection has been featured in a host of national magazines, national and regional newspapers, on two television channels. Rotary Mysore, the city's premier service club published a special edition on the collection after Neil delivered an audio-visual presentation at their club meeting jointly conducted with the Inner Wheel Club of Mysore.

Inspiration & Involvement
The collection has had visitors from all around the world. Everyone has been amazed by the presentation and the whole-hearted dedication of the D’Costa family that goes to make Autofest City remarkably unique. Many have drawn inspiration from Autofest City and started their own scale model collections.

The brothers honour those who help them procure hard-to-get or rare replicas or render any valuable service to Autofest City, by conferring on them the title of ‘Patron’ and awarding a certificate of appreciation.

Clyde and Neil also publish a newsletter which informs their patrons, friends and well-wishers about various aspects of the collection, in addition to introducing new additions. If you would like to subscribe, please write to neiltopaz@yahoo.com. For safety and security reasons, the collection is not open to the general public and continues to be a private hobby as the display area comprises of glass display cases and fragile scale models, some of which are out of production and no longer available.

Automobile Passion
The brothers’ love for automobiles goes much beyond their scale models – their earlier Contessa Classics, their Kinetic Honda scooters and presently their TATA Indigos and Indica are impeccably maintained. At the Customer Meet 2007 organized under the joint auspices of TATA Motors and Mysore’s dealers M/s. Urs Kar Service Centre Pvt. Ltd., Neil was among the top ten TATA car owners of Mysore to be honoured. http://picasaweb.google.com/autofestcityindia/TheDCostasWheels#

Observing the D’Costa brothers love for cars, it is evident that passion for automobiles does go to some extremes.