Does the Yatming Maserati Bora deserve a spot in the “Top 30 Yatmings of all Time”?

Two years ago I wrote a post that I enjoyed, detailing out some of Yatming’s greatest hits, and making my picks for how I’d rank them...   http://johnccarroll.blogspot.com/2016/04/top-30-vintage-yatmings-of-all-time-or.html.

But two years ago I didn’t have this car, the Yatming Maserati Bora.  It’s a classic Yatming, with a metal base, from the golden age of Yatming (wait, was Yatming ever really good enough to warrant having a “golden” age?!?  Maybe a “chromed plastic” age is more appropriate....).  Anyway, as a kid the real Bora was one of my dream cars, the last of the big V8 Maserati sports cars before Maserati became all about the BMW 3-Series-sized BiTurbos...  So with a new Yatming Golden-Age model of a favorite car, its time to determine whether the merits of this model put it into the same category as the best Yatmings?

Lesney’s matchbox also did a Bora model. Unfortunately, while 1970’s Lesney turned out absolute gems of models, like the superb Silver Shadow II, Mercedes 450SEL, Audi Quattro, Dodge Challenger and Plymouth Fury police car, it also turned out a number of oversized duds such as the recently reviewed BMW 3.0CSi (or worse, the Ford Capri) and many others.  The Bora was one of the better of the oversized models, but the combination of its size and unfortunate maroon paint conspire to make it a less-than-fully-favored Lesley model.  Can the benefits of this Yatming model exceed that of Matchbox, and does it deserve a place on my “Best-of-Yatming” list?

In short...  Not Really! 

While the size of the Yatming Bora is slightly smaller and more appropriate than Lesney’s Matchbox Bora, and while the Yatming has the critical metal base that characterizes many of the higher quality Yatmings, overall the model is not one of Yatmings best attempts.  Particularly galling is the plastic chromed front and rear lights/grill/bumper panels, which just look chintzy and plasticky. Given that they are attached to the metal base, it’s hard to see why they couldn’t have been better done as part of the metal base (in dramatic contrast to the excellent metal detailed trim on the Matchbox model).

The bottom of the side door windows were formed poorly, almost looking as if they were incorrectly stamped out, with too much metal remaining in the rear.  The models’ typically poor later Yatming plasticky wheels don’t do it any favors.  The lack of side mirrors is notable.  The body has a few examples of metal detail (air vents, etc.), but even those are offset by poor body lines that just make it look poorly designed/executed.  The Yatming relies on somewhat garish graphic stickers to try to add some excitement to the body, an approach that serves only to further cheapen the overall feel.  This is a car that feels like a cheap drugstore-brand toy, vs. a high quality diecast model. 

In short, this is not one of Yatming’s finest attempts.  So obviously it won’t be a top 10 model...  but is it good enough to at least crack the top 30?  I reviewed the top 30 list from 2 years ago, and in doing so I wondered about whether I even ranked those 30 models correctly.  How did the ugly brown undersized Thunderbird deserve a #21 spot, while cleaner Corvettes were in worse spots?  But I had a hard time putting the Bora with it’s poorly executed body, ahead of any of the 30 cars making up my list.  The top 30 list is safe...

So if it doesn’t make the top 30 list, is it even a worthwhile model to have?   For me, the answer is unclear.  It feels cheap - definitely an inferior model to the less-than-perfect but highly detailed (and much easier to find) Matchbox model.  If you are an avid Yatming collector you might have to have it, but for the rest of us...?  I'd advise you not to spend too much time looking for it. 

Fine new models of the old 1970 Ford F-100; M2 Machine and Greenlight

In your local stores currently are two fine new models of the old ‘70 Ford F-100 (also '69 and '68).  Both are beautiful castings, exquisitely detailed.

My eye was first caught by the M2 Machines casting, especially the jacked up off-road version in slate grey.  The realistic separately cast LOOONG bed was a major factor in having my eye drawn to it, though the detail was also amazing... A beautiful truck, big and scaled exactly right for 1/64...  I loved it from the moment I tore open the packaging, and already had plans for a blog entry about it.  Then I found the street racer version in black and gold, and while it wasn't as cool as the jacked up version, it was still cool.  The only things I didn't like about it are:  The wheels/tires - which don't roll as easily as a "Matchbox" car's wheels should roll, the opening doors which don't open as easily as a "Matchbox" car's doors should open, and the lame detailing in the wheel-wells in the truck bed - which are too low and squared off to be realistic.   Everything else about the model was SPOT-ON, and the truck just tooked TOUGH!

