What are Some Facts About Matchbox Cars?

Product Origin

• The first unofficial Matchbox car was introduced in 1953 by the British toymaker Lesney Products. It was based on Queen Elizabeth's coronation coach. It was 15-3/4 inches in length and was pulled by four red-jacked riders and eight white horses. Sales of the original coach were respectable. A 4-1/2 inch produced later saw even better sales.

Name Origin

• Jack Odell, a die-cast expert working with Lesney Products, made the product that brought the cars to the masses. Odell's daughter attended a school that restricted students from carrying large toys to school. The rule was every toy had to be small enough to fit into a matchbox. Odell cast a brass road roller compliant with the school's rules and painted it red and green. Other students saw and wanted small cars of their own. This gave birth to the name Matchbox and a new line of general cars.

Trademarked

• Lesney trademarked the name Matchbox in 1953. The standard scale for the petite cars and trucks was set at 1:75. Vehicles produced in the first year, included road rollers, dump trucks, a white MG Midget TD, an orange milk wagon, a red and white Vauxhall Cresta, and green and red cement mixers.

Sales

• Matchbox cars sales were not encouraging in its first years. Shop owners wanted to sell larger, higher priced toys that sold for more money per unit. As it turned out, children made Matchbox cars a hit. Kids with just enough pocket change for a small car bought them with their own money. By 1960, demand was such that Lesney was cranking out 50 million cars each year. Matchbox had the market to itself until 1968 when Hot Wheels arrived.

Details

• Some of the better Matchbox vehicles had more than 100 parts. With the challenge from Hot Wheels, some Matchbox models in the '70s developed black hard plastic tires that were replaceable. Matchbox cars also eventually took on details such as windows, dashboards and headlights, and some had doors that could open.