Accessory Packs

 A reader asked me what the strange-looking whitewall tyres were on some models that he had seen advertised.

This is a Ford Thunderbird Open Sports that happens to be for sale at the moment and, with its original box and packing piece I can see how models like this can be a bit confusing if you're not familiar with Corgi Toys Accessory Packs.

The 1960 Corgi Toy Catalogue was the first one to feature these and just 4 were initially available.

From 1961 through to 1966 inclusive the five packs were featured. Although still available at stores for several years afterwards, they seem to have ceased production in 1967.

Here I summarise the five main packs that were available (and another which I don't know much about, I'm sorry to admit).

A pack, catalogue no. 1460 had number plates, round tax discs, GB plates that those going abroad from Great Britain needed to apply on real cars and 'Running In' stickers which owners would place in the rear window of a motor that was either very new or had had a new engine fitted a short while previously. Nowadays we don't have any tax discs at all and we have to put a quite unsightly UK sticker on our vehicles when abroad. (For me the design of most UK labels is ugly but that's neither here nor there.) I wonder whether there were ever 'Export' packs for those buying their Corgis in other countries? I suspect not produced by Corgi but no doubt each country will have had some similar stickers appropriate to their signs and practices.

B pack was catalogue no. 1461 and is the one with the 'Styla Sportsdiscs Tyre Trims' and some more number plates. The discs are what you will often see still today on models. They were intended to fit on the smooth fixed wheels but can be found on the shaped and even the free spinning variety although the centre would need to be punctured to fit properly on the latter.

C pack was catalogue no. 1462 and contained items mostly for Commercial vehicles, like the different type of tax discs they had and maximum speed warning signs required on many trucks and trailers in those days. There would also be more number plates.

D pack was catalogue no. 1463 and, as well as number plates, contained CD plates (which designated a car used by officially recognised diplomatic services, usually another nation's embassy staff), L plates for learner drivers and quite a few odd things like the tiny flags or pennants that people used to collect from different places they visited.

E pack was catalogue no. 1464 and was available a little later it seems as it didn't appear until the 1961 Catalogue. This had quite different content too, with AA and RAC badges and other more specialist labels like 'Press' and 'Taxi' plates as well as garage trade plates. This pack appears not to have normal number plates.

Those normal number plates were always black with silver letters and numbers, as would have been the style in those times. The combination often hinted at a particular model, I recall, with letter combinations like PLY which must have been intended for a Plymouth and I do think it was PLY 219 as well! There is 215 FTB visible in one of the packs above, nice for the Ford Thunderbird. You'll also see MC 202, RP 205 which I am sure you can guess where they should go.

This last pack seems to have just number plates, tax discs, GB plates and 'Running In' labels. Perhaps it was issued with a Gift Set or as an extra item people could order separately. The pack design looks very similar so I doubt if it is particularly earlier or later.

There is, of course, another type of 'wheel' that I often get asked about. With a small range of models, Corgi supplied a pack of six (I think it was 6) stick on wheel covers which made them look a little bit like wire wheels. You'll find these on Aston Martin DB4s in the main although I believe there would be some other models that had them too. I see many on the old BRM and Vanwall Racing cars too. Interestingly both these and the 218 Aston Martin were issued with a cast wheel that had a 'criss-cross' pattern to resemble wire wheels too.

Like the 'Styla' trims, these had a strong adhesive and many have survived to this day quite intact. This example illustrated is particularly fine.