Models of Yesteryear

Models of Yesteryear range was introduced by Lesney in 1956 to supplement the Matchbox Series range which had been in production since 1953. The models were based on historical vehicles rather than contemporary subjects, and the range was aimed at adult collectors rather than children. The collection was produced until 1996.

1956 - 1959

Col #	Year	Model	Color	Decals	Base Color / Type	Window Color	Interior Color	Wheel Type	Country	Notes / Variations	Photo
Y-1	1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963	Allchin 7 NHP Traction Engine (Y-1)	Green & red	None	Green	N/A	N/A		England	No model name on base
Y-2	1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962	"B" Type Bus 1912-1920 (Y-2)	Red	Dewar's						"B" TYPE BUS 1912-1920 on base.
Y-3	1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965	1907 London E Class Tramcar (Y-3)	Red & white	NEWS OF THE WORLD					England	No model name on base.
Y-4	1956 1957 1958 1959 1960	Sentinel Steam Waggon (Y-4)	Blue	SAND & GRAVEL SUPPLIES	Black	N/A	N/A		England	No model name on base.
Y-5/1	1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961	1929 4½ Litre Bentley (Y-5/1)	Green	Number "5" in white circle on both sides		N/A	Red			1929 4½ LITRE BENTLEY on base Spare wheel (not visible in photo)
Y-6	1957 1958 1959 1960	AEC 1916-1921 (Y-6)	Grey	OSRAM LAMPS	Grey	N/A	N/A		England	A.E.C 1916-1921 on base.
Y-7	1957 1958 1959 1960	4 Ton Leyland (Y-7)	Red-brown with cream roof	W&R. JACOB & Co Ltd			N/A		England	4 TON LEYLAND on base.
Y8	1958 1959 1960 1961	1926 Morris Cowley Bullnose (Y-8)	Brown & Tan	None						1926 MORRIS COWLEY "BULLNOSE" on base.
Y-9	1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967	Fowler Showman's Engine (Y-9)	Red with yellow wheels & white roof	"LESNEY'S MODERN AMUSEMENTS"		N/A	Red		England	FOWLER SHOWMAN'S ENGINE on underside of roof. Pinstriping on side
Y-10	1958 1959 1960 1961 1962	1908 G.P. Mercedes (Y-10)	Cream	None						1908 G.P. MERCEDES on base White on final issue
Y-11	1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963	Aveling and Porter Road-Roller (Y-11)	Green	None	No seperate base.	N/A	N/A		England	"AVELING AND PORTER" ROAD-ROLLER on underside of roof.
Y-12	1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965	1899 London Horse-Bus (Y-12)	Red with brown horses	LIPTON'S TEA	Red	N/A	N/A		England	No model name on base
Y-13	1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965	American 4-4-0 Locomotive (Y-13)	Green & red	SANTA FE		N/A	N/A		England	AMERICAN LOCO 4-4-0 on base.
Y-14	1959 1960 1961 1962 1963	Duke of Connaught 4-2-2 (Y-14)	Green & black	DUKE OF CONNAUGHT					England	DUKE OF CONNAUGHT 4-2-2 on base.

1960 - 1964

Col #	Year	Model	Color	Decals	Base Color / Type	Window Color	Interior Color	Wheel Type	Country	Notes / Variations	Photo
Y-15	1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967	1907 Rolls Royce Silver Ghost (Y-15)	Green	None					England	1907 ROLLS ROYCE SILVER GHOST on base.
Y-4	1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965	Shand-Mason Horse-Drawn Fire Engine (Y-4)	Red	LONDON FIRE BRIGADE	Red / Metal	N/A	N/A		England	No model name on base.
Y-16	1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971	1904 Spyker (Y-16)	Yellow	None					England	1904 SPYKER on base.
Y-6	1961 1962 1963 1964 1965	1926 Type 35 Bugatti (Y-6)	Blue	6 on White circle on rear	Black	N/A			England	1926 TYPE 35 BUGATTI on base.
	1966 1967		Red	6 on White circle on rear	Black	N/A			England	1926 TYPE 35 BUGATTI on base.
Y-7	1961 1962 1963 1964 1965	1913 Mercer Raceabout (Y-7)	Mauve (or silver)							1913 MERCER RACEABOUT on base.
	1966 1967		Yellow							1913 MERCER RACEABOUT on base.
Y-5/2	1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968	1929 4½ Litre Bentley (Y-5/2)	Green	Number "5" in white circle on both sides						1929 4½ LITRE BENTLEY on base.
Y-8	1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968	1914 Sunbeam (Y-8)	Silver	None	Silver	Black & Dark Green			England	1914 SUNBEAM on base.
Y-10	1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968	1928 Mercedes Benz 36/220 (Y-10)	White	None					England	1928 MERCEDES BENZ 36/220 on base.
Y-2	1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969	1911 Renault (Y-2)	Green	None						1911 RENAULT on base.
Y-1	1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972	1911 Ford Model T (Y-1)	Red & Black							1911 FORD MODEL T on base
	1973 1974 1975 1976		Cream & Red							1911 FORD MODEL T on base
	1984		Black							1911 FORD MODEL T on base
Y-11	1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972	Packard Landaulet 1912 (Y-11)	Red	Heraldic shields	Red / metal	N/A			England	PACKARD LANDAULET 1912 on base.
	1984		Cream		Brown / metal	N/A			England	1912 PACKARD LANDAULET on base

1965 - 1970

Col #	Year	Model	Color	Decals	Base Color / Type	Window Color	Interior Color	Wheel Type	Country	Notes / Variations	Photo
Y-3	1965 1966 1967 1968	1910 Benz Limousine (Y-3)	Cream
	1969		Light Green
	1970 1971 1972 1973		Metallic Green							1910 BENZ LIMOUSINE on base.
?	1985		Black & Blue
Y-14	1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973	1911 Maxwell Roadster (Y-14)	Turquoise with Black roof	None						1911 MAXWELL ROADSTER on base.
	1984		Cream & Green with Black roof	None
Y-13	1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974	1911 Daimler (Y-13)	Yellow	None		N/A	Red		England	1911 DAIMLER on base.
	1984		Blue
Y-4	1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973	1909 Opel Coupe (Y-4)	White with Tan roof	None					England	1909 OPEL COUPE on base.
	1974 1975		Orange with Black roof	None
	1984		Bright Red & Dark red with Tan roof
Y-12	1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973	1909 Thomas Flyabout (Y-12)	Blue & tan	None						1909 THOMAS FLYABOUT on base.
	1974 1975 1976 1977 1978		Purple & black	None						1909 THOMAS FLYABOUT on base.
Y-7	1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973	1912 Rolls-Royce (Y-7)	Silver & Red
	1974 1975 1976 1977 1978		Gold & Red
	1979 1980 1981 1982 1983		Yellow & Black	None	Black / Metal	None	Black		England
Y-9	1968 1969	1912 Simplex (Y-9)	Green with Tan roof	None					England
	1970 1971 1972		Gold & red with Black roof	None					England
	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978		Red with Black roof	None					England
	1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985		Red & lack	None
	1986 1987 1988 1989		Yellow & Black with Black roof	None

Gallery

The Allchin 7 NHP Traction Engine, introduced in 1956, was the first item issued in the Models of Yesteryear range.