All diecast 1:43 scale cars that have raced and placed at Bathurst

Thanks to 'Tim' I am able to offer a complete list of all existing 1:43 scale diecast cars raced at Bathurst since 1963 that have achieved a podium place. If it's raced there, had a placing, and is in 1:43 it should be in this list!. Tim supplied the original list in a spreadsheet format, but I have converted it to a PDF document. It's an impressive piece of research. 

All 1:43 scale diecast cars that have raced at Bathurst

If you see an error, or know of a car that should be there - please leave a comment below. 

That list is a little long and complex, hence the PDF. I also have a much shorter list of 1:43 scale 'castings' from various diecast manufacturers of cars that have raced at Bathurst. I did not create this list, and found it at the Biante forum. 

1:43 scale castings of cars that have raced at Bathurst

1960 - Vauxhall Cresta - Vanguards 

1961 - Mercedes 220 - Australian Motoring Minatures

1962 - XL Falcon - Australian Motoring Minatures

1963 - Cortina - Australian Motoring Minatures

1964 - Cortina - Vanguards / Classic Carlectables

1965 - Cortina - Classic Carlectables / Dinkum

1966 - Mini - Vanguards / Biante 

1967 - XR Falcon - Classic Carlectables / Trax

1968 - HK Monaro - Biante (Autoart) / Trax

1969 - HT Monaro - Biante (Autoart) / Trax

1970 - XW Falcon - Biante 

1971 - XY Falcon - Biante / Classic / Trax

1972 - LJ Torana - Dinkum / Trax

1973 - XA Falcon - Biante (Autoart) / Dinkum

1974 - XA Falcon - Dinkum

1975 - LH Torana - Biante (Autoart) / Dinkum

1976 - LH Torana - Biante / Classic / Dinkum

1977 - XC Falcon - Biante / Dinkum

1978 - LX Torana - Biante (Autoart) / Dinkum / Australian Model cars / Automodelli

1979 - LX Torana - Biante (Autoart) / Dinkum / Australian Model cars / Automodelli

1980 - VC Commodore - Dinkum / Classic

1981 - XD Falcon - Biante (Autoart) / Dinkum

1982 - VH Commodore - Dinkum

1983 - VH Commodore - Classic / Dinkum

1984 - VK Commodore - Dinkum / Biante 

1985 - Jaguar - Biante / Dinkum 

1986 - VK Commodore - Biante / Dinkum

1987 - VL Commodore - Biante / Dinkum

1988 - Sierra - Dinkum / Model Cars Australia / Automodelli / Apex (Coming)

1989 - Sierra - Dinkum / Model Cars Australia / Automodelli / Biante (Coming)

1990 - VL Commodore - Biante / Dinkum

1991 - Skyline - Biante / Dinkum 

1992 - Skyline - Biante / Dinkum / Apex (Coming)

1993 - VP Commodore - Dinkum / Galaxy

1994 - EB Falcon - Dinkum / Galaxy / Biante(Coming)

1995 - VR Commodore - Dinkum / Galaxy

1996 - VR Commodore - Classic / Dinkum

1997 - BMW 320 - Onyx 

1997 - VS Commodore - Classic 

1998 - Volvo S40 - Onyx 

1998 - EL Falcon - Classic 

1999 - VT Commodore - Classic 

2000 - VT Commodore - Classic 

2001 - VX Commodore - Biante 

2002 - VX Commoore - Biante 

2003 - VY Commodore - Biante 

2004 - VY Commodore - Biante 

2005 - VZ Commodore - Biante 

2006 - BA Falcon - Classic

2007 - BF Falcon - Classic 

2008 - Hogster - Classic 

2009 - VE Commodore - Classic 

2010 - VE Commodore - Classic  

Classic Carlectable 1:43 AU Falcon V8 Supercar- Dick Johnsons last race

Every racing driver knows that one day they will stop racing. Some bow out gracefully. This is how Dick Johnson retired, racing in a car with his son at the Queensland 500 in 2000. Although he had officially retired at the end of 1999...

