I spend a couple of days in the Four Corners area of Utah every month. If you are not familiar with that area, go look at a map of the US, and look for the only place in the country that four states meet. Those states are Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah.
Now focus on the Utah part of the Four Corners, and look slightly north. You will see towns called Blanding, Monticello, and Moab. You will see areas called Canyonlands and Arches, both cut by the Colorado River. If you want to know what that area looks like, this will help:
Those photos were taken by me a couple of days ago at Dead Horse Point as the sun went down. It makes returning home and writing about little cars a bit difficult.
So to keep my head in Moab, why not focus on some Moab-esque vehicles? Of course Moab might be the Jeep capitol of the world, so that is too obvious. Instead, in keeping with the theme of our Cool is Cool is Cool series, I am showcasing a couple of off-roading classics that truly are driven by the cool folks of Moab and the surrounding towns.
The Land Rover Ninety and Toyota Land Cruiser don’t need much by way of introduction. The Ninety was introduced in 1983, and Matchbox followed with its version in 1987. The Land Cruiser spans a longer time period. The 40 Series debuted in 1960, and Matchbox created its version in 2009.
Nonetheless, both vehicles are iconic off-roaders, taking several shapes in areas like Moab. We happen to like seeing them in interesting colors, none more than baby blue.
And thankfully, Matchbox has baby blue versions of both castings. The Land Rover in the 2006 All-Terrain 5-pack, and the Land Cruiser as a recolor on the 2009 New Model.
So, we will pay tribute to one of the most stunning places on earth by showcasing mini versions of two of the most iconic off-roaders around. Superlative city, yes, but all deserving.
Matchbox Land Rover 90 (2006 5-pack) & Toyota Land Cruiser (2009 New Models):
Nice! The Rover is my choice of the two though. It's like a mobile that wants a tough pick. That's no anticipation.
Oh, yeah the Celica Off Roader is nice as well too. Thanks for the pop up, John! Happy Victoria day!
Very nice report and photos! Utah is a state I have been so very near to multiple times but haven't had the time to visit, those 2 landscape photos above are great!
The 2 Matchbox above are perfect, if only Matchbox could return to such simple, tasteful, and well executed products. The cheeky wording hidden on so many vehicles like that seen above was great too, from the London Cab that says “Driver carries only Matchbox Cars” and the Ford Transit bakery van from the Best of British line that says “Driver carries lots of Dough!”, which are only apparent under close inspection and appear to be standard labeling otherwise.
I noticed the value of the 90 model is fairly close to that of the Land Cruiser; particularly in light/baby blue hues seen above. Green seems to be very rare much like the Cruiser also.
Funny because I passed on the 5 pack that the Land Rover 90 5-pack at a car show last year and it was $3 sealed in perfect condition! :O I was actually going to buy it but moments later storm clouds moved in and the sellers packed up their wares before the rain dumped!