Wednesday, August 31, 2016

#716 MAJORETTE - F1 BRABHAM, F1 RACING, F1 FERRARI, F1 MAC LAREN and other F1s from the 80s and the 90s (1986, 1987, 1995 and 1997)


There was a first entry dealing with the first F1 models made by Majorette, and since I am a great F1 fan, I was willing to continue talking abouth the other F1 made by this same French manufacturer. You can review the first enry here: #587.


So, those previous models (that were issued in 1977) were already quite old by the beginning of the 80s, they simply looked outdated. Majorette kept them in the 200 series until 1982, and in 1983 and 1984 the Shadow was available in white instead of black. Then it was also removed from the series.
But in 1986, there was a complete new set of 4 F1 race cars. These looked much more modern, and represented interesting teams that were racing that year:
  • 232 F1 Brabham
  • 238 F1 Racing (Benetton)
  • 282 F1 Ferrari
  • 289 F1 Mac Laren

 (sorry for the quality of these 4 pics...)

There was also a 300 series reference that included a Jeep, a towing hook and a 238 “F1 Racing” model. This reference (the same number) was also available with other models during the late 70s (see #587).
  • 318 Jeep + Course (291 Blazer + 238 F1 Racing + plastic hook)
In 1989, the reference number 238 changes its decoration from Benetton green to yellow "Tictel RN12" that, to my knowledge, was a fictitious decoration (not based on any official team from the F1 championships). In the 318 reference, the model was also changed, that’s the one I got as a kid.




The towing hook is a very rare and hard to find piece.

That same year, the F1 Racing (238) is also released in the 2250 series “Colour Pack”, with the new “Tictel” decoration.

In 1990, the 238 turns blue and the Brabham is discontinued.

238 F1 Racing in yellow (from 1989) and blue (from 1990) plus the Colour Pack version (from 1989)

One year later, the 238 gets a new yellow decoration “Racing”.
In 1992, the 238 is changed again to light blue, while the McLaren is discontinued from the standard “200” series, but is still available in bigger car packs with an slightly different “A. Senna – Honda” decoration.
In 1993, the 238 turns green and has “Bolids” decoration.
All the changes in 238 also apply to 318.

Finally, and after 9 years, a new F1 cast is prepared to replace the old references yet available. The new model would carry number 213 and was first available in blue and yellow. Still in 1995, the 238 was available in a new yellow decoration.

In 1996, the 238 reference is finally discontinued, but the Ferrari is still available after so many years! After all, the red decoration never changed much in the Ferrari F1 Team. The old Brabham casts is sent to Novacar and they would release two decorations, the first one in black and another one in yellow, as you can see in entry #325.

238 F1 Racing from 1992, 282 Formule Indy from 1997, 213 F1 Racer from 1995



 (sorry again for the quality of these 3 pics...)

The reference 213 would be released during a long time with different decorations (purple, yellow, orange), and the Ferrari would still keep going a few years more. In 1997, considering that the cast was completely obsolete, and F1 were not that bulk anymore, the reference 282 was renamed "Formule Indy" and recoloured several times. This way, it was "modern" again, and keep selling and selling in many different decorations.

UPDATE1 (JAN/2017): I just found a decoration I never saw before. It is the F1 Racing model in white and blue with "Elf" tampographies. This one is probably from the 1990s.




UPDATE2 (Dec/2018): I found two more formulas: an alternate version of the Ferrari and a F1 Racing in yellow, but with alternate decals. Both seem to be newer (90s) since they both come without the "Made in France" text in the base.




UPDATE 3 (Nov/2019): This model resembles the early 2000's Jaguar Racing F1, RN18 belonged to Eddie Irvine in the 2001 season, so this is probably the year in which this miniature was made. Note the horse instead of the Jaguar and the BCR publicity (HSBC in the real model). The cast is shared with the Ferrari (No. 282).




UPDATE 4 (Dec/2021): Three more for my collection, the yellow one could be a Jordan from the 90s and the blue one is maybe the one referred in the comments as a Prost, but it is difficult to say. Shame that the tampographies in the yellow model are not in a very good condition. The green one is probably even newer and does not represent any known F1.











FACTS AND FIGURES:
  • Name: F1 Brabham (232), F1 Racing (Benetton) (238), F1 Ferrari (282), F1 Mac Laren (289), F1 Racing (238) and F1 Racer (213) and Formule Indy (282).
  • Scale: Approx. 1:55
  • Year: 1986, 1987, 1997
  • Company: Majorette (France)
  • Size: approx. 7 cm

11 comments:

  1. The 238 is not a Benetton but a 1986 Alfa Romeo with Benetton sponsoring on the side pod.

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    Replies
    1. Hi! Thanks for the comment, I'll correct that ASAP. My memory does not go back as far as 1986 :)

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    2. O probablemente un Tyrrell que también fue patrocinado por Benetton

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    3. Es verdad, también podría ser. ¡Gracias por el mensaje!

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    4. Hi, Thanks for the comment! I'll check on that, then it is probably a Tyrrell as indicated in the third comment (in Spanish, though). I'll need some time to fix the entry.

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  2. Thanks for sharing your collection. You may enjoy this one. A 282 like the "HSBC Jaguar" but this one is a "West McLaren".
    ebay item number 361574539594

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    Replies
    1. Interesting, thank you! Never saw that model before, as you suggest, probably came out with the jaguar around 2001.

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    2. Ah, it looks like they may have done a few at this time. Found a Prost and a Jordan too.

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    3. True, the prost is depicted above (no indication though) and the Jordan I have it, but haven't published the pictures yet. I need to update this entry ASAP. Cool that Majorette did so many models! Thanks for the comment!

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