Category Archives: Ace Models

Ace Models of Australia

By John F. Quilter

Text and photographs copyright of the Author(s) unless otherwise stated.

I recently discovered ACE Models from Australia.   Two of their 1:43 scale offerings in resin interested me.  One, is their 1965 Plymouth Barracuda which they offer in four colours,  white, red, metallic blue and gold.  This car has not previously been available in 1:43 scale except for the obsolete and currently unavailable WMCE-32W.    The Barracuda was Chrysler’s answer to the Ford Mustang of this era and it was based on their Valiant range but with a redesigned roof containing a very large fast back rear window.  Engines went from their 225 cubic inch inline slant six all the way up to high performance 272 cubic inch V8 with various tuning levels in between.  This resin model is quite a good replica of the actual car and my white version comes with a brown interior, a fair amount of detail to the base, and the correct wheels that were fitted to Barracudas. Although from an Australian model company it is interestingly a left hand drive version.  The only issue I had with my white example is that the two sill photo etch mouldings had to be reattached which I do with a small application of clear nail polish.   An issue not unheard of with resin models and the delicate photo etch pieces. 

The second ACE item that I acquired is a 1952 Austin A-40 ute which is an Australian only version of this range of Austins.    It is listed as a 1952 but these may have been available for multiple years there.   The grill is for the commercial version rather than the fancier one fitted to passenger cars.   The doors are of the smaller size indicating it is based on the four door Devon, not the two door Dorset.

The photograph above shows the Barracuda on it’s own from several angles as well as with a diecast Trax Valiant sedan which I modified into a convertible years ago.


Photos shown with the related Devon (by Pathfinder) and Dorset ( by Kenna) in white metal with the resin ACE model..


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Australian Model Cars

By Keith Shiell

Editor’s Note: We welcome Keith to MAR Online with his first article giving us an overview of the variety models available to collectors in Australia. We hope that Keith will keep us informed of interesting new releases in Australia in the future.

Please note that we do not normally include prices for models as they vary so widely from country to country but we have included these to give people an idea of the relative prices on the Australian market. Sadly although many attractive models are made for the Australian buyer few are exported elsewhere as the cost of importing them is high.


Unfortunately Australia no longer has a car manufacturing industry with the uniquely Australian products from Holden, Ford and Mitsubishi ceasing a few years ago.

However we do have a few Australian companies that offer models of Australian vehicles, albeit the models themselves are made in China.

I thought MAR Online readers may be interested in a quick glimpse at the range and variety of models we have available to us. I have included a link to the websites so that you can view more of what each company has to offer. Models are a mixture of Diecast and Resin. Some of the Diecast models have opening parts. Most of the larger scale models are produced in limited numbers and may need to be pre-ordered. Pictures are from the applicable websites.

Authentic Collectables

Their website can be found here.

Scales produced 1:12, 1:18, 1:43 & 1:64.

Their staple is racing cars from our Supercars Championship but they have also produced some road cars.

DJR Team Penske #17 Ford FGX Falcon Supercar – 2015 Gold Coast 600. 1:18 scale. Price AUD $250.00

Dick Johnson Racing 1000 Races Celebration Mustang in 1:12 + 1:18 + 1:43 Scales.
  • 1:12 Scale. Limited Edition of 72. Price AUD $599
  • 1:18 Scale. Limited Edition of 828. Price AUD $275
  • 1:43 Scale. Limited Edition of 312. Price AUD $99

Biante

This company has had a few ownership changes over time and is now part of Downies Collectables. They are also stockists of some other brands. Their website may be found here.

Scales produced 1:12, 1:18, 1/43 & 1:64.

Like Authentic Collectables, their staple is racing cars from our Supercars Championship but they have also produced some road cars.

