Today, I present something a bit different in my collection; a minivan. Growing up in the 1990s, the minivan played a vital role in school-children transportation. Sure, the SUV was quickly gaining ground, but minivans were still quite prevalent. Vehicles like the Dodge Caravan, Chevy Lumina APV, Toyota van, and Ford Aerostar were all made by toy companies shortly after their introduction.
Matchbox decided to do one different; since their lineup relied extensively on vehicles available in Europe, the Nissan Prairie was born in diecast form.
Like all of Matchbox's 1980s to mid-1990s offering, this one strays far away from the rampant tampoing and hideous graphics that plagued the later years. Instead of flashy--and quite unrealistic-- paint, this MPV bares the same factory-esque color scheme that makes this generation of toy cars so lovable to me. Obscure (nowadays, anyway) cars in realistic paint jobs; what's not to like?
Apparently, a lot. This model was never popular, be it in toy form on in real life. The Prairie (called the Axxess in the US) was pulled from our market in 1991, roughly at the same time that Matchbox discontinued sales of their replica on our shores.
As a toy car goes, this is one rather unique one; not only is it a decent piece of Nissan history (okay, that's debatable), but it's a vehicle that has more interest in the toy spectrum than the real thing. As a car nut, I am glad I have this thing in my collection; it's one of the oddball vehicles I remember from my youth, and I almost forgot what it looked like until I re-found this little guy.
1 comment:
Oddly enough, the Matchbox Prairie was one of my favorite diecasts as a kid, along with my Mercury Sable wagon, Vauxhall Vectra Cavalier and Volvo 760GLE with opening doors. My Prairie is the same color and still has Play-Doh stuck in the window corners. A much-loved toy. Thanks for sharing.
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