LESNEY/MATCHBOX- EARLY Models of Yesteryear.

@david-green   I had many of these at one time, and right now I'm trying to remember if I packed them away.  A few may still be around;  I'll look for them.

@d-m-holcombe 

It would be great if you still has a few David. You have a lot of wonderful early toys.

Y-2-C was a 1914 Prince Henry Vauxhall. This was issued in 1971. 1/49 scale, the brass wheeled version being discontinued in 1972.

This one sold on a bubble card (as did several others) as well as the standard boxes.

 A blue and grey version was issued from 1973 to 1978.

The final red, grey and black issue ran from 1970 to 1982.

very nice

It's so nice to see and review these again; it has been a long time.  Thank you!

Y-6 1913 Cadillac-   I found this one today while looking for something else!  I doubt that it is one of the rare/uncommon Yesteryears, but it's been around here for a while. Is it missing a wheel inside the spare tire?

David H

@d-m-holcombe 

Hi David,

I'm delighted that you found this one and posted it here.  This is the second of the 1913 Cadillacs in the Y-6-C issues. It came out in 1974 and was deleted in 1976 (a fairly short run but lots sold). Yours is green with chromed plastic spoke wheels. No, you are not missing a wheel at the rear to go with the spare tire. Below, I'll show the first in the series. There is a good picture showing the rear. Yours in the woodgrain box is worth about $15 although there are some crazy prices on EPay.

Y-6-C was a 1913 Cadillac. This was issued in 1968. 1/48 scale, the brass wheeled version being discontinued in 1973.

Found another- Y28-C  1907 UNIC TAXI

   Still in its original box, this black and white taxi was made in China, so it may be one of the later Yesteryear models.  Scale is noted as 1:42 (and that's not a typo).

And two more, deeper in the same closet.  Surely this is it. . . but I'm tired of looking for now.

Y-11/ 1932 BUGATTI TYKPE 51, made in England on bottom

And the second, Y-24 1928 BUGATTI T44, made in England, c. 1983 on bottom, and scale 1:38 on the box

These are fun!

@d-m-holcombe 

Thanks for these additions David. When I started posting this series, they fit very nicely into the approx.1/64 category. With more recent times, Models of Yesteryear grew substantially in size and now most would fit well into the 1/43 grouping. I'm glad however that you made the same decision as I did and keep them together in one extended theme.

I collect Bugatti models so was pleased to add the T51 and T44 to my collection.I especially like the 1/38 scale Bugatti T51 racer that you have.

A LITTLE MATCHBOX HISTORY: This pair was made during the final period of production in Britain. Lesney, Matchbox's producer went bankrupt in 1982. The name was bought along with tooling by Universal Toys of Hong Kong. They started producing in China in 1985. Your UNIC London taxi is from the MATCHBOX/DINKY TOYS era after Universal Toys take-over and under its, Meccano Ltd brand which acquired Dinky in 1987. By then, all production had been moved to China. Universal Toys sold the Matchbox name to Mattel, makers of Hotwheels in 1992 which pretty much ended any new modelling in Models of Yesteryear.

If you find any more Models of Yesteryear, David, I'd love to see them posted here.

@david-green 

Thanks for the additional Matchbox history and all the models.

Y-4-C was a 1909 Opel Coupe. This was issued in 1967. 1/38 scale, the brass wheeled version being discontinued in 1973.

Y-5-C was a 1907 Peugeot. This was issued in 1969. 1/43 scale, the brass wheeled version being discontinued in 1973.

Y-7-C was a 1912 Rolls Royce. This was issued in 1968. 1/48 scale, the brass wheeled version being discontinued in 1973.

Y-8-C was a 1914 Stutz. This was issued in 1969. 1/48 scale, the brass wheeled version being discontinued in 1973.