MATCHBOX: LEYLAND PETROL TANKER

Before the bedford was discontinued an 8-wheeled petrol tanker had been included in the line. The cab was in green but the tank remained white. The decal soon gave way to a label because whilst decals had to be applied by hand all labels were soon applied by machine with a saving in production costs. In 1970, the Layland tanker was adapted to Superfast wheels. The BP labels were to be found at either the front side of the tank or in the center. Another short run saw the fiting of a grey grille and base.

MATCHBOX: BEDFORD PETROL TANKERS

Matchbox have always had a policy of retaining certain vehicles in the ‘1-75’ range. The London bus, a Rolls-Royce, a Jaguar and certain construction vehicles spring to mind. In addition there have always been petrol tankers. In May 1964 a Bedford Petrol Tanker was includes in the range. For the first time on a Matchbox model it featured a tipping cab and tipping front seats as on the real vehicle. The initial release was fitted with grey wheels but this was soon changed to black wheels.

CHEVROLET CORVETTE INDIANAPOLIS 500 PACE CAR 2002

2002 Chevrolet Corvette Indy 500 Pace Car Diecast Model 1/18 Die Cast Car By Autoart

AutoArt commemorates the Vette's 50th anniversary with this release. It's a very nice replica featuring opening doors, hood, and trunk, and a removable roof panl a difficult item to remove and install. The model's interior is flocked with a cream colored carpet and the seats are tan with Corvette logos on the headrests. Under the hood lies its V-8 engine, but the engine bay could use more detail. Our sample's finish was very shiny and the graphics were excellent. Under the 18-inch wheels lie disc brakes that appear to be metal. With every 50th anniversary AutoArt Corvette model comes a 1:1 scale commemorative license plate frame.

VANGUARD 1/43 MORRIS MINOR VAN GLASGOW POLICE

Although by 1969 the Morris Minor van was in essence a 20-year-old design Police forces continued to use it because it fulfilled their needs reliably and economically. The city of Glasgow Police used SYS 124G for various non-urgent duties. See more.

Y23 - 1930 MACK 'AC' TANKER

Over the years, there have been many versions of the Mack type ‘AC’ as truck. 1991 saw the release of the second livery on the Mack ‘AC’ tanker, that of ‘Conoco’. Although this had a white tank and the red livery of the rest of the model was lighter than the ‘Texaco’ red, it proved to be no more popular than ‘Texaco’. The ‘Conoco’ was developed in the Macau factory, but the regular production run was carried out after production had been transfered to the factory on mainland China.

The Mack was one of the first models to have wheels and tryes base on those of the actual vehicle. The cab and chassis for tanker was made from the tooling that was used for the Mack truck. The ‘front’ end consisted of the bonnet and rear mounted radiator, the cab sides and roof, windscreen frame the cab doors, and the cab floor, steps and front mudguards. The tanker was a one-piece casting, which included the rear ‘cupboard’. Set onto a shallow-sided truck body, which included three discharge valves at the rare. Some ‘Conocos’ also appeared fitted with ‘plated’ wheels, this time with a light gold finish, while some others were of a darker gloss red. See more.

AUTO ART 1/18 MERCEDES-BENZ 600 PULLMAN LWB DIECAT MODEL CAR

The long wheelbase Mercedes 600 Pullman is the well-known 1970s flagship of the mercedes limousine fleet, and both in closed and landaulet forms has served many world leader including the Shah of Persia, Pope Johannes Paul II and Pope Paul VI. Most state visits to West Germany in the early '70s used such vehicles, including that of Queen Elizabeth II. (Leonid Brezhnev, however, settled for a short wheelbase 600!)

IXO 1/43rd SCALE MODEL OF THE ASTON MARTIN DBR9

Le Mans 24 Hours is a subject that brings out the passion in collectors. Serious collectors will need to stick to 1/43rd scale, but there are more and more 1/18th scale models availables as well.

A favorite theme for collectors is the winners; every winner since the first race in 1923 has been modelled. No need searching for the winners from 1940 to 1948 though, because there were no races during the war years. Starter made every winner to 2003 in resin and, although they were no longer producing models, collectors can still find them. IXO have set out to produce every winner in diecast and they are now about 40% of the way through the list. The 1933 winning Alfa was red and yellow do the same or make it the authentic red and cream? Latest issue is the stunning Aston Martin DBR9, and IXO's prototype is this month's cover star!

The phototype of IXO's imminent 1/43rd scale model of the Aston Martin DBR9, is shown here. IXO will be producing a limited edition of 3,000 of these models under the ProDrive/Aston Martin brand, in official Aston Martin packaging. This model will also be issued under general release in IXO's Le Mans brand packaging.