HOLDEN ZB COMMODORE, RED BULL AMPOL RACING #97. 1:18 Scale. Price AUD$279

HOLDEN ZB COMMODORE, MOSTERT/HOLDSWORTH #25. 2021 Bathurst 1000 Race Winner. 1:64 Scale. Price AUD$25

Classic Carlectables (wholesale only)

Their website can be found here.

Scales produced 1:18, 1:43 & 1:64.

They produce both racing and road cars as well as 1:64 scale trucks in their Highway Replicas range.

Ford Cortina GT 1964 Bathurst Winner. 1:18 scale. Price AUD$279

Freight Road Train. 1:64 scale. Price AUD$189

Cooee Classics

Their website may be visited here.

Scales produced 1:10 (bicycles), 1:50, 1:64, 1:76(trams) & 1:87.

They produce both racing and road cars as well as trams, trucks & bicycles.

1958 Bedford Bus Grenda’s (in display case). 1:87 scale. Price AUD$69  

1972 HQ Sandman V8 Panel Van (in display case). Opening bonnet with engine detail. 1:64 scale. Price AUD$29

DDA – Diecast Distributors Australia (wholesale only)

Website link here.

They also produce 1:24 scale plastic kits and are distributors of some other brands. Some models are done in collaboration with Greenlight Collectibles.

Scales produced 1:18, 1:24, 1:32, 1:43 & 1:64.

1964 EH Holden Premier. Opening bonnet with engine detail. 1:64 scale. Price AUD$25

Blown Holden HJ Panel Van Fully Detailed Opening Doors, Bonnet and Tailgate Top. 1:24 scale. Price AUD$110

Trax (Top Gear)

Website may be found here.

Previously produced Diecast models however all models are now made in Resin.

Scales produced 1:43

1971 Hillman Hustler. 1:43 scale. Price AUD$120

1973 Chrysler Valiant VJ Town & Country Ute. 1:43 scale. Price AUD$120

ACE Model Cars

Website link here.

Scales produced 1:18, 1:43 & 1:64.

They produce vehicles often overlooked by other manufacturers. They have also produced numerous Mad Max vehicles.

Mad Max EJ Holden ute with Gooses bike. 1:43 scale. Price AUD$190

Mad Max XA and XB Falcon Pursuit vehicles. 1:64 scale. Price AUD$125

Austin A40 Highlite ute. 1:43 scale. Price AUD$110

Pricing

The prices of all models seem to increase on a regular basis as costs increase. For those outside of Australia, the purchase price of a model plus postage costs plus import tax and the influence of the exchange rate probably makes these Australian models too expensive.

Summary

All in all, I think Australia has a good variety of models that can give us memories of our once great car manufacturers.


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Ford LTD Landau 1975 – Ace Models

By Graeme Ogg

All text and photographs by, and copyright of, the Author unless otherwise stated.

Ford (Australia) LTD Landau 1975

In July last year I posted about some forthcoming items from Ace Models in Australia, including a 1975 Ford Landau coupé which was then in final pre-release form. I checked their website recently and it said “All the Landaus are now on their way”. I wasn’t sure if that meant “they are on their way from China” or “they have all gone to people who pre-ordered them”. I e‑mailed to check on availability but got no reply, so I found my way to a well-known Australian dealer called Gateway Models, who turned out to be offering them for rather less than from Ace themselves, and with a shipping charge to the UK less than half what Trax routinely charge these days. My Ford Landau in Grecian Gold (No 28 of 75 made in that colour) duly arrived within a week and even managed to escape customs duty, so I was well pleased.

In photographs, from some angles the real car looks like a big, mean, long, low and wide full-size “muscle car”

Unattributed photo from the Web copyright acknowledged.

 

although other views show it is rather more compact, since it is actually an Australian Ford Falcon dressed up with the front end of the longer-wheelbase Fairlane and given a unique swoopy roofline for the 2-door version. So it is no relation to the US LTDs and Landaus (also assembled by Ford Brazil for the South American market) which were full-sized cars rather than compacts or intermediates.

