Corgi Rockets.

Corgi Rockets.

About three years ago here, I did a feature post on Corgi Rockets.

The Corgi Rockets range first appeared in October 1969. Corgi owner, Mettoy saw that Hot Wheels and their tracks were very attractive to children. They decided to make toys even better and faster. To add more "play value" Corgi Rockets had die-cast metal bases that featured a central channel where a separate black nylon chassis, that also held the wheel and axle assembly, would fit. Despite the fact that the axles were somewhat thicker than their rivals, particularly Mattel’s Hot Wheels which used thin wire axles, the low friction properties of the nylon chassis in which the axle and wheel unit sat allowed Corgi Rockets to be the fastest on the track. The chassis could be removed using a Golden Tune Up Key.

Corgi Rockets were sold in conjunction with a series of track sets and this led to losing a court case to Mattel who claimed copyright over flexible plastic tracks on which the cars ran. As a result, Corgi Rockets stopped production in late 1971.

My original post showed all that were produced. Here are some of my current packaged models.