But then I saw this Greenlight casting, and the ‘gotta-have-it’ factor kicked in.  The Greenlight is a short bed version of the same truck (in some cases bashed as slightly different years, with appropriate tweaks to the impressively detailed grill), with more exciting paint, again jacked up, with slightly less realistic but much nicer wheels and tires that somehow conspire to make it feel like a toy to zoom across the carpet rather than a model to display...  this is a toy you want to play with!!! The hood opens but the doors don't, but I don't miss the opening doors at all.  The scale is again just right, though this one’s shorter bed allows it to actually fit a little bit better into a standard size die-cast 48 car case.

There’s no real competition and no obvious winner here, just two great castings that deserve a place in your collection...  The detail on the M2 models is slightly deeper and more magnificent than the magnificent detail on the Greenlight models, but you'd only see the difference if you were actually comparing them head to head as I am here.  Conversely, the wheels and tires on the Greenlight models are better and more suited for play than those of the M2 castings.  This all makes the M2 models slightly more suited for display, while the Greenlight models are slightly more suited for play, but the differences are pretty minor. . They are both great castings for play AND display.  Pick your color and trim (work truck?  off-road racing truck?  street racing truck?  Short vs. Long bed?) and hand over your $6, you can't really go wrong with any of the models!

Copied Porsche 910... Did Playart copy Corgi, or vice versa?

It sounds patently obvious to say that diecast cars are models of real cars...  ...Yet it is not actually always true.  In some cases, they are actually models of OTHER model cars.

I've seen it with Maisto flagrantly (and poorly) copying Matchbox' Audi Quattro.  And in this post, I show a fascinating example of Playart copying Corgi's casting (although I suppose that there is a chance that Corgi copied Playart casing).



There are several companies who produced models of this car, the most well known of which is the (red) model by Lesney's Matchbox.  That one actually looks very different (particularly in size, its easily the largest of the five) from the other models.  I also have a Dynawheels model (in brown), a Zylmex model (in blue, #910), a Playart model (in blue) and a Corgi Junior/Husky model (in yellow - a "Rockets" version with extra speedy wheels/axles).  Missing from my photos is a Speedy model that I spent an hour fruitlessly tearing apart my Matchbox collection trying to find.  Regardless, the last four are very similar in appearance and size, particularly the final two.  And upon closer examination, it turns out that the final two are actually copies of each other, with similar casting lines, choice of detail, etc. Examining the base and especially the opening engine compartment shows a very similar choice of detail.



In fact, the only two questions are 1.  Who did the copying...   Was it the second tier Playart copying toy giant Corgi, or was it the greater scandal of Corgi cribbing a design from no-name Playart, and 2.  Why bother?  Could it really have been that much harder to create an "original copy" of the real car?

P.S.  I suppose that as long as I'm showing 5 distinct (or is it 4?) models, I should at least pick a winner...  Who modeled the 910 best? 

Although I'm a big Lesney Matchbox fan, its easy to assign the Matchbox in 5th place.  Its a little too big, and just looks different from the others. 

The next 4 are closer in comparison, all nice and worthwhile models in their own right, even though several come from brands that aren't typically collected. 

In fourth place I assign the Zylmex, while its very nice - it just doesn't have the opening back hatch or the quality wheels of its competitors. 

The final three are in almost a dead heat.  But the Corgi's stance/wheels sets the model a little too high, giving it a 3rd place finish. 

Between the final two, the DynaWheels is missing the opening hatch of the Playart (and the Corgi), but the metal roof gives it an advantage over the all plastic roof of the Corgi and PlayArt.  The wheels also are slightly nicer.  Overall, its enough to put the DynaWheels in first place, ahead of the Playart. 

And of course the biggest irony is that the copy-cat Playart took 2nd place, beating out the copied Corgi...!

Thanks for reading! 

