Volume VIII, Number 11

Toy Cars Representing The Boutique Exotics
By Doug Breithaupt


Many have dreamed of starting their own exotic super-car company, few have succeeded. Some like Ferrari, Lamborghini and Lotus did beat the odds and the companies that bear their names still survive. Others have had far more limited success. Most with this dream go broke long before a real car is ever put into production so just reaching production is something special. While only a handful of these 'boutique exotic' models are usually built, sometimes the names live on for another reason. The creation of toy cars representing these boutique exotics can far exceed the numbers of full-size models produced.

The models represented below are a mix of boutique exotic cars from the 1960's to date. Carroll Shelby's A.C based Cobra 427 starts the list and is the only marque represented by two models, as the more recent version of the Shelby Series 1 is also shown. The Cheetah, produced by Johnny Lightning, was primarily for racing but could be made street legal. Iso's Grifo was one of a handful of different models produced by this Italian firm in the 1960's. Jensen had a longer history and the Interceptor FF by Playart is Jensen's most impressive model. Monteverdi produced several models of the Hai concept. Ligier raced the JS2 but street versions were for sale. The Dome-O of Japan was a unique Asian exotic. The Manta was an American kit car that found Hollywood fame. The story of the DeLorean is well known and Zylmex did the stock version. The Zender and Vector models were short-lived 80's/90's supercars. Calloway is best known as a tuner of race and street cars but did produce this re-bodied Corvette as the C-7R. The McLaren F1 saw limited production and became the ultimate supercar of the 1990's as well as a Le Mans winner in 1995. Panos still builds street and race cars. Saleen's ST has had success in racing that helps with the sale of a few road cars. Bugatti has a famous history and with money from VW may survive this time. The B Engineering Adonis has a name that challenges success but who knows. TVR has a long history as a cottage sports-car company and it is great to have a toy version of the Tuscan S. The Pagani Zonda C12 is one of the latest boutique exotics.

For many of these boutique exotics, the dream is long gone and for others, it may be over soon. At least we will always have the toy cars to remind us of their moment in the sun.


Shelby Cobra 427 - Matchbox


Cheetah - Johnny Lightning


Iso Grifo - Matchbox


Jensen Interceptor FF - Playart


Monteverdi Hai - Matchbox


Ligier JS2 - Norev


Dome-O - Tomica


Manta - Ertl


DeLorean - Zylmex


Zender Fact 4 - Hot Wheels


Vector Aerotech - Hot Wheels


Calloway C-7R - Hot Wheels


McLaren F1 - Micro-Champs


Panoz - Hot Wheels


Shelby Series 1 - Hot Wheels


Saleen ST - Motor Max


Bugatti Veyron - Hot Wheels


B Engineering Edonis - Hot Wheels


TVR Tuscan S - Matchbox


Pagani Zonda C12- Motor Max

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