#634 MAISTO – TRABANT 601 “TRABI” (Around 1996)

This is a rare die-cast model of a very iconic German car made in the DDR. The cast was first made by MC Toy and later reused by Maisto. Unfortunately, I only have the Maisto version, If I find the MC Toy version I will exchange them.

 

Since MC Toy/Maisto is a company from Hong-Kong it is a strange choice for a cast. Maybe they manufactured the car as a request from a German retailer, to be sold as a souvenir in Germany (it is available almost everywhere there, from tourist shops to airports).

 

 

Although the real car was made from 1964 to 1990, this scale reproduction is relatively recent. There are older toys of the Trabant dating from the communist era of the DDR. These are quite sought-after nowadays by German toy collectors. Maisto model is very common, and thus worthless as a collectable. The interest lies in the car model, which is an iconic car of the 60s, comparable to the Austin Mini/ Mini Morris in England, the Fiat 500 in Italy, the VW Beetle in Germany (FDR), the Seat 600 in Spain or the Citroen 2CV in France.

 

 

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: TRABANT 601
• Scale: 1:64
• Year: 1996
• Company: Maisto (Hong-Kong/ U.S.A.)
• Size: approx. 6 cm