The Plasticos Iga release of G1 Sideswipe in Mexico (later exported to Europe) is probably one of the lesser known variants of the range, and quite difficult to spot if you don't know what to look for. Those who know that European auction sites and sales lists can often be spotted with Mexican variants are quick to notice a regular G1 toy where the plastic colour is a little off, or something about the stickers is not quite right. Sideswipe is one of those.
The main thing about Iga Sideswipe appears to be that the red paint across the toy has a very dull matte quality compared to the gloss of the Takara/Hasbro G1 Sideswipe. The white plastic on the legs and waist is the normal off-white cream variety Iga is well known for.
The specimen I've got here has the roof damage and is missing 2 missiles and the launcher. There's plenty of paint wear but nothing actually broken. The stickers are all over the place too, and not all of them belong to Sideswipe...in fact none of them belong to Sideswipe! They seem to be from a Jumpstarter. Probably the Mexican one I got in the same lot as this from Yugoslavia!
Worn, damaged, Mexican, inferior paint and plastic, wrong stickers...he's still G1 Sideswipe and he's still beautiful. For collectors of G1 car variants, I imagine a mint one would be a mega score, I recall seeing very few boxed Iga Sideswipes compared to things like Wheeljack, Trailbreaker, Ironhide, Hound or even Hoist and Prowl. Even the Red Alert is not an easy find, both that and this are subtle variants that can always be missed in lots.
Like Iga Red Alert, the Mexican Sideswipe has a duller grey paint on the robot face, not quite the same shine on it as a Hasbro Sideswipe. You can kind of make out the different red plastic colour as well in these images. It is almost orange-tinged. The copyright on Sideswipe doesn't have the block over "Japan" either, which again reduces the number of immediate Iga identifiers by one for those not used to Mexican G1 traits.
These days it's getting harder for me to become excited about individual vintage variants, having sold so many they act as a novelty and something intriguing, but no longer an addition to my collection. So they come in, get photographed and documented, and get sent on their merry way. That said, I have never seen this one in the flesh before, something tells me if I had the chance to own a complete one with no damage...well, you may know I have a few other special Sideswipes that I haven't been able to part with.
All the best
Maz
Maz
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