Oldsmobile

[Bill Manzke]

[quote="GHOSTHUNTER"]The blue Man from UNCLE car will have bare metal search lights or chromed plastic search lights.[/quote]

I found my photo of the two different spotlight variations...

[Fred7A]

The blue Toronado also appeared in Gift Set 36 towing a speedboat. My example is missing the figures from the boat - apparently there were "teething problems" at the Swimming with Sharks Experience. When the boat's on the trailer it looks better without occupants anyway.

Here's a Toronado with spun hubs.

[AJR]

The 1961 Oldsmobile Super 88's were released by Corgi in 1962 as a black and white Sheriff's car (#237) and a metallic mauve and white or a pale blue and white civilian car (#235), both with red interiors. There was also a drab green US Army Staff Car (#358) added in 1964 to squeeze some extra mileage from the casting. Those three models were withdrawn in 1966 when the tooling was altered to produce the Man from U.N.C.L.E. versions sold as "Thrushbuster's" (#497). The first issues were cream with cream interior, metal wingtop spotlights and no raised lip for locating the bonnet sticker. These versions are quite rare as Corgi soon changed the Thrushbuster cream (joke not lost on me) to metallic purple with a yellow interior, plastic wingtop spotlights and a raised lip to locate the bonnet sticker. The rear facing periscope on both could be pressed to allow Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin to duck in and out alternately whilst shooting their guns ... with gunshot sounds as well.

My two Thrushbuster's with nice paint and stickers both have faults ... broken spotlights / cracked screen. A shame that Corgi only did the Pirahna Car in the smaller scale.