Siku Audi 5000 wagon (100 Avant)

Old Sikus are one of my favorite collecting passions.  I particularly like the ones from the '60s and '70s, since the '80s versions ran larger - more like 1/55 scale than 1/64 scale - and have oversize wheels/tires.  A few of those older Sikus are among the nicest models (commenting on the model itself - not necessarily the condition that that particular model might be in!) in my collections.  

However, when I came across this '80s Siku Audi 5000 wagon at the local flea market with a $1 or $2 price tag on it - I instantly snapped it up.  It's labeled as an Audi 100 Avant - but to those of us who grew up in the USA in the 1980s, we will always remember it as an Audi 5000.

The Audi 5000 was a favorite car of mine - a big square but still somehow aero - one of the first examples of the rounded square styling theme.  I especially liked the wagon versions of the 5000, though they were much rarer than the sedans.  So to find a beautifully detailed and modeled diecast 5000 - and a wagon! - was a delightful treat. 

Of course - as a late 80's Siku - it IS large - and it does have the large kind-of-ugly '80s Siku wheels on it.  I should have photographed it against a more known Matchbox or Hot Wheels model so the reader gets a sense of it being over-scale for 1/64.  On the other hand, the 5000 being a large car in real life allows me to feel like the large size of the model is not TOO large. 

Overall, a fun car.  The tailgate opens up nicely.  The detail is reasonable (what I'd expect from a mid-80s Siku).  The car has a satisfying heft to it.   The only real downsides are the unexciting taupe paint color (certainly not helped by it no longer being shiny) and the previously mentioned scale. 

This particular version is not at all mint - but still very presentable.  Not my favorite Siku, but far from my least favorite.  A great addition to the collection!

A slightly uncommon car.... Corgi Junior Porsche 917

I like featuring unique and unusual cars/pieces from my collection on this blog.  Sometimes they are extremely rare.  Sometimes just something different from the ordinary.  And sometimes they are ordinary pieces after all, but ones that I like a lot.  

Some would say that there is nothing overly special about this car, a beat-up model of a mighty Porsche 917 race car, modeled by Corgi Junior.  But Corgi Juniors are already somewhat rare models, and this model has a nice feel to it.  

One of the things I like most about it is its size...   It is big and imposing taking up every millimeter of a standard slot in a Matchbox collector case.  Hot Wheels did an excellent 917 as one of the earlier entries in their Adult Collectible series (sold as part of the 4 piece Porsche set in the late '90s), but while that model had great realism / detail and an opening back, it always struck me as being a little small.  In contrast, this Corgi is imposing, scaring other race cars right off the starting grid.  

In other comments, I wouldn't have minded a more race-car-oriented paint scheme (not even a number on the side), and the gold color is rather bland and unexciting (think mid '00s gold Lexus RX300s!).  But the car rolls well on its standard issue wheel.  

Overall, a nice car that deserves a quick mention on this (heavily read) blog...! 

Old school comparison: Redline T-bird vs. Redline T-Bird - Topper Johnny Lightning vs. Mattel Hot Wheels

This is a comparison that's 45 years out of date - comparing 2 OLD-SCHOOL late '60s Ford T-Birds - BOTH with redline wheels....

Yes, we all know that the term "Redlines" means Hot Wheels Redlines - the creme-de-la-crime models of the diecast collecting scene.  And the Custom T-Bird's always been one of my favorite Redline models - a big American '60s muscle car, done with a few custom touches.  A cool car, with the only real downside being the very high price point needed to get into it these days - $30 or more for a fair/good condition model, $100 or more for a C8-C9 condition model, and easily $500 or more for a MIP model or a rare color.  Ouch!!!

But back in the day, Hot Wheels faced competition from the original Johnny Lightnings - made by Topper in those days rather than today's Playing Mantis.  Topper's even had red line wheels and so took on Hot Wheels head to head!  Most of those old Toppers were fantasy models - but they made a FEW realistic castings - and this "Custom Thunderbird" is one of their best.  One of the best things about these old Topper models is that they came with both an opening hood AND opening doors (but also with cast-shut doors - so hunt wisely!).   Unfortunately, the price points for Topper's realistic cars is only slightly better than that for Mattel's Hot Wheels - with reasonable examples in better colors often exceeding $50.  They are so rare that I haven't seen a MIP trade on EBay - so I can't tell you what the high end price points are...

