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This James Bond 007 Aston Martin DB5 diecast model toy car achieved $1,100 plus the buyer’s premium in January 2021. Image courtesy of Van Eaton Galleries and LiveAuctioneers.

Corgi Toys put film icons in the driver’s seat

Sheila Gibson Stoodley
Sheila Gibson Stoodley
This James Bond 007 Aston Martin DB5 diecast model toy car achieved $1,100 plus the buyer’s premium in January 2021. Image courtesy of Van Eaton Galleries and LiveAuctioneers.
This James Bond 007 Aston Martin DB5 diecast model toy car achieved $1,100 plus the buyer’s premium in January 2021. Image courtesy of Van Eaton Galleries and LiveAuctioneers.

NEW YORK — Cars have always been the heart and soul of Corgi, Britain’s best-known producer of die-cast toys. Initially released as a brand by Mettoy Playcraft in 1956 and manufactured in Swansea, a coastal city in Wales, Corgi became an independent company in 1984. While it has dabbled in aviation toys, Corgi is best known for its vehicle lines, from its iconic VW bus to a replica of James Bond’s Aston Martin DB5. Toy vehicles have long been a staple of the collectibles market and there are Corgi vehicles to suit all tastes and interests, from replicas of real everyday vehicles to fictional ones that only exist on TV or in movies.

The name Corgi alludes to the Welsh dog breed of the same name, which is a favorite of Queen Elizabeth II. It was probably also chosen because the word Corgi is short and catchy, and reflects the toy brand’s factory location in Wales.

A sealed Corgi Juniors Crime Busters vehicle gift set attained $2,500 plus the buyer’s premium in December 2017. Image courtesy of Dan Morphy Auctions and LiveAuctioneers.
A sealed Corgi Juniors Crime Busters vehicle gift set attained $2,500 plus the buyer’s premium in December 2017. Image courtesy of Dan Morphy Auctions and LiveAuctioneers.

Distinguishing itself early on from its main competitor, Dinky Toys, Corgi vehicles were the first toy cars available — and the only ones for a while — to have see-through plastic windows. This selling point was so effective that Corgi embraced the marketing slogan “the ones with the windows.” Corgi released models of vehicles that appealed to the children who played with them as well as adult collectors, many of whom likely grew up rolling Corgis across their bedroom floor. When originally issued, these cars sold for a few shillings each, but today they command prices in the hundreds, be they pounds or US dollars.

A few highly desirable models can sell for close to $1,000, but collecting Corgis need not break the bank. “Although top prices grab the headlines, die-cast scale model collecting is an easy hobby to start and many vehicles, both old and new, can be acquired for a few pounds,” the company states on its website.

One of Corgi’s most enduring models is its Aston Martin DB5, a replica of the car famously driven by Sean Connery’s James Bond in the 1964 movie Goldfinger. Debuting in 1965, the toy car was immediately a hit and was named the UK Toy of the Year. Selling nearly four million units in its first four years of production, it came outfitted with an ejector seat, a rear bullet screen and front-mounted machine guns. A four-inch-long example sold for $1,100 plus the buyer’s premium in January 2021 at Van Eaton Galleries.

A 1986 model of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang earned $900 in March 2022. Image courtesy of Hill Auction Gallery and LiveAuctioneers.
A 1986 Corgi diecast toy model of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang earned $900 in March 2022. Image courtesy of Hill Auction Gallery and LiveAuctioneers.

Nostalgia influenced many of Corgi’s earliest issues, which mostly centered on British car models such as the Ford Consul, the Austin Cambridge, the Riley Pathfinder and the Vauxhall Velox. Besides transparent windows, the toy cars featured jeweled headlights, bonnets (aka hoods) that opened and spring suspension. Movies and television shows continually inspired Corgi die-cast issues. One of its best-selling offerings was the 1966 Batmobile, which is said to have sold five million units. The movie Chitty Chitty Bang Bang led to a Corgi die-cast version of the car that was also a huge hit. Provenance gave an added boost to a 1986 Corgi model of the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang car that sold for $900 at Hill Auction Gallery in March 2022. It came from the estate of Sally Ann Howes, who co-starred as Truly Scrumptious in the movie.

Besides cars, vans and trucks were also popular choices for Corgi vehicles. Having the original box and having the vehicles survive in good condition, with no damaged or missing parts, makes a big difference in value. A group of four Corgi Volkswagen vans, three of which retained their original boxes, sold for $700 plus the buyer’s premium at Lloyd Ralston Gallery in January 2019. The set included two pickup trucks, a #441 Toblerone and a #490 breakdown truck.

A group of four Corgi Volkswagen vans, three of which had retained their original boxes, sold for $700 plus the buyer’s premium in January 2019. The set included two pickup trucks, a #441 Toblerone and a #490 breakdown truck. Image courtesy of Lloyd Ralson Gallery and LiveAuctioneers.
A group of four Corgi Volkswagen vans, three of which had retained their original boxes, sold for $700 plus the buyer’s premium in January 2019. The set included two pickup trucks, a #441 Toblerone and a #490 breakdown truck. Image courtesy of Lloyd Ralson Gallery and LiveAuctioneers.

An undisputed icon of London is the red double decker tour bus, and a rare find among Corgi models is its #468 House of Lords Gin bus, which was made as a promotional item for the hard liquor. A set of two examples realized $1,650 at Weiss Auctions in November 2020.

Corgi’s House of Lords Gin toy double decker bus was a promotional item that became scarce and coveted. A lot of two realized $1,650 in November 2020. Image courtesy of Weiss Auctions and LiveAuctioneers.
Corgi’s House of Lords Gin toy double decker bus was a promotional item that became scarce and coveted. A lot of two realized $1,650 in November 2020. Image courtesy of Weiss Auctions and LiveAuctioneers.

Corgi released vehicles individually but often assembled packaged theme sets such as its Juniors Crime Busters vehicle gift set, which included its best-selling Batmobile toy. A sealed example that was listed as new old stock sold for $2,500 plus the buyer’s premium at Morphy Auctions in December 2017. The Batmobile had a pulsating turbine jet exhaust and came with a Batboat and trailer. Rounding out the set were a James Bond Aston Martin DB6 and the Man From U.N.C.L.E. missile-firing car.

Corgi cars continue to capture children’s imaginations while also spurring fond playtime memories for adults who grew up in the postwar years.