Classic Carlectables captured this car and the 'Johnson Johnson' on the window in 1:43 scale in their V8 Supercar series of cars in 2001. It has sat proudly in my collection, and I'm not a big V8 Supercar fan (Give me a Group C 'Big Banger' any day!).  

At this stage of his career, Dick Johnson Racing had gone through ups and downs, but was strong, with his son racing and being successful. Group C had given way to V8 Supercars. Dick raced in the V8 Supercar season in 1999, then retired. His son Steven continued racing in his number 17. 

Father and son are quite different racers, but there were some consistencies - the map of Queensland on the roof, the famous number 17 on the doors, and a competitive Ford racing car.  

Now we come to the model of the car. Classic Carlectables did a very good job on this diecast version, which was based on their standard V8 Supercar Falcon moulding for that season. The livery is special, and accurately captured. Although oddly, TAA is on the roof, which had been superseded by Australian Airlines.

The baseplate is not accurately detailed, but the model does sit well, with  a good racing stance. The spoilers are accurate to this car, and although there is no interior detail, it is a nicely presented car. From Classics infamous 'brick' range, the model features dark glass and no  interior. This enabled this range to be offered at a lower price point than other V8 supercar models. When new the car retailed for $33, and they can be found on ebay at around that price, or lower. 

Packaging is colourful, and nicely displays the car. This model is not as famous as the Tru Blu XD, but as his final car, it is a must have and deserves a place in a Dick Johnson collection. Now to the all important rating. 

Classic Carlectables - Dick Johnson V8 Supercar Ford Falcon - Qld 500 2000

Quality  7

Design    7

Colours   7

X-factor  7

Rating: 28/40

You can read more about Dick Johnson at Wikipedia.

Into the Garage - I'm Excited! Big Kev Racing Commodore in 1/43

Anyone who attended the Canberra GMC-400 V8 Supercar races in the early 2000's cant forget the incredible crowd favourite that the Paul Morris Big Kev Racing Commodore was. He may not have featured in the podium results very often, but the car was well presented and he drove well enough to garner respect. Morris is still racing today with Morris Racing known as Supercheap Auto Racing. 


I suspect the massive TV campaign for Big Kev cleaning products might have had a part in that. Big Kev or Kevin McQuay was a wideboy showman from Queensland who had a hit with his Goo Remover and ran with the opportunity. He went public and brought a complete line of cleaning products to the market. Then it all started to unravel, and eventually share trading halted and the company went under. Sadly Big Kev passed away shortly after and his company and products are no more.

Before that happened though, he sponsored Big Kev Racing and would appear at the races to promote himself, his products and the team. I bought a scarf at one of the GMC 400's (middle of Canberra June) and still have a bottle of Goo remover in the laundry cupboard. 


Paul Morris is a talented aggressive race driver. in 2000 he was involved in a major start-line accident at Oran Park suffering a number of fractured vertebrae , and narrowly escaped being burnt alive in flaming wreckage of his VS Commodore. He recovered without missing any races, and garnered his first win at Calder Park in 2001, where he won two of the three races and the round overall.

I saw this model on Ebay and it had no bidders. I picked it up very cheaply. Its a mass produced Classic Carlectable 1/43 diecast with a plastic base and no interior. The window glass is in fact glossy black plastic. Its one step up from the toy category. But it is a nice representation of this model Commodore, and the Big Kev Livery is vivid. Added to that is the signature of Big Kev himself. I made one bid and it was mine. 

Packaging is supermarket hanger style, and fairly flimsy. There is a screw underneath holding the model down, and a certificate of authenticity. There are 2999 other Big Kev Racing 1/43 Commodores out there somewhere. 

Big Kev himself. He was renowned for his lurid shirts and vaudeville style showmanship.

So to the all important rating. Considering its a mass produced fan model, its not of the quality that collectors of diecast normally look for. Having said that, it is eyecatching, and as a person who was standing at the corner in Barton when Morris spun out and was cheered on by the crowds, this is an emotional purchase as well.

