Packard Landaulet by Matchbox Models of Yesteryear Y-11/2 1964-1972

One of the many nice things about my job is reliving great childhood moments. I was given one of these in about 1964-5 and still remember being awestruck at how shiny it was, that deep, lustrous maroon & black paint. I really liked it then and I still do now.

Matchbox obviously liked it too as they kept it in the range from 1964 to 1972 and unusually for Models of Yesteryear they kept the colour the same throughout. You might see it in cream but that was from a special boxed set of super-detailed models released in 1984 as a one-off called the Connoisseur Collection.

There were some changes during the production run, the steering wheel started out metal and was changed to plastic, the spare wheel holder began with four prongs and later had three and there are also a number of variations to the baseplate casting. You will also see variations in the plating on the floor/firewall casting and the radiator although this was down to breakdowns on the plating machine in the factory rather than deliberate policy. One of the fascinations with Matchbox collecting is the variations caused by chaotic manufacturing.

This is a really nice example, with all the features of an early release, good plating and a D3 type box putting it firmly in the first years of production. Click to open on Little Wheels