Colin's Toybox: Matchbox Ford Sierra

As a child, I always lusted after the Matchbox examples of cars not sold in the US; now, I was quite young when the Ford Sierra and Merkrur XR4Ti were sold new, but I knew the difference. I knew that the Ford Sierra was the European counterpart to our Merkur, and I think I learned this from Motor Trend; when I was in second or third grade, my babysitter and I would go to our public library, and I would sit in the bottom level and relentlessly look through old car magazines, dating back to the early 1980s if not before. There, I discovered the idea of spy photos-- pictures of cars before they were scheduled to hit the streets.
I recall flipping through a 1982 or 1983 Motor Trend where they had a cammo'd Merkur mule, but clearly wearing a Ford badge on the front, and riding on Mustang wheels. This piqued my interest. I knew Ford sold cars across the globe, but this was the first time I really took note; I had been to Europe a few years before, and got myself acquainted with the foreign cars and trucks not sold here. The Suzuki Sidekick was the Vitara, the European Ford Escort was quite a bit different than ours, and the Chevrolet Cavalier was sold as a small Opel. That newfound discovery of actual cars being sold as different nameplates really made my interest in Matchbox spike.
I've known about the various Majorette Peugeots, and Renaults, but it was then that I realized Matchbox was spreading their worldwide products here. I think the Saab 9000, Rover (Sterling) 827, and the Vauxhall Cavalier (or is it a Vectra) were some of my favorites. Because I had a fascination with the Merkur as a child, the Matchbox Sierra quickly became a favorite as well. Except there was a problem. Since mine was hastily destroyed by a ten-to-twelve-year-old me, I had no example in my collection. A few years ago, I received the Texaco version as a Christmas gift, which I also have a 1:18 Auto Art of as well. The white one, which represents my childhood example in good shape, was given to me this past winter. While I was not expecting it (Heck, I even forgot there were any good condition white ones left), I certainly do enjoy this piece. Not only does it take me back to my early days of discovering world-wide cars, it does so with such joy. I cannot look at it without thinking back to that day I flipped through a Motor Trend, and discovered that one of my childhood curiosities was indeed sold all over the world.
I will always love the Merkur XR4Ti, and I think it's quite amazing that Matchbox had enough sense to cast all of these cars when they were new. Surely, no toy company will churn out contemporary Fusions, and Taurus SEs, much less the base model. Kudos, Matchbox, for letting these cars live on, some thirty years after production ended.

Colin's Toybox : Matchbox Nissan Prairie

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.

Colin's Toybox: Introductory Post

Many car enthusiasts know that getting a foot into this amazing hobby is started at an early age. For me, that "early age" came very young. Before I could actually pronounce words in their entirety, I was mumbling words like "Corsica", and "Tempo", and I think "Fiero". Like most children growing up in the early-to-mid-1990s, I was drawn to the various Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars that lined the shelves of the local Wal Marts and Targets; unlike a majority of kids my age, I did not really care for the fantasy cars. I greatly preferred the models based on real cars, with realistic paint schemes and non-goofy window and tampo colors.

As I got older, I began to develop a taste for diecasts other than basic Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars; I started buying 1:24, and then a bit later I acquired my first 1:18. But, this where I differed. Some diecast collectors only focus on a specific brand of diecast, while some limit themselves to a particular brand of car, and yet still some only buy for the sake of investment. I am all over the board; I tend to gravitate to cars that I have an interest in. But herein lies the problem. Since my automotive tastes jump all over the board, so does my diecast collection; I have Hot Wheels muscle cars, Matchbox trucks, Johnny Lightning classic cars, and offbrand contemporary cars. Basically, if it has caught my eye in any way, shape or form, it came home with me. And this trend continues today.
With the demise of retail stores stocking diecasts, I have turned to the internet to supplant my collection. On the internet, the selection of cars is far greater than one could hope to ever find in stores; and that's not including ebay. I rarely shop on ebay since it is a hassle for me as I'm a bit iffy on online spending and buying from stranger/non businesses. I have recently developed a favorite site called Milezone. Fast shipping, great selection, and a cool rewards system that lets you return rewards for money and essentially buy cars free once you have enough reward funds.

I used to keep my cars in the original package, and did so for quite a while; then I got to thinking. What good does it do to buy cars and never actually see them? Over the weekend, I plan to open the vast majority of my carded collection, and showcase them here on Sunday nights. I will showcase the first batch of cars next weekend, starting off with a smattering of Hot Wheels cars from my childhood.