Unattributed photograph from the Web. Copyright acknowledged

The model is a pretty good representation of the real thing, and finish and detailing are well up to the best Chinese standard.

 

The borders of the ”vinyl” roof are crisp, and details like the ribbed covers for the concealed headlights stand up to close inspection.

The model has also been issued in a dark Ivy Green, Port Wine and Cosmic Blue (again, 75 made of each colour).

It’s an interesting subject, more dramatic-looking than the standard LTD Town Car sedan that sold alongside it.

Unattributed photograph from Web. Copyright acknowledged.

Unfortunately the real car didn’t sell very well. Only about 1300, I think I read somewhere. Although aimed at people wanting a “personal luxury” sports coupé its compact interior dimensions and low roofline and seating position meant that although it was well-appointed and a fine open road car, it felt somewhat cramped and claustrophobic for the luxury buyer. It was also perceived as a dressed-up and heavier Falcon, with less performance and a relatively sloppy ride, and a higher price. If you wanted a sporty ride to go with the sporty looks you could buy the GT version of the XB Falcon it was based on (as modelled by Trax in their “Opal” series)

Unattributed photograph from the web. Copyright acknowledged

Manufacturer’s photograph

or if you were more serious you could have gone for the Ford GT (as modelled here by AutoArt).

Unattributed photograph from the web. Copyright acknowledged

Photograph by Manufacturer

And if you really wanted to drive a serious sports coupe there was also the GT Cobra (again modelled here by AutoArt)

Unattributed photograph from the web. Copyright acknowledged

Photograph by Manufacturer

In 1976 the “P5” Australian LTD/Landau was replaced by the P6, which was essentially the same car but with delusions of Rolls Royce/Lincoln Continental grandeur about the front end.

Unattributed photograph from the web. Copyright acknowledged

and given the poor sales of the previous coupé, there was no Landau version.

Anyway, whatever the fate of the real car, I’m pleased to have it as an unusual addition to the Australian fleet.


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More on Bathurst models

By Mick Haven

All text and photographs by, and copyright of, the Author unless otherwise stated.

As an avid collector of Australian models, I currently have around 210 across three scales, I read the contribution from Frank Koh/Karl Schnelle about the Trax Holden Commodore with interest. Although I’ve got a reasonable number of Trax models, this is one I haven’t got. I first started collecting them because of a number of trips ‘down under’.

The floodgates opened with 1:43 scales when I started collecting road cars, the first one in 2002. This was Biante’s Holden VT Concept car in blue/black. Its stablemate, the mustard gold example would follow sometime later. These were a real eye opener. They had a fully detailed interior and chassis, and steerable front wheels! At just $55 Australian Dollars they cost me about 25 UK Pounds. Astonishing! I’d never seen anything like them. The real car, a two door coupe based on Holden’s popular Commodore four door saloon, was shown at the 1998 Sydney Motor Show for no other reason than to test public reaction for a production consideration. Reaction was positive to say the least. Production began and it would be released in 2001. It would be known by the resurrected name, Monaro, although Holden‘s designation was CV-8, appertaining to Coupé V8. VT was the designation for the range of Commodore models in production at the time.

The year before, i.e. 2001, in a model shop in a Melbourne suburb I had bought for the measly sum of 59 Australian Dollars a ‘Classic Carlectables‘, 1:18 scale Ford Falcon V8 Supercar. “Classic Carlectables”, I asked myself, “who the devil are they”? I’d never heard of them, neither had I heard of Biante, Trax, Dinkum Classics or any other home grown brands. Although basic by comparison to today’s excellent offerings from Carlectables, they were superb and like nothing I had seen before. They were easily on a par with or better than, the popular brands we were more used to here in the UK at that time. V8 Supercars was something else I knew little about back then. That would change. I kept in touch with the shop, who put by two more for me, at a very reasonable, ‘two for $100’ due to my impending return in 2002. With the exchange rate at around two to the pound, they represented astonishing value. From then onwards, I was trawling the ‘net almost daily for them, getting them from model shops down there, and also from car dealerships, either by visiting them while on holiday or from their web site. many car dealers had a stock of model cars equal to many a hobby shop, although as you would expect they were only relevant to the brand of car, i.e Ford or Holden. To offer models from ‘the opposition’ is treason, a hanging offence, well almost. They would also stock a superb range of clothing and other memorabilia, none of which were or are available here.

