Friday, December 17, 2010

The Datsun 200C

Datsun 200C with Nissan Cedric 2600GX

The third generation Nissan Cedric first appeared in 1971. When Nissan exported the Cedric to other countries, they dropped the Cedric name and marketed it as the Datsun 200C, 220C, 240C and the 260C. The third generation Cedric was done as a four door sedan, a station wagon or a two door coupe. The coupe was introduced because of the Toyota Crown coupe.

Datsun 200C with Nissan Cedric 2600GX

Nissan Cedric 2600GX

This car brings back a lot of memories to me as it was my mom's car during the late seventies. Tomica really did a good job on the grills, emblem and lights but forgot to put the side mirrors (again). I love this car as it reminds me of my childhood. I was surprised to see this car listed on the world's worst cars. All I can remember is that it gave us a comfortable ride and the airconditioning was excellent.

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Toyota FS45V

Toyota FS45V

The FS45V ambulance is based on the second generation Toyota Crown (S40). The Crown's styling was influenced by the newly introduced Ford Falcon in 1960. A lot of modifications were made to the body of the Crown. The vehicle's ceiling was raised because the paramedics were having a hard time attending to the patients. It is equipped with a water cooled inline six-cylinder engine.

Toyota FS45V Tamagawa City

Toyota FS45V back view

The F on the FS45V stands for the Toyota F engine, the S45 stands for the Crown series 40/45, the V stands for van (Masterline). The Toyota F series engine was produced between 1955 till 1992. It is highly reliable, has a high amount of torque and low RPM. The F series engine has one of the longest production run in Toyota's history. Although it was originally badged as an engine for the Land Cruiser, it was also used in other vehicles like ambulances, trucks and other commecial vehicles. The ambulance with the red stripe is from Tamagawa city while the ambulance with the yellow light in front is from Takasaki city.

Toyota FS45V Fire Department

Toyota FS45V Fire Department

During the Tomica shop's second anniversary in Nagoya, they released a limited edition Toyota FS45V fire department. This was released in October 2008.

Saturday, December 11, 2010

Pocket Fire Engines

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Nissan Patrol 60

The Nissan Patrol 60 series went into production in 1960. Previous models of Nissan were inspired by American Jeeps, but this was a new design that sported a distinctive look. The 60 series sold well in Asia and Australia but not so much in the United States as only 4,000 units were sold there. It remained in production for almost two decades (until the mid 1980's). Nissan released a slightly modified version called the 61 series, and sold it alongside the new Nissan Patrol until 1984. The 60 series Patrol was replaced in 1980 by the Nissan Patrol 160 series, also known as the Nissan Safari.

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Nissan Junior 40 truck

Nissan introduced the new Junior 40 truck in 1962. This truck is by no means small as it's wheelbase are the same as the Ford F100 from the same era. The Junior series 40 was in production until 1965. It was replaced by the Junior series 41, which was the same truck, but equipped with a more powerful engine. The Nissan F40, not to be confused with the Ferrari F40, is the fire truck version based on the Junior 40. Tomica Limited Vintage released the Nissan Junior 40 truck in May 2006 and the Nissan Patrol 60 in June 2006.

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TLV Police Station Diorama

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If you like displaying your cars in a diorama setup, then this set is for you. It comes with a Datsun 410 Bluebird police car and a police figure. It also includes a bike, some trash bins and some tables and chairs for the building interior. In spite of the small scale, this diorama set is very detailed. This set is a must have for diorama builders and police car collectors alike.

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Saturday, December 4, 2010

The Fairlady Z

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This car has long been overdue. In fact, the Tomica Limited Vintage series would not be complete without this iconic Japanese car. I have long been waiting for Tomica to release this and I must say, it was worth the wait.

The details that they have put in this car says it all. A far cry from their earlier releases. The 240z was released in the United States in 1970. It started out in October 1969 with two versions. One for the JDM (Japanese domestic market) and one to be exported to the United States.

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The Japanese Fairlady Z had a 2.0 SOHC (single overhead cam) inline-6 engine, which produced 130hp, while the Fairlady Z which was exported to America, was equiped with a 2.4 liter engine with twin carburetors that produced 151hp. Nissan also released the Z432 which was equiped with a 2.0 DOHC (double overhead cam) engine which was also used for the Nissan Skyline. The Fairlady Z took over a market dominated by British sporting cars. It is reliable, good looking, cheap, and it drove like how a sports car should. The 240z, which is the original Z car, outsold the Jaguar E-type and became very popular in the United States.

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How big are these cars?

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Tomica Limited Vintage cars are all in 1/64 scale. The sizes are proportioned to the real vehicles. A Bus or firetruck can measure around 6 inches while a regular car can measure around 2.5 to 3 inches.

Tomica made new casts for every Tomica Limited Vintage car. This series differ from the TL series (or Tomica Limited). TL cars have the same casts as the cars which Tomica released during the 1970's - 1980's. Most are not in 1/64 and are done in broken scale.

JAF Service Cars

JAF Service Cars

Japan Automobile Federation is an organization which provides motorists road service and campaigns to promote traffic safety. JAF's road service crew is ready 24 hours a day to assist motorists in distress. Tomica released this JAF Service boxed set Volume 1 in October 2005. It contains the Hino Contessa and the Toyopet Corona.

Hino Contessa
Toyopet Corona

Mr. K's Datsun 510

Datsun 510

The Datsun 510 (also known as the Nissan Bluebird) was sold in the United States during 1968 to 1974. Sometimes called the "poor man's BMW" as the design was inspired by the BMW 1600. Affordable and reliable are two factors that made the Datsun 510 popular. The parts are also interchangeable and can be easily modified. There seems to be a cult following on the 510 in the U.S., Australia and New Zealand.

Datsun 510

Yutaka Katayama, also known as Mr. K, persuaded Nissan to start exporting cars to the United States. After having done some market research during the early 60's, Nissan started importing the Datsun 510 in 1968. They introduced the 240z during 1970. Mr. K was inducted to the Japan Automotive Hall of Fame in 1998. Tomica released this special boxed set around September 2009 in honor of Mr. K.