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Panorama Express (1974)

First written December 8, 2024

The Plarail Panorama Express is a white and red semi-fictitious Plarail train first released around 1975 and based on the external appearance of the Odakyu 3100 series NSE "Romance Car" with the tooling also later used to represent the proper orange and white color scheme and grey stripes of the real train. The idea of "panorama cars" were rising in popularity in Japan and Plarail would also release a version of the Panorama Car in the 1980s.

Panorama Express (1974)

The first Panorama Expresses were released as パノラマとっきゅう in a third generation lift-off-top box as well as in the Panorama Express set in summer 1974. Early examples of the Panorama Express had smooth roofs and the earlier style of "open" squarish couplings rather than the later round and solidly-connecting types.

Around 1974 it seems the little-known Rays toy company had a Hong Kong factory knock off the Panorama Express set for European sale, reaching the United States packaged by Straco in 1975. These sets included a direct-drive copy of the early Panorama Express including the mid 1970s coupling style and smooth roofs as well as a separate sticker sheet with the Ray's logo for the headmarks.

Panorama Express (1976)

In 1976 the Panorama Express was rereleased in fourth generation "train" packaging. The Plarail Museum has two different styles of Panorama Express train boxes in its collection.

EC-02 Panorama Express (1978)

In 1978 the the Plarail range transitioned to the longer-lived EC series of boxes. Later 1970s Panorama Expresses have textured roofs and the more modern interlocking style of coupling but are otherwise similar to the original releases.

The power switch sticks out of the left front of the power car similar to the mid-1970s Super Express Hikari - the chassis are pretty similar but this Panorama Express doesn't use quite the same tooling as my old Hikaris, although it could have diverged at some point.

In 1981 the Romance Car in proper 3100 series orange and grey using the Panorama Express toolings as well as the red Panorama Car were both released and in 1982 the red and white Panorama Express went out of production. The semi-modern new power Romance Car from the early 2000s is a descendant of the old-power Panorama Express, with remnants of where the power switch used to be in the chassis tooling. Nicely, in addition to the early smooth-roof car shown above, I have another late 70s Panorama Express intermediate car - they were one of the intermediate cars released individually in the later 1970s.