Matchbox Rarity: 2005 SF37 Porsche 959 that never was, by David Tilley...

Some of you may noticed a very unique Matchbox Porsche 959 is up on ebay right now   We thought because this Superfast rarity rarely pops up, we would have David Tilley write a little about.  DT has one of the only others known, and in pure Tilley-ness, he opened it.

If you are a rare Matchbox or Porsche collector, you may never get another chance at this one.  The listing ends tomorrow:

Rare Matchbox Superfast Porsche 959 on ebay

Enjoy the article...

Today we will provide you with a guide to a slightly older model that never was.  In the early 2000s, Matchbox were providing a premium series called "The Premiere Collection" along with various offshoots.  These models sported rubber 2-part wheels and a high level of detail not normally seen in the basic range.  By 2003, the range was starting to falter, and sales were struggling.  The guys in Mt Laurel were coming up with perhaps the last new item before they were all to be made redundant.  This in 2004, Matchbox began their latest foray into premium series with the return of the Superfast series.  These were simply a look into how Matchbox were when Superfast began in 1969, with a box inside a blister, high levels of detail and standard wheels.  The series of 75 models was produced to celebrate the 35th Anniversary of Superfast and proved to be a big success.  In 2005, they decided to make a second series of 75, and as was the case when Superfast began, many of the models were carryovers from the 2004 series.  But some new castings were introduced, and other "older" castings were also brought in to replace some of the others.  This was to have been one of them.

In 2004, Matchbox released a 1957 Chevy BelAir as #37 in the range, and for 2005 they decided to go with the Porsche 959.  As you can see, this model made it all the way to the FEP stage, where they were mocking up the model inside the blister.

A sample run of 50 examples were produced as a test, and things were going well.  But then; at the last second; it stopped.  It was said that the Porsche 959 casting had a flaw around the wheel arches that caused the casting to fail.  It was going to take a while to fix, so rather than try to pursue that route, they looked at the previous model and just went with another Chevy Bel Air.  So this model never made it into production after all.

It is a real shame as it was a lovely little model, and the first we had seen from the 959 for a few years.  This is one of those 50 models.

Of course this was the last it was going to see of its package as it had to be set free.

To be honest, it doesn’t really look too bad around those arches.  Maybe it failed after they run these 50.  As was often the rule, test runs were normally made of models of anywhere between 20 and 2,000 models depending on what they wanted to check for. 

Bye bye box.  It was nice sitting on you for a while.

There was not a lot of additional printing on this particular model.  Although the rear would have not been noticed anyway due to the body color being similar to the red needed.

This is perhaps the last we will ever see of this model, as by now the casting will have lay destitute in the factory for the best part of a decade, and is likely not in any fit state for use at all now.  It is a shame, as these supercars of the 1980s and 1990s were very popular in the Matchbox range at the time.

 

But if you want to be one of the 50 lucky people interested in this, there is an example on eBay right now.

 

Rare Matchbox Superfast Porsche 959 on ebay

 

Here is a shot of the model with some older versions of the casting.

Or if you prefer, how about with a group of other pre-production examples of the 959 that were never made.

Ryu Asada, Hot Wheels' next great designer?

In the last week or so, two of the final models of the 2014 Hot Wheels year were unveiled, to much applause from collectors.  The Porsche 934 and 2015 Mustang both are making pretty big waves:

The response from collectors has been universal: These two models are fantastic.  One is a car that is as current as they come, the other a classic.  One American, one German.  Yet both are amazingly detailed for $1 diecast cars, from their appropriate stances, to side and hood details, to other era-appropriate design queues.

And they both share one other common thread: they were both designed by Ryu Asada.

Ryu has burst on to the Hot Wheels scene, and blue collectors are now learning something that Matchbox collectors have known for awhile.  Ryu is a tremendously talented designer.  He initially came to Mattel to design for Matchbox, and started strong there as well.  He designed a huge number of models from the 2005-2012 era of Matchbox that was defined by realism, both classic and current. Models like the Toyota Land Cruiser, Lamborghini Muira, Caterham Superlight, and last year's BMW 1M were all Ryu creations.  In fact, Ryu had a hand in almost all of Matchbox's output during that time.

Then in 2013, Ryu was transferred to the blue side of the Mattel Design Center, and has been making his mark ever since.  Here is just SOME of his output in 2014 alone:

1990 Honda Civic EF

Fiat 500

Rig Storm & Project Speeder

Mastretta MXT

Ryura LX

Other models include the Hi-Tech Missile, Snow Plow, and the C7 Corvette Convertible.  And that is just 2014.