In 2011, it was suggested to me that I collect models of all the winners from the Bathurst 500 (miles) as it was from 1963 until 1973, when it would become the ‘1000‘, as in kilometres, which it still is. After my initial reticence had subsided, I set about the task in hand, as I already had some, along with models of cars from the A.T.C.C., the Australian Touring Car Championship. I currently need seven models to complete the set from 1963 to 2017. Unfortunately, the set is unlikely to ever be completed, either because a certain car has not been made, or if one has, because they are rare and consequently too expensive for me to buy even if found. Those wanted are Holden Commodores from 1993 and 1995, the 1997 B.M.W. 320i, Holden Commodores from 2001,2003,2004 and 2017. The 1993 and 1995 winners were produced by Classic Carlectables but only in 1:18 scale. Although they did release a model similar to the winning car, it is not, the winner. The B.M.W. raced to victory by David and Geoff Brabham, sons of the great, Sir Jack, is unlikely to be released, due, apparently, to no manufacturer wanting to take a gamble on the possibility of poor sales. The BMW won at the time of the European touring car invasion in the 1990s, which didn’t sit well with die hard Ford and Holden fans. The winners from 2001, 2003 and 2004 have been released, but are hard to find, are very expensive if they are found, and the seller, usually in Australia, quite often won’t post to the UK. The 2003 car can be found in 1:64 scale but like the 1:18 models, would be out of context in a cabinet full of 1:43 scale models.

I’m not aware of the 2017 winning Holden being released thus far, and I haven’t heard as yet if one will be. I hope so because 2018 is final year in the epic battles between the Ford Falcon and Holden Commodore, dating back to 1967, the year which was a victory for ‘The Blue Oval’ with the first ever win for a car with a V8 engine. It will be a tad ironic if the last ever race between the two protagonists is also won by a Falcon, which currently heads the V8 Supercars championship.

 

This year I have added three more winners, all of which were must haves. The first two, which arrived back in May, are the late great Peter Brock‘s 1972 Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1, and Dick Johnson’s fearsome Sierra RS 500 from 1989.

The third model is another Peter Brock car, his 1982 Holden Commodore VH. This would be his third win out of a record nine times.

The model is the ACE Commodore referred to.

 

The Torana and the Sierra are by the former Apex Models and the Commodore is from Ace Models, a brand written about in a previous MAR by Graeme Ogg. Apex have recently been taken over by Biante, so I expect some interesting models forthcoming from that amalgamation. A word of thanks to Graeme Ogg for introducing me to Ace Models, a name I wasn’t aware of until he wrote about them in MAR. I subsequently ordered one of their superb Falcon BA Utes from Gateway, my favourite Australian dealer.

 

One other Aussie which came this year is a model of Dick Johnson’s 1985 Greens Tuf Bathurst Mustang. Although the car wasn’t a winner, it’s an excellent example of the type. The model was professionally built for me from an Automodelli kit, sourced here in the UK from Grand Prix Models. At the time of writing, I’m waiting on the release of another Automodelli Dick Johnson Mustang, his J.P.S. liveried car from the Wellington 500 in 1986, although no doubt it will be the Greens Tuf casting, with J.P.S. decals added. Can’t wait. So, as for the remaining Bathurst winners, I don’t hold out much hope of ever completing the set. Fortunately, those I have got, along with the A.T.C.C. cars, make a fine collection and have given hours of satisfaction finding and collecting them.


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