Turbomasters - Toy Design

Toy Design

Each Turbomaster had a missile launcher which became their engine or turbine when they were transformed into their vehicle mode. These missile launchers contained spring-powered projectiles so powerful that they were not released in the U.S. as they violated toy regulations. The small size of the missiles also presented problems, and any uses of the toy molds in the US have seen them altered so that the launchers where either neutered or made to fire larger missiles.

The Turbomasters all have design similarities. The four smaller Turbomasters—Boss, Scorch, Flash and Hurricane—all had silver faces and came with three yellow missiles alongside their missile launcher. Each missile had a slit in its side so that whilst one was in the missile launcher, the other two could be mounted on the Transformers vehicle and robot mode. They and the two larger Turbomasters—Thunder Clash and Rotorstorm—all had clear pink plastic forming their eyes, lightpipe, headlights, windscreens, and part of the missile launcher. The missile launcher itself was mostly blue, with the colour of the Transformer being that of the trigger and a ring around the launcher's barrel.

The two larger Turbomaster toy molds would also be reused for several different characters in later toylines:

• Thunder Clash was reused for Machine Wars Optimus Prime and was planned to be used for Transformers: Universe Menasor before being cancelled.
• Rotorstorm was reused for Machine Wars Sandstorm and for Transformers: Universe Whirl.

A seventh Turbomaster named Hyperdrive was intended for release in 1992, however it never progressed beyond the conceptual stage. It is theorised that it may have been a prototype for Thunder Clash, or that it was cancelled due to either costs or the similarity between the prototype design and that of Thunder Clash. Hyperdrive was described as the "pinnacle" of the 1992 Transformer releases and may have been considerably large compared to the rest of the line.