Set of Vintage BMW Isettas Soft Plastic & Diecast, Goodyear & Michelin Promo Model Cars for Sale *SOLD*

Set of Vintage BMW Isettas Soft Plastic & Diecast, Goodyear & Michelin Promo Model Cars for Sale

We have a humble 9 piece set of plastic and diecast automobilia. We have 6 soft plastic BMW Isettas, 2 diecast BMW Isettas, and one hard plastic Michelin Man. We couldn’t find a lot on these, we believe them to be 1950’s and/or 1960’s sales promos. The soft plastic cars were probably made in Hong Kong in the mid-to-late 1960’s. They all have nice black free-running wheels which sit on good, straight steel axles. The door opens on a hinge, revealing the interior and steering wheel, which is an awesome feature. This model is highly accurate as a miniature, and is tough and extremely well-made. We have the 3 white models with one being a Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company model.  All interiors on these are red. Next we have 3 red models, one being a Michelin model. The interiors on all three are different colors; red, blue, and green respectively. All of the soft plastic cars measure approximately 5 ¼” x 3 ¼” x 3 ¼”. Each one is in varying condition from excellent to good.

Included in with this set is a hard plastic Michelin Man. He is slightly discolored with age, but in overall great condition. He measures approximately 4” x 4” x 2”.

To sweeten the set, there are 2 1958 BMW Isetta 250 highly detailed diecast model car 1:43 scale by Hongwell Cararama. The first one is in good condition, but the second one is more of a parts car as it is missing its left rear tire. Both cars have front opening doors, highly detailed interior and exteriors, and wheels that turn. They both measure approximately 2 ¼” x 1 ¼” x 1 ½”.

Overall, I think that this set would be a great addition to any vintage toy collection, and will definitely appeal to those who have a passion for all things connected to BMW Isetta or similarly-produced bubble cars of the era. We encourage you to look at the photos to get a better ideal of the condition of each item.

We pulled some history from Wikipedia about the BMW Isetta for those who would like to know a bit more about this interesting forward thinking automobile:

“The Isetta is an Italian-designed microcar built under license in a number of different countries, including Argentina, Spain, Belgium, France, Brazil, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Because of its egg shape and bubble-like windows, it became known as a bubble car, a name also given to other similar vehicles. In 1955, the BMW Isetta became the world’s first mass-production car to achieve a fuel consumption of 3 L/100 km (94 mpg‑imp; 78 mpg‑US). It was the top-selling single-cylinder car in the world, with 161,728 units sold. Initially manufactured by the Italian firm Iso SpA, the name Isetta is the Italian diminutive form of Iso, meaning “little Iso”.”

“BMW made the Isetta its own. They redesigned the power plant around a BMW one-cylinder, four-stroke, 247 cc motorcycle engine which generated 10 kW (13 hp). Although the major elements of the Italian design remained intact, BMW re-engineered much of the car, so much so that none of the parts between a BMW Isetta Moto Coupe and an Iso Isetta are interchangeable. The first BMW Isetta appeared in April 1955. In May 1962, three years after launching the conventionally modern-looking BMW 700, BMW ceased production of Isettas. A total of 161,728 units had been built.”