So, which one is better?  Who made the better Custom T-Bird back in 1970?!?  Let's get to the comparison!!!

I only have 1 Topper T-Bird, in gold, while I have several Hot Wheels T-Birds.  But one of those Birds is in gold, so it makes it a gold vs. gold custom T-Bird comparison test...  What could be better!?!

At first blush, it looks like it'll be a tight race.  Size-wise, they are both right on top of each other - built big, sized just the way they should be.  Their dimensions are RIGHT on top of each other.  Definitely a draw in the size category.

Paint:  I'm a fan of Hot Wheels Spectraflame paint, but Topper's color is a bit richer, making Mattel's gold paint look like Fools Gold.  In the paint category, the Topper wins.

Metal Body Detail:  The Topper has more body contour than the Mattel.  The Native American Thunderbird symbol is actually cast in relief on the B pillar, just like on the real car.  The roof has a contour line, the trunk and hood has air body vents on it and there is an actual gas cap.  The Mattel's body is nice, but there aren't even door line markings, while the Topper has handles...  The only place where the Mattel scores points is in the hood scoop - where the Mattel looks more bad-ass...  Easily, this category again goes to Topper.

Grill and Light Detail:  This category is close, but Mattel eakes out a win, with the Thunderbird symbol being cast in relief on the grill, and an actual license plate bracket on the rear.  Everything else about the grill and light detail is nice for both cars - with nice metal relief cross-hatching on the grills, and a cast metal AND painted in backlight.

Base Detail:  Both bases are metal and have a lot of detail for the time, but the Mattel has more.  Winner - Mattel.

Opening Features:  The Topper has to win in this category - with opening doors AND an opening hood, though the engine detail is certainly nicer in the Mattel.

Interior:  Again, the Topper wins - in part since the opening doors allow you to see more of the interior.  But even so, the Topper has more interior detail.  Advantage - Topper.

Ride:  The Hot Wheels has an actual suspension - giving a soft and silky ride.   The Topper feels suspension-less - giving an easy (and important) win to the Hot Wheels...

Overall score:  With Topper taking 4 of the 6 six categories, it's hard to argue that Topper should win overall.  That's the way it should be.  If I hadn't looked at it by category, I would have still given the win to Topper.  But the Mattel model is still a very nice model! 

It's nice that the winner is (slightly) cheaper.  But the Topper Redlines are VERY hard to find.  When you DO find one, make sure that you get the one with opening doors... 

The last couple of photos show the other T-Bird models:

In the one to the right, I show the Playing Mantis re-make of Topper's Custom Thunderbird (in purple).  This model stays pretty true to the original, but loses the opening doors and the vintage appeal.  It's a nice model for $3-5, released in the late '90s, and has nicer paint and a smoother ride than the original.  But I still heavily prefer the   authentic Topper Johnny Lightning!  I also include Hot Wheel's Authentic "Spoiler" version of the T-Bird - now called the "TNT Bird" - in dark red.  This casting is the "Custom T-Bird" casting, but with a blown engine and no hood.  It's a great model - a favorite of mine.  While I like all of the Spoiler cars, this T-Bird is definitely one of my favorites!  Unfortunately, the Spoilers are no cheaper than the regular cars - you'll pay dearly for this model!!!


Finally, I show a few other color variations of Mattel's custom T-Bird and Mattel's TNT Bird! 

Mitsubishi Montero (Pajero) - is the Fast Lane Montero a good Montero - and can it compete with a Tomica?

I recently vacationed in Costa Rica.

Vacations always cause me to evaluate and regard and see ordinary cars differently.  For instance, Beijing China was filled with beautiful Volkswagons, with black early '00s Passats functioning as limousines, and mid '80s generation Passats functioning as funky-cool police cars.  It made me want to have one of my own - which was odd - since I ACTUALLY have a blacked-out early '00s Passat...  But somehow, the Chinese Passats in Beijing just looked cooler than my suburban commuter Passat... 