In 2013, we saw Ryu's work in the C7 Corvette Stingray and Chevy C10:

And even before that, while Ryu was still designing for Matchbox, he churned out these two Honda gems for Hot Wheels, the S2000 and CR-X:

As you start looking at that output, you start noticing trends.  An ability to duplicate cars past and present, with a flare for the cool and interesting.  Ryu's 1990 Civic for example not only duplicates a car that many of us are familiar with, but more importantly is Hot Wheels' tribute to Kanjo Racing, a Civic-cominated car scene that originated in Ryu's hometown of Osaka, Japan.  

You also see very creative non-licensed cars, like the "in-process" Project Speeder.

And yes, this variety of cars does remind one of another Hot Wheels designer, one Jun Imai, who has deservedly gotten his fair share of attention lately.  The comparisons are obvious.  Like Jun, Ryu is as pure a car nut as they come.  While Jun zips around in his Datsun Wagon and 240Z, Ryu is equally as passionate about his S2000 and Subaru SVX.  They both have an appreciation for car cultures of any kind, and they both are encyclopedias of knowledge.  

And while designers don't make all the decisions on what models are going into each lineup, they definitely can leave their mark.  Jun did so with the 510 Sedan and Wagon, BMW 2002, Hakosuka and Kenmeri Skylines, Toyota 2000GT, and Mad Manga, among many.  Ryu appears to be doing the same with his output so far. 

When we ask readers to vote for their favorite models of 2014 later this year, we are certain the Porsche 934, Civic EF, 2015 Mustang and Fiat 500 will all be at or near the top.  That says a lot for what Ryu is doing.  And the great thing?  He is only getting started.

So Ryu, keep it up.  We can't wait to see what is next...

Gathering Prep: One Matchbox exclusive model from each of the last 7 years, plus the first sneak peek of this year's Dinner Model...

Exactly as week from now, we will be enjoying the Southwest in the great town of Albuquerque, New Mexico, with our fellow Matchbox nerds at the 12th Annual International Matchbox Collectors Gathering of Friends.

We have already mentioned numerous times how much we enjoy this convention, so we are happily counting down the days.  And to help us do that we are looking at models from Gatherings past.  Last week we showcased the several Routemaster Buses that have been Gathering exclusives, and this week we thought we would pull one exclusive from the last 7 Gatherings.

Why 7?  No reason.  The 2014 event will actually be my 7th time visiting, and it would have been the 8th if certain circumstances hadn't prevented my from going in 2007.  So maybe these 7 represent the 7 years I have been involved.

So we picked a model from each year and gave them the Lamley treatment.  You can see that there is a large variety to the models picked, and the only consistency is that the models are licensed, and they are incredibly detailed.  The Gathering exclusives are always the nicest produced models of each year.

And that will remain true in 2014.  Event organizer Jim Gallegos had hinted to us that the models will not disappoint, and that they are some of the best models ever done for the Gathering.  He even provided a teaser pic and we are showing at the bottom of this post.  Scroll down and see if you can figure out what the model is.

So here we go, a model from each year since 2007.  Try not to drool, and let us know your favorite.  If you can pick one...

(In case you want one, some of these models are currently on ebay...)

2007 - 5th Gathering - 1965 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GTA (Dinner Model)

2008 - 6th Gathering - 1969 Cadillac Sedan Deville (Dealer Model)

2009 - 7th Gathering - 1972 Lotus Europa (Convention Model)

2010 - 8th Gathering - 1971 VW-Porsche 914 (Convention Model)

2011 - 9th Gathering - '68 Ford Mustang GT/CS (Dinner Model)

2012 - 10th Gathering - 1971 Pontiac Firebird Formula (Dinner Model)

2013 - 11th Gathering - '56 Buick Century Police Car (Dealer Model)

Finally, the sneak peek you have all been waiting for:

2014 - 12th Gathering - ________________ (Dinner Model)

Jim may have given too much away.  Especially with these hints:

1. It is a Matchbox model.
2. It has wheels.
3. The Gathering logo is somewhere on the model.
4. It sits in a plexiglass case.
5. It will be opened by David Tilley, my Lamley counterpart, as soon as he gets his grubby hands on it.

Anyone excited?