In 2015, Jeeps roared back from a decade of relative obscurity in the lineup of 1/56-scale Matchbox diecast toys, with the appearance of new castings, new paint jobs and special packaging.
The biggest news was the arrival of an all-new classic Jeep casting, a nicely detailed 1953 pickup truck. I narrowed it down to 1953, as the last year of the 5-bar front grille and the first year for Hermosa Red paint.
The new Matchbox truck is seen here making a surprise appearance at the Willys Spring Reunion in May 2015.
The 1/56-scale casting is pretty well detailed, including the "WO" logo on the tailgate. It's missing the spare tire on the left side behind the cab, but since the model has a body lift and larger-than-stock tires, that would make sense.
The red paint is perhaps a tribute to the first Matchbox Jeep, back in 1964 -- the No. 71 Gladiator pickup (170K JPEG) -- which is the only other small diecast Jeep pickup I can think of, other than the Hot Wheels Scrambler (280K JPEG).
In addition to the pickup, only a red Jeep Hurricane Concept (140K JPEG) and an orange Superlift Wrangler (110K JPEG) were in the regular 1-120 series this year. But those two, and all the other Jeeps from the past couple of years, were re-released in a special Jeep series on ten colorful bubblepack cards: 3 Superlift Wranglers, 3 Willys MB's, 3 Hurricane Concepts, and the "Polar Bear" Jeep Willys Concept.
The entire series is also pictured in black & white on the back of the cards (300K JPEG). Text on the back states, "Matchbox brings the perfect combination of adventure and toughness in this ultimate Jeep vehicles collection that celebrates both brands' collective histories of exploring rugged terrain and wrangling tough conditions."
Matchbox calls the pickup "Jeep Willys 4x4", presumably to satisfy the Jeep Corporation. It's #84 in the 1-120 series, and did appear in some stores in the fall, but apparently wasn't ready in time to be included in the special Jeep collection.
However, news has already leaked out that a version of the pickup in two-tone peacock blue and black is planned as part of an all-new, 8-vehicle Jeep 75th Anniversary Series in 2016. The TJ Wrangler will return in yellow, the Grand Cherokee in orange, and the '43 Willys will finally be in U.S. Army livery. Also a silver Jeep Willys Concept, black Hurricane Concept, blue Superlift JK, and a white Cherokee Trailhawk.
Too bad they wouldn't bring back the old flatfender which was re-tooled in 2001 for Elvis; this could be the perfect time for something from The CJ3B Page Collection.
Wait a minute. Cherokee Trailhawk?
Yes, the second all-new casting to be announced this year is the Trailhawk, which is the top of Jeep's new Cherokee line.
As of this writing, the Matchbox Trailhawk has not appeared for sale -- it will be a 2016 model, and announcements have suggested it will be available initially in both Deep Cherry Red and True Blue. Thanks to The Lamley Group for the photos.
This offering is a bit removed from the classic, modified and concept vehicles making up the rest of Matchbox's Jeeps. But Chrysler probably wanted something to tie the Matchbox Jeep extravaganza to the vehicles it has in the showroom, and the Cherokee seems to be selling well for Chrysler so the toy should be popular too.
It's also part of the Matchbox tradition to have some everyday vehicles in the line, and there are currently very few in the 1-120 (see the Matchbox Cars Wiki.) -- Derek Redmond
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