My Tomica Isuzu:



It's gotta be a copy of this one...

Karls Tomica Isuze grille is a dead ringer for a match. The question is.  Did Takara Tomy Co (Tomy Co) Japan produce and marketed the Tomica Izuze fire truck before Summer Metal Products Manufacturing Ltd had produced theirs.  Giving that most of Hong Kong made toys were shifted to mainland China in the late 1980's and there after. Thus there is reasonable grounds that the Summer Isuze could have been produced around that time line of 1983 and onwards, as the Isuze is the 1983 model of the real Isuze truck or there after.

Tomica started using the Red and White box for those diecast toy models produced after 1984 while the older toy models retained the black box. Then Tomica also had the Blue and White Box for those foreign replica models. Actually. I have a couple of Tomica in yellow blister cards from 1990's.

Both companies are still active in the ToyWorld production, although Tomica derives from the Tomy Co of Japan formed in 1924.

Conclusion:  It is a Isuze Fire Truck and if Karl or Jan could confirm the initial production release date for the Tomica Isuze fire truck, which will be great information for someone in the future. Like me.

Cheers.

Mine was sold in the US as a Tomy Pocket  Car in the 1970s - copyright 1975 on the baseplate!!!

http://tomypocketcars.freeservers.com/

Yes Karl and thanks.  I found the link to the Pocket Cars Webb Address through Wikipedia history on Tomy-Tomica. Looks like Tomica produced their Isuzu fire truck before Summer did and Tomica used to make only Japanese cars and trucks, just like the little Elf forward control 2 tonne'rs. Summer only produced cheap affordable toy cars for the third world countries where a $1 would be a days wages and they could only afford those cheap verities that Summer supplied.

Interesting article on Summer and Sunshine by Doug Breithaupt. www.breithaupts.com/totc309.htm

Below is a copy of the 1968 Isuzu TD50 15 tonne that was hiding in my World Encyclopedia of Trucks and the other is from the net and I think it is about 1975 model. So looks like Isuzu continued this shape designed bonnet truck for a number of years.

What a great post. I thoroughly enjoyed the pictures and reading all the info you guys (all) posted. What a wealth of knowledge there is out there.  Well done all!

Finally found a match for the Isuzu. Like most trucks they end up in the scrap yard although one might continue in life with a proud owner.






Notice the coke bottle just encase the rider needs a drink.