APC Auto Roller

This article is about a character or concept which lacks any official name or designation. For more information, see Help:Nameless.

The APC Auto Roller was to have been a character from the Generation 2 portion of the Generation 1 continuity family.

The "APC Auto Roller" is a mysterious fellow.

Toys

Generation 2

• ??? (Auto Roller, 1995?)
  • Accessories: Launcher rifle, 2 missiles, 4 launchable discs

• Known designers: Takio Ejima (TakaraTomy), Masakatsu Saito (concept artist)

Planned as an Auto Roller item for Generation 2, this Deluxe-sized toy transforms into an armored personnel carrier. Ultimately, this toy went unreleased; its name is unknown, if Hasbro ever decided upon one.

The figure has a disc-launcher in the front end/robot chest that is activated by the front wheels, with a switch to allow rolling without firing. The figure also has a small hand-held spring-loaded missile launcher that stores in the trunk; the missiles for this launcher store on the shoulder armor in both modes. The (non-firing) cannons on the central turret can raise and lower, making them usable in robot mode as shoulder-mounted weapons.

Like the similarly-unreleased jet Auto Roller, the APC Auto Roller has a three-setting switch that changes how the toy reacts to being rolled on a smooth surface. In the center setting, it rolls free in whichever mode it is in. The other two activate the toy's auto-transforming gimmick; with the switch to the left, the toy transforms from robot to APC when rolled forward (and back when rolled in reverse), while the right position transforms him from APC to robot when rolled forward (and back when in reverse).

This mold was ultimately revived by TakaraTomy and released in Beast Wars II as Autolauncher.

Proceed on your way to oblivion. This item has been canceled, with no current plans for release.

Notes

• The faction of this character is unknown. The first wave of Auto Rollers consisted of Decepticons (Dirtbag and Roadblock) while the unreleased second wave consisted of Autobots (General Optimus Prime and Sgt. Hound).
• It is noteworthy that the APC Auto Roller mold's head is very similar to the comic model for Crankcase, though Crankcase has a blue head and single visor. Why would anyone make a new-mold Crankcase toy in 1995? Who knows?
• In early Beast Wars planning, Hasbro conceptualized a McDonald's toy of Prowl as an "Auto Roller" moon buggy.^[1] It is unclear if this toy would have been related to the mold ultimately released in Beast Wars II.

References