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Volume VIII, Number 3 |
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Expanding the Collection
CORGI JADA  1985 Cadillac Brougham - $2.49  1990 Lincoln Town Car - $2.49  1995 Cadillac Fleetwood - trade  BMW M3 AC Schnitzer - $2.49  Dodge Charger - $2.49 JOHNNY LIGHTNING  1992 Chevrolet Camaro - $2.99  Ford Bronco - $2.99  Bugaboo - $1.66  1973 Pontiac Grand Am - $2.99  Jeep CJ5 - $2.99  VW Karmann Ghia - $2.99  1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass 350 - $2.99  Ford Ranchero - $2.99  1967 Buick GS 340 - $2.99 |
It is rare that I spend more than $5 for a toy car. Still, as the years have passed, certain models have been so hard to find that I have realized that to own them would require me to spend more serious money. This month's feature car from Penny was one of those situations. The Alfa Romeo Bertone 2600 Sprint seems to be much easier to find as a police car than in stock trim. When I spotted this perfect example at a recent toy show, I held my breath and asked the price. The seller wanted $30. He also had the Playart Alfa Romeo P33 and wanted $10 for that one. The show was almost over and my offer of $25 for both was accepted. The second feature car is Jada's new Ford GT. This 1:55 scale beauty shows represents Ford's fantastic neo-retro exotic. It also comes in yellow with black stripes and it is simply a great toy car. Congratulations to Jada to be the first to offer this instant classic in small-scale. The Hot Rodder from Corgi is a curiosity at best. The tail is open-wheeled while the front wheels are semi-enclosed with skirts but open on the top. A drive in the rain would be interesting and very wet for the driver and passenger. Jada is beginning to get serious about producing realistic models. Perhaps they want to become the Norev of North America. In addition to the new Ford GT, I added two Cadillacs, a Lincoln and a BMW, as well as a vintage Dodge Charger. Like Norev and Siku, Jada likes 1:55 scale. The Cadillacs are interesting as they represent 10 and 20 year old models. The '95 Fleetwood is not a model I expected to see done any more than the '85 Brougham Coupe. Sure, these are 'street' rides but with correct colors and wheels could be offered as stock. In fact, the 1990 Lincoln Town Car is almost stock in appearance. I cannot recall another company offering a 15 year old 'used' car as a toy car as Jada is doing. The BMW M3 is a tuned AC Schnitzer version and represents the 3 Series just replaced by BMW. This is a must-have for Bimmer fans with excellent detail. The purple Dodge Charger is from Jada's muscle series and the deep plum color was just too tempting. New Johnny Lightning models were finally found and were worth the wait. The '92 Chevy Camaro in white with red-line tires was bought because this color combination looks so good. I once owned a '72 Jaguar XJ6 in white with red-stripe tires and always liked the combination. The new Ford Bronco model is fun and represents the beginning of the Bronco line. The Bugaboo is an older model that I had never found before. It was on sale and I could not resist. The '73 Pontiac Grand Am is a companion model to the '73 Pontiac GTO released earlier. Each is cast with a different grill. The Jeep CJ5 has to be about the best model of this vehicle done yet. While I have the VW Karmann Ghia already, this color combination looks so authentic. The Olds Cutlass 350 is a welcome variation on the junior muscle car theme. The wheels are especially nice and it's great to see a '70 Olds that is not a 442 for a change. The same can be said of the Buick GS 340. JL is smart to offer these second-level muscle models. The Ford Ranchero extends our selection of both Ranchero and Falcon models. Based on the Falcon platform, this truckette represents an interesting bit of auto history and another 'first' in small-scale. Several Zylmex models were found at the recent toy show that are seldom seen. The Ford Mustang Cobra 'Street Racer' is crude compared to the examples from Johnny Lightning but I like it anyway. The Lotus Europa is even rarer and represents some of the earliest Zylmex models. it is #D36 and like some other models of this period, appears to be 'inspired' by the Matchbox casting. Two more hard-tp-find Playart models came my way. The Alfa Romeo P33 concept car was also done by Corgi. The Corvette Mako Shark is another concept car and was the first version of this model offered in 1:64. Nice examples by Motor Max and Racing Champions are more recent offerings. Some consider the original Matchbox MOY Bentley 4.5 ltr. to be the only small scale Bentley available in diecast. Matchbox did a later version of this car for the MOY series in larger scale. The original is small but the scale is still larger than 1:55 scale. Does it qualify as small-scale? For $5 this rough example was an easy addition to my Bentley collection. The plastic H.T. model turns out to be a copy of the Matchbox Ford Zephyr 6. It was made in Hong Kong and comes with a driver. Three Tin Toys were found at a local junk store. These appear to have been 'inspired' by Yat Ming, Corgi or Matchbox models but are still interesting. The Buddy L name dates back to 1921 but it has not represented small-scale diecast until now. These crude models are sold by Imperial who may now own the Buddy L name. These two models came in a 5-vehicle set with a motorcycle and two trucks, all for just $1. Road Champs Mercedes-Benz 500 SEC may not have done much racing but this version is ready. It joins a Dr. Pepper Nissan 300ZX and Slice Jaguar XJ-S that I already had from Road Champs with this same soda-racing theme. For 25 cents I added yet another Kenner Fast 111 to the collection. This six-wheeled, mid-engine vis-a-vis is identified as the 'Saturn Seeker'. It's a good thing GM did not add this one to the Saturn line. Many years ago, a Post cereal promotion offered toy cars in cereal boxes. Most of the models were from Yat Ming but all of the bases were generic. This Porsche 928 is one of these models and the casting is Yat Ming. |
ZYLMEX PLAYART  Alfa Romeo P33 - $5  Mako Shark I - $2 MATCHBOX  Bentley 4.5 ltr. - $5 H.T.  Ford Zephyr 6 - trade TIN TOYS.  Chevrolet Astro 1 - $1  De Tomaso Mangusta - $1  Lamborghini Miura P4000 - $1 BUDDY L  Ford Wagon - $.20  Jeep - $.20 ROAD CHAMPS  Mercedes-Benz 500 SEC - $.25 KENNER  Saturn Seeker- $.25 YAT MING  Porsche 928 - $1` |
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