ETCHY

My completist personality really is working overtime looking at those.. It's a lovely casting that.

Great stuff. I'll just pay my wages straight to ebay 🤣. Here's a fascinating (or not) fact as you mention Ashok Leyland. My other half's incredibly cool late grandfather set up the foundry at Ashok Leyland in India back in the day. One of his first jobs was to send back to Leyland requesting boots for the workers as many of the Indian guys were going to work barefoot/in sandles (in a bloody foundry !)

I've looked at loads of those & never noticed that. My soon to be emptied wallet thanks you 😄

Great info'. I may be back shortly, i'm just about to disappear down another Rabbit hole..

The hubs are plastic, the metal bells are separate.

Brill clean up !

Nice collection there. I note your Merryweather has a roof like mine that's painted. Yeah I think there's something concerning number of wheelnuts signifying early or later. The nozzle on my perished hose (that sounds like something from Viz🤣) is brass too. I like the Transit vans, I know there's a few variations of those.. Those AA vehicles are cool. "Mid-life crisis-man-child" yep me too 😂 !

Nice to see one taken apart. I hope the pump on mine works. Really nice hefty model, proper quality feel to it.

I've got a thing for Dinky toys & especially their emergency type vehicles so have been collecting. I only got the Escort today for £8.00 off a car boot sale, hopefully a good price ! The Transit came with its signs, cones & legless driver. The Zodiac is just cool & still has all its jewelled lights The Merryweather is possibly quite an early one as the roof where the bells are mounted is body colour it's normally bare steel. I must test the water pump at some point. All are a bit playworn but to be honest that's how I like them. Hope they're of interest !

When 19 my dream car was a 105e Anglia ( friend of family had one when I was a kid, I didn't go in many cars as we didn't have one ). I thought they were wonderful so instead of going for some newer choices as was suggested by many I bought a running wreck looked at through rose tinted glasses & paid a guy to restore it. I hated the fucking thing when I got it back it was a slow pain in the arse & I had no money to fix any issues etc so ended up selling it for far less than I'd jizzed away on it. I genuinely wish you well but i speak from bitter experience that sometimes others are right, dreams can be just that & the reality can be shit.

It has that how they would've looked in about 1985 when just another old car look, that I rather like.

That's lovely. Great little cars. Willing eager, fun little things. 1.3's are quite brisk too.

Nice collection there. Got to say when I was a kid it really bothered me that Matchbox had made the Transit with one of the tailboard's down. In fact it's still irrationally bothering me !

Picanto. Older pre 2019 i think are TC auto's.

Lovely CX estate, I had that one as a kid. Totally agree about the boxes, they are uber cool. I wish I could find my toy cars again !

Jaclyn Smith. Phwoooar. Odd she never did much after Charlie's Angels.

The Marina & Ital suffered a lot because the motoring press just weren't keen on them. Quite outdated at launch, had issues such as alleged mega understeer on early 1.8 models & hung around too long so looked like a dinosaur by the end. However many owners liked them, they were basic simple transport & did the job. I rather liked all the ones I drove & it was always a car that imo was a lot better than legend would have you believe ( like a lot of BL tin).

I've just won one of those on ebay. Quite looking forward to it.

The 3 litre came out too late & looked a bit gawky. Also the motoring press weren't keen on it. Folk that own them & have driven them however say they're great so that's good enough for me. I like them & imo in the metal they look way better than in photos'.

Yep

Just been reading this thread again. Did anything ever come of the big blue aircraft carrier ?

Milf

The 4x4 Transit County & the 4x4 Sherpa were bloody cool too.

I can't wait to tell an Ioniq owner his car looks like a Maestro..

Bedford Green Goddess. Bedford MJ ( the army type truck). Mk4 Zephyr/Zodiacs Series Land Rovers ( they just look cool). Ford 105e ( dunno why as I had one & it was wank). K11 Micra. They all somehow give me the horn.