Every now and then – in fact, I would say on average about once every 2 years or so – I go on a little tear buying 1:43 scale cars. Now, you know the vehemence with which I declare “I do not collect 1:43!” There’s a reason for that vehemence: can you imagine how much trouble I would be in if I did??? I already have countless thousands of 1:64 die-casts and, when I got into “HO” slot cars 5 years ago, I started this blog, and now I have well over 500 of those. If I started collecting 1:43 on top of that, I wouldn’t have any space left in my house…but then again, I probably wouldn’t have a house, because I wouldn’t be able to pay my bills for spending all my scratch on toy cars!
Oh! The Humanity!
And its hard, because Corgi and Dinky made some beautiful toy cars! Need a refresher? I got one!
Feast your eyes, dear readers, on this lot of Corgi’s from the ‘60s that have arrived within the last month. With only a couple of exceptions, these models are not “collector grade.” They show varying signs of playwear with conditions ranging from pretty good to pretty rough, but none are “mint and boxed.” And no wonder! If they were, each of these would have cost me well over $100 each-in many cases over $200 each-and hey, I want to spend that BIG money on Thunderjets and my TomyAFX track! So, not being a collector of 1:43, I settle for these playworn copies…and lemmetellya…”settling” never looked so cool!
For our first feature, I give you one I’ve been wanting since I was 14 years old, when I saw it at a toy fair where I’d gone to look for Matchbox cars: the turquoise and white racing version of the Aston Martin DB4. Amongst the most beautiful cars in history, the DB4 and DB5 are my favorite Astons, and Corgi did the real car justice with this release! Some other versions of this casting, such as the early solid red and solid yellow versions, are not as pleasing to the eye, but this racing version takes the cake! I love the way it’s presented in very period colors, and the flag and number labels, chrome disc wheels, and trademark jeweled headlights add an immense touch of class.
I was very lucky to have gotten this beauty for a price that must be half its market value in this condition, and I jumped on it instantly when I saw it come up for sale. Its almost embarrassing how much joy finally acquiring this model has brought me!
Moving right along, we have a pair of Buick Rivieras, another model of a real car I love and yearn to own. I’ve actually had the gold one for about 4 years since I bought it at the 2021 Rocky Mtn Train show, so it is included here for contrast with the blue version, which just arrived a few days ago from a seller in CO Springs, and with its wire wheels which mimic the “turbine” hubcap option of the original car and its “Trans-O-Lite” head- and tail-lamps which light up prismatically when they catch ambient light, it looks like just what it is: a rich man’s muscle car! Both the gold and blue versions feature red interior. The tow hook is worse for wear, but I wasn’t planning on towing anything with it!
Another favorite: the MGB GT, and this one is a replacement for a much rougher copy I bought about 3 years ago that I got super-cheap, but was just too battered to enjoy. This new one was not cheap-this was the most expensive one of this group-but yeah, of course it was: look at it! The wire wheels, the logo sidewall tires, the flip-forward seats…it even still has the little suitcase in the “boot!” Another one I saw at that same toy fair as a kid along with the Aston Martin and never forgot, this model was also released in orange-which is very rare-and with a modified bonnet as the 6-cylinder MGC GT in yellow with black accents, but like I say, firsts are often the best!
And lastly, we have a trio of Gen I Mustang fastbacks…because I LOVE Gen I Mustang fastbacks! I am still hell-bent on putting a real one in my garage some day, but in the meantime, these toys help me dream! Now, I admit, wire wheels on a Mustang don’t seem historically accurate, although its worth noting that each color this car was made in was released with 3 different types of wheels. I didn’t go looking for the wire wheeled models, I just happened upon them at prices I was willing to pay, but I ain’t gonna say they don’t look great!
The lilac version is the rarest of these, the white “competition version” the most common, with the silver somewhere in between. The silver one is very rough with its collapsed suspension, and was delivered with one tire missing and the other 3 crumbling off, and it took over a month for me to get a set of replacements, since the 1st vendor I bought them from-who was in Canada-shipped them, but they never arrived (something about a postal worker strike up there in the Great White North?) He graciously issued me a refund when I contacted him after nearly 3 weeks, and I fortunately found another vendor in PA and bought another set, but they took over another week to arrive, so she just got new shoes minutes before this photoshoot! The paint has been touched up here and there with a silver marker, but other than being a “low rider” it cleaned up pretty well! There are 2 additional colors-medium metallic blue and the rarest one, mint green-that are still out there waiting for me to find! There’s also a weird “psychedelic” version in pale blue with trippy graphic labels that sells for insane prices for some reason, so I’ll likely pass on that one.
I noted that the “competition model” has no interior door panels like the other 2; is this because they’re just missing from this “pre-loved” model, or is it that Corgi left them off for an added dose of realism, since most street cars stripped for racing had no door panels? Don’t know…do you? Either way, you can see looking at the rear greenhouse that the comp version also did away with the doggy-woggy slumbering in the rear package tray, which adds a nice dose of “domesticity” to the streeters!
None of this trio are in great shape. But hey, they were cheap, and they’re mostly in-tact, and still really cool!
So here is the whole gang of new properties surrounding an excellent book that my great friend Harrison gave me for X-mas many moons ago: if, like me, you are a fan of the British-made die-cast cars of the 1950s, ‘60s, and ‘70s – and if you’re reading this blog, I think you probably are! – this mirthful publication by Giles Chapman (gawd, could you even conceive of a more British name???) is a terrific read! Informative, entertaining, and loaded with great photographs, it was clearly written by a fellow enthusiast who loves these toys like you and I, and it hits the mark every time!
So no, no, NO: I don’t collect 1:43! But…if I did…I might start off such a collection like this…
Hubba Hubba Hubba! These are some exciting cars! Those wire wheels look so great and none of mine have those or the opening doors. Those Aston Martins are such beautiful cars and your vintage racer there is stunning and was a great find! Like you, I actually prefer a little light wear as it adds to the look and this history of the pieces. There are some other models that I want to get eventually as well. Starting out, my focus as mainly been on the American 1950’s models but it looks like I need to expand my horizons. That is a great book and I’m glad you enjoyed it as I did!