Name: Powerdasher
Series: Generation 1
Allegiance: Autobot
Function: Multi-Function Specialist
Alternate Mode: Dragster
DRAGSTER MODE
Height: 4.5cm Length: 9cm Width: 3.5cm
A small red sports car with a rather large tail, that's chrome silver with a black supporting strut. The tail is very tall, since it's the robot legs & feet, turning what could otherwise be some generic car into a dragster.
Being a Powerdasher, he's got the features common to all three toys in this set. The front wheels are small plastic affairs, the rear ones are yellow with rubber tyres and he has a pullback motor. The pullback motor is essentially the point of these small, inexpensive Diaclone moulds, and it has to be said that it's quite powerful.
There's a chrome silver section just in front of the cockpit, which is his robot head. The facial sticker is designed so it can pass as engine detail. The cockpit is open and there's a small Autobot symbol sticker inside. Being from the Diaclone line, I'd imagine a pilot can sit in this cockpit.
The front section is formed from the arms, and it doesn't all lock together well - there are clear and obvious seems visible.
As with the other Powerdashers, this car mode looks quite cheap, but it's better than most of the fake Transformers down through the years. The major feature of this mould is the pullback motor, and this works very well.
TRANSFORMATION TO ROBOT MODE
Fold down the tail, pull on the wing itself to extend them legs. Open the front section and fold the halves down to the sides, and fold down the hands. You'll probably have to fiddle with the feet a little since the car mode tail positioning would make him fall forward.
ROBOT MODE
Height: 9.5cm Width: 6cm
Again red dominates, but it's now joined by chrome silver on his face, thighs & feet and by black lower legs. Oh and the rubber tyres sit on his hips. His face is a sticker, as previously mentioned. If this sticker falls off he's going to look really crappy. Luckily it fits inside a depressed section so it shouldn't fall off, and sticker wear is very unlikely.
Again in this mode this Powerdasher looks kind of cheap, but still looks better than a lot of fakes. The small Autobot symbol is now at the top of his chest, which is cool. His arms point slightly out to his sides, as if he's about to raise them up and out.
His proportions are pretty good compared to a lot of small Transformers of the era (such as a lot of Minicars and combiner limbs). He has distinct hands which are more than just moulded impressions, which is also a lot more than many small Transformers of the time (especially combiner limbs) had.
While it's cheap and simple, this robot mode's reasonably good for what this toy is.
VARIATIONS
None that I'm aware of, although there were three randomly shipped Powerdashers.
OVERALL
I'm not going to lie - the main reason for getting a Powerdasher as a kid was the fact they were mail order only toys. The reason Hasbro took that route was because they weren't considered up to shelf standard (and Takara still had lots of stock of them). Like all Powerdashers, the best feature of this toy is the pullback motor (which works very well) and the worst feature being the reliance on chrome, which looks atrocious when it's worn. Not really a toy I'd strongly endorse, but if you can get it reasonably cheaply, it's kind of cool - 5/10
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