Expanding the Collection

The following toy cars were purchased or received in trade by Doug Breithaupt in the previous month. Some are new but others are older diecast acquired from other collectors. The prices paid are also shown. This addition to 'Tales of Toy Cars'. is intended to share recent finds with fellow collectors. If you have found some interesting diecast cars recently, let me know and send an image if possible, attached to an e-mail.

POLFI-TOYS

Renault 17TS - trade

HOT WHEELS

1981 Dodge Aries Wagon - $4.00

Porsche (set) 917 - trade

Porsche (set) 550 Spyder - trade
Porsche (set) Boxter - trade

Porsche (set) 930 Turbo - trade

1963 Chevy Corvette (Edelbrock) - $4.49

Turismo (DeLorean) - $.50

ZYLMEX

1978 Chevrolet Camaro #P367 - $.50

REI/SCHUCO

VW Gol-L, #301883 - $2.00

KENNER -FAST 111's

Triumph TR8 'TR Terrific' - $.50
JOHNNY LIGHTNING

1959 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz - $2.99

Acura Integra - $2.99

Honda Civic - $2.99

Nissan Skyline - $2.99

CAR OF THE MONTH

Rolls Royce Phantom VI 'Go Bot Tux' -
Bandai, $2.00

ADDITIONS THIS MONTH

The Car of the Month for March is a Rolls Royce Phantom VI by Bandai. It is one of their Go Bot series from 1984 and was called 'Tux'. These type of transforming cars are not usually my cup of tea but this one is a decent toy car in it's own right. Other than the overly-thick grill, the car is a good representation of the Phantom VI.

While I have read about Polfi Toys of Greece, I had never seen one of their models. Now, thanks to a collector in Estonia, I have one! The Renault 17TS by Polfi Toys joins the examples I have from Majorette and Matchbox. The quality of Polfi Toys is much like Guisval of Spain or Buby of Argentina. Greece is certainly not known for diecast toy cars and it's great to add this car to the collection.

Many of the cars for this month came from a local toy show. I found several Hot Wheels I have wanted for some time. The Dodge Aries Station Wagon has to be one of the unlikeliest choices for a Hot Wheels model. Perhaps that's why I've wanted one. For $4 it seemed quite fair. I made a trade for the HW Collector's Porsche set. The car I really wanted was the Gulf-Porsche 917, made famous in the movie 'Le Mans' staring Steve McQueen. The other three models are also quite good although the 550 Spider is the exact same scale as the Hongwell model, making it 1:72. I also could not resist the Edlebrock '63 Corvette vintage racer as I have often seen the real car compete and the colors are exactly right. I found a better Turismo/DeLorean for $.50. Perhaps I'll attempt a restoration of my rough example in DeLorean silver.

The '78 Camaro by Zylmex was missing from my collection. Now I have it in shocking pink. I also found an REI/Schuco VW Gol-L, made in Brazil. The real car was built in Brazil too! I've been looking for Kenner's TR Terrific for some time, a wild Triumph TR8 from the Fast 111's series. This one is a bit rough but complete.

Johnny Lightning's '59 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz is almost as nice as the Racing Champions version. Almost because the JL wing-windows are quite sloppy. The JL is also missing a side mirror but otherwise is very good. JL is also the latest to jump on the 'tuner' tornado. Fortunately JL decided to keep some of their Integra, Civic and Skyline models very clean and sharp-looking. I picked these and I especially like the paint on the Civic.

Kay Bee Toys had many Matchbox models on sale and I found two collector models I missed. The VW Cargo Van and the '55 Chevrolet coupe are nice additions to my stackable collector display models, now at 18 pieces.

High Speed has been offering promotional models through Reader's Digest for some time. I found five, boxed brass-era cars at the toy show. These are basic models but they offer examples of cars not seen in 1:64 scale. Unfortunately, High Speed has simply re-labeled some of these models. The Pierce Arrow is actually the same as the Rolls Royce Silver Ghost, offered earlier.

I was amazed to see new Majorette models in a local toy store. The owner said she was able to get a small supply. I bought the VW Golf IV GTI and a re-paint of the Porsche Turbo in Carrera trim. The toy show provided a Chevy Impala taxi in black and yellow. An older model, #206, the Chrysler 180 was received in trade.

A street version of Corgi's Porsche 935 was an easy decision for $1. This car was actually available from Porsche for street use if you had a deep-enough wallet. Also for $1 was Emmo's Penske Indy Car from his championship year, done by Racing Champions.

I am not a fan of huge SUV monsters in any scale but my Cadillac collection in 1:64 is close to complete and the Escalade SUV is a Cadillac. XConcepts did a good job with this beast. The hood opens to show the Northstar V8 and it came with extra tires and windows in red tint.

One of the most interesting models this month also came from my Estonian connection. It is a Russian-made Lada 2101 Vaz by Meha, which was a copy of a Fiat sedan. While I had an example of this car in tan, this red (an appropriate color) one came in it's original form-fitted hard plastic package. The base of the plastic case identifies the maker and model but it's all in Russian. I'll have to get it translated to see all the details. The base also has little tire-chocks to hold the model tightly in place and the condition of this model shows how effective this packaging was in protecting the toy car.

 
MATCHBOX

1967 VW Cargo Van (50th Anv.) - $1.99

1955 Chevrolet Belair (Barrett-Jackson) - $1.99
MEHA

Lada 2102 Vaz - trade

Lada in hard plastic case, base in Russian below

HIGH SPEED

Thomas Flyer #213- $1.00

Ford Model T #304 - $1.00

Pierce Arrow (RR Silver Ghost) #302 - $1.00

Peerless #211 - $1.00

Simplex #305 - $1.00

MAJORETTE

Chrysler 180 #206 - trade

VW Golf IV GTI #284/224 - $1.50

Porsche 911 Turbo Carrera #209 - $1.50

Chevrolet Impala Taxi #240 - $1.00

CORGI

Porsche 935 - $1.00

RACING CHAMPIONS

Penske Indy Car (Fittipaldi) - $1.00
XCONCEPTS

2002 Cadillac Escalade - $3.99