In Costa Rica, the car that really caught my eye was the Mitsubishi Montero.  These cool looking rugged 4X4s were the high class limousines of Costa Rica.  Never mind that in Chicago these are 150,000 mile $4K used car specials, in Costa Rica they were GOLD.  Never mind that I have a nice '09 Mercedes Benz GL500, I NEEDED to have a Montero.  So guess what I started searching Craigslist for...?

 ...and of course, this got me thinking about Matchbox cars, and whether I had a nice Montero...  ...which I in fact
do - a "Fast Lane" (drugstore brand) Montero in teal...


I normally have no respect or patience for Fast Lane cars, but this one looked nice, and was a casting of a seldomly modeled car.    

There is a lot to pick at about the casting...  The cheap wheels, the overly shiny plastic for the grill, the plasticky roof rack, the plastic baseplate without even a word on it, the teal color, the odd graphics, etc.  A lot of collectors wouldn't even give it a 2nd glance...

But on the other hand, there is a lot to LIKE about the casting...  Its nicely sized - REALLY nicely sized, big in the same way that a real Montero is big.  It's nicely detailed - a pretty reasonable model in its own right.  It looks cool dressed up with the pusher bar and the roof rack.  And of course, its a Montero when I have very few other Monteros...  This is a cool model - even though its from a cheapo-manufacturer!  Overall, a nice and valued part of collection! 


But how does it compare with other Monteros?  My other Monteros are Tomicas, which given the high quality quotient inherent in most Tomicas, is bound to make the comparison a little difficult for this Fast Lane... 

I have 4 Tomicas badged as Pajeros (Monteros), though 1 is a Pajero junior and 2 more are short 2 door vs. full 4 doors.  Only 1 is a real full size 4 door Montero/Pajero, in silver with a green stripe along the side.  It has opening doors, and large wheels (that I'm actually not very crazy about).  But overall, it is a very nice casting, correctly sized, with great detail.  If you don't have it, you should get it.  There is no doubt that its nicer than the Fast Lane, in almost every regard.  (But that doesn't mean that I don't like the Fast Lane casting...).   So no, the Fast Lane Montero CAN'T compete with the Tomica Montero - though both are highly regarded castings in my eyes!

 The other shorter Monteros are also nice pieces.  I have 2 that are non-Pajero-Juniors, one in silver and one in green with a light on the roof.  I don't like the wheels, but I love the classic Montero big front ends...  But I can't help wishing they were full 4 doors vs. 2 doors. 

The Pajero junior is a police truck, though I think I have another (older) Pajero junior casting in green that I wasn't able to find for the photo shoot. 

I like all of the Montero castings.  The 4 door Tomica is easily my favorite, but the Fast Lane is still a nice casting... 

Why I hate Tomica Limited Vintage...

Tomica Limited Vintage cars look great...   Amazing castings that are often unique from ordinary Tomica castings, with correct wheels and highly detailed paint jobs, all from my favorite toy company...  What's not to like...?

Quite simply, the scale, that's what. 

When you buy Tomica Limited Vintage over the internet vs. in person at a store (and in the USA, the only place to buy them is over the internet), you don't get a sense for the physical size of the car.  You don't get that sense until you've paid $5-10 in shipping costs per car and had them shipped all the way from Tokyo or Hong Kong...   ...and realize that they are SMALL... 

Looking through all of the Tomica Limited Vintages in my collection, in the vast majority of cases, they feel under-scale to me - more like 1:70 scale vs. 1:64. 

The pictures illustrate this.  The car in question is a 1980's Toyota Town-Ace minivan - the same Toyota mini-van that Toyota sold in the USA in the late '80s to compete with the Dodge Caravan (the one where the engine was accessed from under the driver's seat...    ...and that was eventually replaced by the Previa, which was replaced by the Sienna).  I've lined up 3 other white minivans to compare it with - minivans that you might recognize from my recent minivan post.  In the first 2 photos, the Town-Ace is the 2nd from the right.  And you can see that it is NOTICEABLY smaller than the other white minivans - when in fact it should be essentially the same size as the others... 

I'm here to tell you that this is not an isolated case.  I have many other Limited Vintages in my collection which have this same problem... 

This is why I hate them...   ...you get all excited about how good they look on their own - and then are so disappointed when they end up being small...  