Once people have collected all the winners they can expand their interest by collecting all the second and third place finishers, or a marque such as Jaguar, Porsche of Ferrari, or British car that race at Le Mans, or simply the cars that the collector especially likes. --Model Collector

IXO 1/43 MASERATI KHAMSIN

The khamsin was the successor to the Ghibli. Citroen being majority stakeholders, this car carries a few of their components. The car is fitted with a ZF five speed gearbox. IXO's well crafted model should please collectors of this popular marque. See more.

CORGI 50th ANNIVERSARY - ERF ECT OLYMPIC CURTAINSIDE - J.R. ADAMS

In a Corgi ballot, this vehicle type drew the most votes. To represent England, readers chose this Newcastle based haulier's ERF. The packaging includes two reproduction catalogues, plinth, certificate and a keyring bearing the initials of J.R. Adams. See more.

CORGI VANGUARDS - JAGUAR XJ6 - DUMFRIES & GALLOWAY POLICE

The Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary is the smallest Police Service in the UK. From the mid 1950's to the mid 1970's it ran a small number of Jaguars and this Jaguar XJ6 Saloon was attached to Dumfries Traffic Dept between 1973 and 1975. It proved to be a fine motorway patrol, high speed pursuit vehicle until it was replaced by the Rover SDi in 1975.

This force is the smallest in the UK. They have been users of the Jaguar marque for 20 years. This traffic Patrol Car, dating from 1973, was more than capable of holding its own in a high speed pursuit. One to please collectors of Scottish police force vehicles. See more.

CORGI VANGUARD 10th ANNIVERSARY - SIERRA SAPPHIRE COSWORTH

The Sierra Sapphire Cosworth, a raucous race winner turned luxury saloon, the 1991-1992 'Cossie' was the ultimate in understated performance. To celebrate a decade of Vanguards, Corgi have released a new tooling of this world famous car. It comes in the eye-catching Moondust Silver colour. There will be only be 2,020 available worldwide. A crisp casting that captures the look of this car splendidly. See more.

NOREV 1/18 AUDI A6 AVANT

This model comes in an impressive box, unlike the normal 1/18th scale packaging, and is well packed. The detailing and finish is first class. The front doors open, and they're a snug fit, to reveal the carpet effect interior. The boot is also carpeted. See more.

CLASSIC IMPERIAL CONVERTIBLE

1961 Chrysler Imperial Crown Diecast Model White 1/18 Die Cast Car By Yat Ming

Classic Imperial ConvertibleChrysler revived the Imperial as a separate marque (not ‘Chrysler Imperial’) in 1960 with new unibody construction and gave it new cutaway front fenders, a shorter grille centered under an extended hood, and unique free standing headlights for 1961. Yat Ming has modeled all these features very accurately for their new 1961 Imperial Convertible. Its big diecast body is smooth and clean and the glossy ‘Alaskan White’ finish matches my paint chips very well. There’s a lot of chrome on a ’61 Imperial, and except for the printed Imperial scripts Yat Ming has reproduced every piece, even the thin fin caps, with separate chrome-plated parts. The big 413 cid-V-8 is wired and plumbed, though the plug wires are a couple of scale inches thick and the alternator is supported only by its drive belt. The interior makes up for that, though, with properly hinged doors, windows that slide up and down, and soft gray carpet on the floor. The split front seat folds forward on an angle just like the real car, the rear armrest folds away, and photos dhow the dash details are accurate, though the smaller gauges aren’t detailed. Overall lines match photos in the June 2005 ‘Collectible Automobile’ from all angles and dimensions are a consistent 1:18 scale.

LOVELY LINCOLN PREMIER

1956 Lincoln Premiere Diecast Model Yellow 1/18 Die Cast Car Platinum By Sunstar

Bigger was definitely better for 1950s American Iron and few cars were bigger than the 1956 Lincoln Premier. While the ’56 Cadillac and Imperial were face-lifted older models, the 1956 Premier was completely new and its clean, sharp-edge lines won the prestigious International Design Institute Award. SunStar’s new 1956 Premier Convertible has many fine features – pivoting doors, parallelogram hood hinges, spring-loaded pivoting wipes, and exceptionally thin ‘gold’ photo-etched badges – but none of these would mean much if the shape was wrong. Happily, the lines, proportions, and details are all exactly right. All the trim on this fully detailed model is done with separate plated pieces or photo-etched parts. Lifting the hood displays the big 368 cid V-8 which is also very well detailed; even the hose clamps have been picked out and SunStar has included a couple of bags for the trunk, too. Despite its massive size, SunStar’s premier is amazing 0.02 inches of perfect 1:18 scale.