Am I the only one who noticed the similarities between these two? (I dont own aveo, but they look similar.)

 

Yup..that's what everyone was calling it at first before the name was known. "Autobot Swindle" or some variation thereof.

 

But they are COMPLETELY different molds,clearly the Aevo is not a retool of Swindle. Just for the record.

D/L

 

Yeah, the car modes are pretty similar, but they're totally different figs.

 

I know but is aveo the inspiration for swindle?

 

I dunno. There's a similarity to the Aveo, but I'm pretty sure he's not one. The side windows look wrong, as do the headlights. I'm not sure what he is, but it would seem odd to make a different Transformers Aveo model if they already had one in Swindle.

 

I remember reading somewhere that Swindle was based on a Chevy Cobalt. The headlights and grille still aren't quite right, though: they're altered to make him less identifiable as any real-world car.

As always, of curse, I could be wrong.  

 

Yes, he's based on a Chevy Cobalt.

I'm surprised it's not an officially-licensed vehicle, given that Hasbro had an extensive licensing deal with GM at the time.

 

Really? 'Cause I checked out the Cobalt as the first alternative and didn't see the resemblance at all...

 

I can't imagine the Aveo inspiring anything.

 

ZING! lol

But yeah..They transform very similarly, but they don't have any parts in common with each other. The only reason everyone WAS calling it an Autobot version of Swindle was because they do transform so similarly to each other and that they're both red.

 

Swerve vs. Swindle pics

Here are pics comparing the toys. They are as different as Autobots and Decepticons.
Alternate mode:




Transformation sequence:







Robot mode:




Well, they are both made in China, but that does not help.

 

Were any of the non-movie movie figures licensed? I can't think of any examples. Maybe the GM deal didn't cover the extras.

 

GM only allowed Autobots to be GM vehicles. Decepticons could be whatever. I believe that Evac and Incinerator (Osprey) were licensed Vehicles not in the movie (as characters).

 

Maybe there was a license for the Osprey since they were in the film (that was those at the base, yes?) but Hasbro didn't bother using it right away since it wasn't actually a TF. Evac is the Blackout mold, isn't it?
I dunno - I'm sure there were many weird legal things for the alt modes.

 

I made a mistake. I just read the box of my Incinerator figure and there is no reference to Osprey or any licensed manufacturer. Even though Incinerator cannot be identified with any other vehicle, it is not officially licensed. The Optimus Prime figure is not even licensed from Peterbuilt even though we all know it is a Peterbuilt semi truck.
Back to the topic. Swerve is much better than Swindle mostly because of poseablility. Though I have to admit, Swndle's love cannon is a cool gimmick.