Ratings

Classic Carlectables 1/43 Big Kev Racing VS Commodore

Quality  6

Design    6

Colours   6

X-factor  7

Rating: 25/40

Getting the model prepared for shooting. Its arduous work.

Into the garage - VY SS Ute, Moffat XB GT, Superkings Transporter

After selling a few diecast cars on Ebay, I decided to restock the garage. Two purchases occurred at Fisher Discounts, and one from Ebay.

The first purchase is a Classic Carlectables, 1/43 Holden VY SS Utility - with Canopy (factory). Effectively, a VY SS Panelvan.  I have only seen a handful of these on the road, and was quite taken with the 1/43 version.

The casting is very good, and the fine detail is captured accurately. None of the doors open, but this is rare in 1/43. The interior is very good, with multicoloured and patterned seats, and a nice dash. The body colour is called 'Phantom'.

The wheels are nicely cast, not too 'chromey' and capture the sheen of the real cars rims accurately. You can also see tiny brake calipers on the disc brakes if you squint. Best of all, this car was on special - and cost $25. As one of only 1250 produced, this is quite a scarce model. I am not a big Commodore fan, but this is a nice example of design, and is a little different to your normal Commodore.

The second car was a very attractive Biante/AutoArt 1/43 Ford XB Falcon GT, as raced by Allan Moffat in the 1976 Bathurst 1000.

This is a beautifully rendered version of the XB Coupe. The body shape is accurate, the colour scheme is accurate, and the racing wheels and interior are accurately represented. This was also on special at Fisher Discounts, at $45.

The limits of my photographic skill dont truly capture how well presented the interior of this car is. You can see a racing seat and various racing modifications which are different from the road version. In this scale, its impressive.

The underside is also different. The front wheels actually turn! The suspension and underbody look accurate, and notice the racing pipes. Apart from the fact its clean, and there is a dirty big hole that a screw goes into to hold it on a baseplate, it could be a real car flipped on its side.

This shot nicely shows the beauty of the racing paint scheme. I wish more people would paint  their road cars in more interesting paint schemes than the factory monocolour offerings. After driving a car painted in flames for 20 years, its definitely easier to find your car in a parking garage, among other advantages.

My final photo. Those are tiny clip on plastic covers over the headlights. On the real car, there were little angled curves on the inner edges, directing air into the radiator. Its the only inaccuracy I can find. Dont XB Coupes look good from the front ? Rhetorical question.

Final purchase, from Ebay, was this Matchbox Superkings K7 Racing Car Transporter. I already own one of these, but it was in 'much played with' condition, and I lost the racing car when I was a child. Box ? Also gone. I have no idea what the scale of this vehicle is. It could be 1/87.

A total fantasy design, not based on any real car, this was a childhood favourite. I saw this on ebay and even though it was without its box, i decided to bid anyway. It is in excellent condition with only a few very small chips, and the plastic car cover is unmarked. There was also a white version of this model produced. I've never seen it though.

This model came with the No 24 'Team Matchbox' 1:75 F1 Racing Car. Also in excellent condition. The stickers are in excellent condition. As a toy and not a model, like the other cars reviewed in this post, the paint quality is different, and it has thick stickers, not tampo printed or decals for detail. The paint colour screams 'Shell' to me. but it has 'Firestone', 'STP' and 'Team Matchbox'.

I like the gullwing doors. The rear door lowers, and the tray that the racing car rides in also pulls out to form a ramp. The design itself dates from 1972. Im not sure when this actual model was produced. By entering the garage it replaces the much played with version. I plan to update my Superking collection piece by piece. Id prefer boxed versions, but an unboxed version in this condition is fine by me.

Ratings

Classic Carlectables 1/43 VY SS Ute with Canopy

Quality   8

Design    8

Colours   8

X-factor  6

Rating: 30/40

Biante/AutoArt 1/43 Ford Falcon XB GT Moffatt-Schuppan 1976 Bathurst

Quality   9

Design    8

Colours   9

X-factor  9

Rating: 35/40

Matchbox Superkings K7 Racing Car Transporter

Quality   7

Design    9

Colours   6

X-factor  9

Rating: 31/40