19 replies to this topic

[TSR]

I don't particularly care for plastic toys, but there are a few makers that deserve respect as they used the less noble material in very effective ways, I had been looking for one of these as a MIB item for quite a while, and eventually found one. This is a splendid and quite large Mercedes-Benz W196 gas-powered toy issued by the famous Cox toy company of Santa Ana, California, in 1957. Yes it is red! The toy is presented in a splendid box and is at the top of the company's art. While all made of plastic, it gives this oil-derived material some letters of nobility. It came with instructions on how to fire its .049ci "gas" engine and had a kit of a likeness of Juan Manuel Fangio in an added plastic bag, left to the customer to assemble and paint




The box is a splendid affair of very high quality with a presentation display inside. The box is made of strong stock, over 1/8" thick.



The wheels are made of vacuum plated strong nylon.



Beautiful detailing such as the front grille add to the appear of this toy, that shows lots of respect for children.



The lines and stance are just about perfect. This is in my opinion the best, most accurate W196 model ever produced, and that includes the current offering by CMC made in China, even if this Cox model is far from having the same level of detailing.



Simply a beautiful toy.



Pulling on the steering wheel opens the bonnet, providing access to the engine. The sad thing about most of the survivors is that they have been run, messing the car often beyond salvation as the fuel was corrosive and damaged everything around it.
The seat cushion has a pattern just like the real thing.

[Ramcatlarry]

Looks familiar...how does it compare to the Stom-becker styrene kit of that era? I used one for a slot car in the day and still have parts of it. and the M-B emblem is turned the wrong way on the box! that and the color must have been the lawyers reaction to copyright infringement.

[TSR]

Larry, the Cox Mercedes is a very large model. it is in the 1/12 scale and is 14" long.



The Strombecker is in the 1/24 scale and is a far more simplistic model and quite inaccurate at that, but is still a neat period toy, that could easily be converted to slot racing with the available conversion kit.
At the time when Strombecker issued their Mercedes kit, the rights in the United States were owned by Studebaker and it is very likely that they allowed the use because the kit bears the Mercedes-Benz name. That the logo is upside down is probably due to simple ignorance by the box designer...

[Prof. Fate]

Hi

yup, my first cars. They had a tether system, someone mada a rail system and I did the cars to both and eventually to slots. I still have the Merc and the Lancia and should restore them. I even have a gymbol slot conversion for them that I don't remember buying! I had the scarab as well, but it is missing as well.

I have lost the original guide shoes. I mean, I built them in the late 50s, then took them to the Philippines, and later all over the us, and stuff just vanished in some moves.

I have looked in vain to find the Aston martin, though I vaguely remember that it and the Healy I had were converted revell kits.

I didn't see a britsh or euro car until '63!

Fate

[TSR]

Rocky, the Strombecker Aston and A-H were proprietary Strombecker molds. Quite nice at that for the Healy, not so great for the DBR1. I don't think that Revell ever made the Aston in any form actually. So if you had one, must have been the Strombecker, or the clear-plastic Du-Bro that was molded right over it.

[n.elmholt]

mmmmmhhh - can nearly smell the fuel - thanks for sharing this beautiful model ....

Niels

[TSR]

Niels, thanks, my pleasure.
I also have the Cox gas powered Chaparral as well as the Ford GT, the Buick Riviera and the Corvette but they are nowhere near as nice in precision and construction as this earlier toy.
Cox also made a Pontiac GTO and a Camaro in the 1/24 scale, that used the axles, wheels and tires from the Ford GT slot car...

[Prof. Fate]

Hi

Thanks P. Memory versus knowing. I have the vac DBR, so I guess that does it.

Anyway, the Healey was the revell kit. As I bought both at the same time, I wasn't sure if the AM wasn't a revell. I remembered the healy better probably because I still had the box! Recently Revell re-issued it, and Schleicher gave me a "review" sample.

So, that is good.

I saw a number of the gas powered Cox cars being run on various bases both as tether cars, and in those board tracks people built not unlike the Tamiya Hyperracer tracks. But these were survivors from the 40s.

I seem to remember that Cox also did a gas car/slot track with Buick Riveras. I used to know a collector in Idaho, but I never saw them run as slot cars.

I always thought this stuff ought to be more popular.

Fate

[TSR]

I seem to remember that Cox also did a gas car/slot track with Buick Riveras. I used to know a collector in Idaho, but I never saw them run as slot cars.

Yes, that set with a huge plastic oval track had two of the 1/18 scale Corvettes.



It was a popular toy and you can still find them MIB on E-Pay quite often really. The GTO and the Camaro were strictly tether cars and in the 1/24 scale.
The Mercedes was I believe, one of the largest tether car they ever made before the Manx dune buggy, and after I got there, there were a pair of futuristic GT cars from my own design that were fairly tall because they had devised a large plastic flywheel starter wheel and it was originally designed to fit inside a model of a van. This car was called the "Magblaster" (!!! who comes up with stupid names like that!) and this is what it looked like:



This was a tether car and they also made a RC version that was yellow and blue.



Later we made an Indy car from the same chassis, and again this required a tall body to clear the huge flywheel that is hiding below the twin engine scoops.

[TSR]

This is a great 1968 picture of Cox VP Bill Selzer holding the hand built wooden pattern for the 1/24 scale Camaro that will be used to make female epoxies from which the actual body mold will be panto-graphed.

[Prof. Fate]

Hi

Wow!

Did YOU ever see any of this stuff run? As I said, I never have. Thinking about it, in 71, a lot of the tracks closed suddenly around here as a bunch of the racers got together and decided to take up R/C 1/8th with Veco 19s. In retrospect it seems that starting with the cheaper available Cox stuff should have been a good idea. Hmmm.

Fate

[tjetcar]

I have a 57 chevy drag car, and would like to clean it up. There is some old fuel on the body. What is a good way to get it removed? Tried solvent on a small area, to no good. Didn't hurt the body, but didn't remove the dried fuel

[TSR]

Hi Sheldon,
You more than likely have either the Wen-Mac, OK-Cub or Testors Chevy toy. All three companies made one if I recall correctly.
In any case, the fuel is corrosive and eats into the plastic. The only way is to try to grind the offended areas using fine paint polishing compound and soft cotton rags, until you get "below" the damaged area. After that, you will need to use a model kit polishing kit to bring back the luster. There is no other way that really works.

Rocky, there are some good websites about the Cox gas powered toys, the best one is... German. here is a LINK. There are lots of factual errors but it is still the best.
Regards,

[olderracer]

Philippe:

Did you ever get a chance to see the huge layout for these cars that was at Disneyland for a while?



------Regards--------Jack

[TSR]

Yep, I did. I actually helped out there for a short while before they took it down after the "gas" cars were deemed politically incorrect by the local nazis.

[proptop]

This car was also featured in a Leave It To Beaver episode

IIRC the Beav got some $ in the mail for his birthday...and of course doesn't invest it or spend it "wisely" and does something foolish with it (like visit a hobby shop)

[Horsepower]

Beaver was wise beyond his years!

[TSR]

If Beaver kept the car in the box and just looked at it for many years, it went from $14.95 to over $1K in 50 years. Not a GREAT investment but not that bad either...

[Horsepower]

Beats my 401K, or what's left! Thanks PdL, for showing us these great old toys. I never saw any of the cars when I was a kid. The "big kids" on the block had gas airplanes, but no cars. Sniff...I can STILL small the nitro!

[TSR]

401K plans are not far from being government-organized fraud like social security. They get you now AND later.
With toys or good artwork, they NEVER get you.