Lansdowne (England)
Brooklin Models, specializing in American cars of the 40s, 50s and 60s, was started in 1974 in Brooklin, Canada, by John Hall. After moving to Bath, England, the range was expanded to include US Model Mint (trucks), Streamliners (streamline trucks), Lansdowne (English cars), International Police Vehicles, and Rob-Eddie (Swedish cars).

Lansdowne models are heavy, nicely detailed, and very desirable.

Lansdowne Caravan
Lansdowne Vauxhall Cresta

Lindberg/Mini Lindy (USA)

It had to be very tempting to all the toy manufacturers to try to get a slice of the Matchbox/Hot Wheels pie. For many reasons, a lot of these imitators just didn't make it. In the case of the Mini Lindy, it was undoubtedly done in by boring models (Chevy panel vans?!?), fragility and lack of speed wheels. These really weren't problems for me as a kid; I loved the "boring models," I took good care of my models, and you couldn't pay me to buy a Hot Wheels or a Matchbox with speed wheels. But, as the numbers for Hot Wheels attest, most little kids all over the US demanded wild fast cars that could hold up to multiple flying crashes.

These are nothing more than tiny (1:64 neighborhood) plastic models from Lindberg, the company famous for standard plastic car models. The car came in a little paper box as a kit. You put the model together (including the little weights meant to give some heft), and screwed the chassis on. They actually are quite appealing little models, but I think the one thing that always kept me from collecting them as a kid was that I felt a little cheated by the light weight.. I wanted a car with some heft, and this one didn't have it.

According to 87th Scale, the cars were built between 1968 and 1970, and some were available in boxes marked Revell. As always, 87th Scale has a fine gallery of photos and a listing of models.

Mini Lindy AMX
Mini Lindy AMX scan of bottom
Kelloggs Corn Flakes package offer
Kelloggs Corn Flakes offer list (from side of box)

Line Mar Collectoy (Japan)
Much has been written about Line Mar's parent company -- Louis Marx & Co. ("By Marx!"). I read all over the Internet that Line Mar (sometimes written as Linemar) was the "import subsidiary" of the company... which to me is strange, because when I think of Marx, I think of "Made in Japan." The division seems to have been extant from the late 50s to the late 80s.

A large assortment of toys were sold under the Line Mar name. I have seen pictures of the slightly larger than Matchbox tin friction toys Linemar sold -- but I have yet to see the diecast cars. Oh, sure, I have three empty boxes (?!), but not a single model.

The boxes are pretty interesting in themselves. There is a very strange inscription, "Linemar, Best By For." It's supposed to be "Best By Far," of course. It also says "Another Collectoy do you have all of them?" And yes, the comma is missing on the box.

Thanks to Rich Yates for sending the picture of his Ford Ranch wagon and the box!

There are, of course, lots of other Line Mar toys, including a set of "Elegant Miniatures" -- since I only have the box, not the miniatures, I assume they were sized around HO.

Linemar box
Linemar Ranch Wagon with box
Line Mar "Elegant Miniatures" box

Lintoy (Hong Kong)
Lintoy was another failed attempt to compete against Hot Wheels. It was made by/for Bachmann, a name you'll more likely see on a train set or a diecast airplane. The one car I have in my collection says "Fiat Abarth, Lintoy, Made in Hong Kong" on the bottom. It has an engine cover which lifts, and Hot Wheels-like fast wheels, with plastic windows and a full interior.

Lintoy is a name apparently very well known to collectors of airplanes, too.

You can see more Lintoys at this site.

Lintoy Fiat Abarth

Lion Car/Lion Toys (Netherlands)
It's nice to know I'm not alone in my frustration trying to find information on anything beyond the usual Matchbox or Hot Wheels. Read the article "Lion Toys, Innovatie op Schall 1946-2001" and you'll see someone else who's had to content himself with just looking at pictures because he can't read the text (Dutch, in this case). Lion Car models, being of things like DAF cars, probably weren't enormously popular in the rest of Europe. In the U.S. you'll mostly get blank stares if you mention the marque. So, there isn't a lot written in English about them.

I have a DAF coupe (bottom of car: "Lion Car, DAF Coupe, Variomatic, Made in Holland") that I bought on Ebay. Curiously, it came in a box that had Lion Toys on it. I didn't know WHAT this meant, but luckily I was given lots of information by Jan Clevering of the Netherlands:

Click here for the present site of Lion Toys. The range is now all trucks.

"Lion Toys started with train sets. In 1946 they started making Zamac cars, amongst them are Renault 4CV, Opel Rekord, VW Beetle, Renault Dauphine. From 1958 they almost solely made DAF cars. This is the list:
DAF 600, 750 Pickup, Daffodil (factory type 30), Daffodil (31), Daffodil (32), 33 (Note: Not Daffodil anymore), 33 van, 44, 44 estate, 55 Coupe, 66 Coupe. The 750 Pickup came in three version, without canope, with canope and with raised canope (very seldom!). Another markable version is a Golden type 31, to mark DAF made 100.000 passenger cars.

"Lion Toys also made DAF truck in 1:50:
DAF 1600 (type 1 grille with 7 stripes)
DAF 1600 (type 2 grille with hexagon shaped grille)
DAF 1600 torpedo
DAF 2600
DAF Pony (small truck, based on DAF 4 technique)
DAF 2800 (version 1)
DAF 2800 (version 2, slight change in grille, 70's DAF style)
DAF 1900 (version 1)
DAF 1900 (version 2 70's DAF style)
DAF 1900 (version 3 (new DAF look))
DAF 95
DAF 45
DAF 55
DAF 65
DAF 75
DAF 85
DAF 65CF
DAF 75CF
DAF 85CF
DAF 95XF
DAF LF
DAF CF
DAF XF95

"and also 3 busses:
DAF Citybus, Berkhof, Phileas (a bus made for ony one town)

"In the 90's they started making trucks from Scania, Mercedes-Benz and Volvo too. Just recently they released a MAN truck."

I also asked Jan about my DAF coupe saying "Lion Car," but coming in a "Lion Toys" box. Jan advised me that a Lion Toy would still have the name "Lion Car" stamped on the bottom, but it would also have "NA 2000" (see photo link below). He also said that the Lion Toy reissues would have thicker ("ugly!" in his words) paint. Oddly, my car does seem to have the thick paint, but it doesn't say "NA 2000" on the bottom (it says "DAF Coupe" where it would say "NA 2000"). Since the car looks so new, has the thick paint, and came in the Lion Toys box, I'm afraid I have to conclude I have one of the post-2000 Lion Toy issues. Thanks for the info, Jan!

Click here for the present site of Lion Toys. The range is now all trucks.

Lion Toys DAF
Lion Toys bottom (not of my DAF)
Lion Toys box

Loden (Argentina)
(See Aguti)

Luso (Portugal)
Luso is one of those companies that I just can't find much about yet. I have an Opel Corsa and an Opel Rekord. Both nice enough models, though the chassis on both have separated from the body and are bowed outward. Is this perhaps something that happens to Luso's in general?

The bottom of the Rekord says "No 42, M1:43, Opel-Rekord Limousine, Luso Toys, Made in Portugal." The bottom of the Corsa is "No 40, M1:43, Opel-Corsa, Luso Toys, Made in Portugal."

Luso Opel Corsa
Luso Opel Rekord
Luso Opel Corsa bottom

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