P.S.  They also frequently feel lightweight to me... 

P.P.S.  I also hate that Tomica has "vintage" in the name, which makes it very difficult to hunt through EBAY for true vintage Tomicas... 

closer to their size

Fine Mercedes 300 E / TE castings by Matchbox, Corgi and Majorette

More Mercedes castings...  I'm not sure why I find Mercedes passenger cars in 1:64 scale to be SO irresistible... 

The early '90s Matchbox 300 E is a very high quality casting - with a nice heft, nice detail, door mirrors, opening doors, 8 dot wheels, a separate grill, etc.   I have it in the 2 common colors, it's probably available in others but these are the 2 that I most often see - a civilian version in light blue, and a German police version in white with green lettering.  Both colors are nice.  I wish I had it in other colors...  This casting would be an excellent candidate for a customization/re-spray - the problem is that they are somewhat rare - so these are the only 2 examples I have...  Both are very nice and represent the best of Matchbox from this period. 

However, fans of the mid-size 300 cars, and fans of wagons in general (me!) have additional options...  Majorette made a very nice blue 300 TE station wagon, with an opening rear hatch.  The 2 that I have are in the same blue color, but with minor trim differences.  The car is nicely sized from a length perspective, but sits a little high for my tastes.  The standard issue Majorette wheels are also a bit of a letdown - the Matchbox 8 dot wheels just look nicer.  Overall, the casting is a bit of a mixed bag, with the nice (the hatch, the heft, the integrated roof rack) being offset by the not as nice (the bumpers look plasticky, the high stance, the cheapy wheels).  But still a good enough casting that you should try to get it... 

Lastly, Corgi also had a 300 TE wagon, in this version at least in ambulance guise (not sure if it was available in civilian colors).  This is the definite 3rd place casting relative to the nicer Matchbox (1st place) and Majorette (2nd place).  While the size is nice (its within a smidge of being as long as the Majorette, and is actually a bit wider - giving it a chunkier appearance) and the metal detail is reasonable, it has no opening parts, ultra-cheap standard 4 dot Corgi wheels that would look cheap on a Maisto/Fast Lane, a grossly done light bar (its the cheapest police light bar that I've seen on any die-cast car - ever!), etc.  Overall, while I'm happy to have it in my collection, I wouldn't recommend that other collectors seek it out to buy it.  It's only a marginal casting, and being a Corgi is hard to find and frequently a bit pricier than other brands, so its probably not worth the money you'll have to pay... 

Extremely rare Superfast teal Lincoln Continental

The Lincoln Continental is one of the best Matchbox castings ever done.  In real life the Lincoln was a big square car, and the die-cast version of it is correctly in scale, big and square, with beautiful metal detail in the grill and an opening trunk.  When introduced as a regular wheels car, it came in a slightly unfortunate teal (really Lesney...  teal?) or a less common (but more formal looking and hence desirable) dark blue.  When they converted it to Superfast spec, (with a new and beautiful olive-gold paint color, nice wheels and a super-soft suspension), the height of the car was raised to modern standards, taking a nice casting and elevating it (pun intended) to one of the nicest castings in all of Matchbox land...

But as pretty and great as the olive gold transitional car is, don't you kind of wish you could have ALSO had the superfast in the original dark blue or teal colors...?   In short, don't you wish that you had the teal car pictured here...?!?

But you won't find this car easily.  It's listed in the variations listing of my matchbox books by Charlie Mack (The Big Book of Superfast Matchbox Toys) as being worth $2000+ (and that was 10 years ago...).

So did I buy this one for $2000?   No, it's a fake.  A simple baseplate swap... 

I had a beat-up transitional gold car that was missing its trunk lid.  I had a beat up teal regular wheels car, that was so beaten up that I didn't value it.  I combined the body of the regular wheels car with the baseplate of the missing-trunk-superfast car, and suddenly, I had the one-of-a-kind car that I'd always wanted... 

Actually, I like that it is so beaten up.  It looks legitimate that way, as if its a surviving car, un-restored, parked outside on the streets and subject to the rain and sun... 

Only the baseplate shows the truth, the drilled-out rivets a gaping hole and testament to its non-legitimacy...