September Q

Before I get to this month's questions, I would like to remind everyone that I am not selling anything through this website. I continue to get many e-mails asking about purchasing items found on this website. I thought I've made it clear that nothing is for sale. If I do have something to sell, I will do it through eBay. This website continues to strictly be a source of information for collectors of TV and movie die-cast cars. Now, on with this month's Q&A:

Q: I was wondering how I would be able 2 get the die-cast 12 inch Eagle transporter and when thank you! - TazmaniacTaz

A: The information I've posted about the Space 1999 Eagle Transporter came from Diamond's Previews Catalog. This catalog arrives at my local comic book store every month and I can pre-order items that will be shipping to hobby shops and comic book stores within the next few months. The Eagle Transporter will be shipping to hobby shops in January of 2004 at a cost of $65. Be sure to hit your local hobby stores and toy stores at that time. In the mean time, find a comic book store near you and ask if they carry Previews.

Q: Hey Joe, I finally got my hands on a partial set of the Hollywood on Wheels IV at my local Toys R Us. The one car that I really wanted is Herbie but he seems to be the hardest one to find. Even most of the diecast websites suggested by Johnny Lightning (Playing Mantis) officials don't have them offered either. What's up with this? I have pre-ordered the larger 1:18 scale Herbie from Johnny Lightning through MTR Enterprises (Diecast Musclecars.com) but am still searching for the 1:64 scaled version. Do you know where or how I can acquire one? Thanks, Nick in Killeen, Texas

A: This may be hard to believe, but I don't think an official Herbie the Love Bug 1:64 scale die-cast has ever been made until Johnny Lightning's version. There is a HUGE Herbie fan base out there (I am one of them). I loved the movies throughout my childhood. I was pretty excited when JL announced it would be offered as part of the Hollywood on Wheels line. I ordered a case of HOW4 through my local comic book store. There were 2 Herbies in the case. I opened one and put it in my display. The other I gave to my friend Dennis. I have NEVER seen a Herbie at retail since then. The only explanation I can come up with is that they're flying off the shelves. According to JL, there are 2 Herbies in every case, and in some cases 3 Herbies have been mistakenly put into a case. So if you're not finding them, that means someone is beating you to them. All I can suggest is that you try to hit stores early after they've unloaded their trucks. Or you can try purchasing one on eBay. The only other suggestion I have is to wait for the Herbie dioramas to come out. Good luck in your search.

Q: Hi, How have you been ? I just got all my new HOW4 cars, really happy. I have a new question I need to ask you, does Johnny Lightning have any plans of making Hollywood on Wheels series 5 for next year ? Will JL be making any new diorama sets ? Dioramas like the Blues Brothers, the Munsters, another Herbie diorama, Charlie's Angels, Italian Job, and others ? Thanks Joe. - Jason

A: Hi Jason. According to Jeff Koch of Johnny Lighting, the company only plans on releasing Hollywood on Wheels every TWO years. That's pretty frustrating. Right now, one can only speculate as to what the next assortment may include. First, you'd have to look at JL's existing castings and see if any of them could also be used to create a TV or movie car. It's unlikely that JL will do a new casting for the HOW line, though you can't rule it out entirely either. I did an interview with Jeff Koch earlier this year and asked him about certain TV and movie cars. You can read it here. As far as dioramas are concerned, other than Ghostbusters and The Love Bug, Jeff Koch also mentioned dioramas from Scooby Doo and The Simpsons. If I hear any more news, you can be sure I'll post it on the home page.

Q: I have a Convoy Truck in a box that is in excellent condition. I would like to know the value of it. Thank you. - Karen Duffy

A: I recently purchased ERTL'S Convoy Truck loose, but in excellent condition on eBay. I think I paid around $35 for it. If the truck is mint-in-box, it can fetch near $100 on eBay. Whenever I want to check the value of an item, I go to eBay and do a search under "completed items". That gives you an idea of what the item recently sold for. Unfortunately, I just did a search on eBay, and no auctions have recently taken place involving the Convoy truck, so you'll have to take my word for it.

Your attention to detail is quite similar to mine, so I thought I'd share my 1:25 scale model collection with you. I know it's not quite the same as diecast, but I've tried to get these as accurate as possible. The only inaccuracies with mine are the '68 Cadillac (should be a '69 or '70, which aren't available), and the Tow Truck is just built straight from the kit. The General Lees are from Revell-Monogram kits with wheels from discontinued AMT Eckler Corvettes, and the Jeep is a R-M kit, rather than the inaccurate AMT/Ertl "Daisy" kit.