Lamley Daily: Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 debut

Model: Matchbox MB142 Peugeot 205 Turbo 16

Release: 1984 ROW exclusive MB15

eBay link: Matchbox Peugeot 205 Turbo 16

Why is in the collection: Because it was my fastest as a kid

When people are young, they can be prone to quite vivid imaginations. Growing up I used to play with my toy cars a lot. I mean, they would often be the first thing pulled out to play with each day, and quite often they would be the only thing. I loved them. I would have roles for various models which they would play. I will likely do some more on various models from my youth and their various roles.

But one I always remember was the little Pug. It was the first of only 2 Peugeot castings that Matchbox have ever done. Both in the 1980s, both during the Universal era. This one was really cool with the huge opening rear exposing the engine, just like on the real car.

The Turbo 16 was specifically the rally variant of the Peugeot 205. The real vehicle was launched by Peugeot in 1983, and was an instant hit. In its 15 year production history it barely saw an upgrade externally. It was that popular. They didn’t need to. It was the car that turned Peugeot’s fortunes around. It won many awards too.

But that was nothing compared to the rally version. An instant hit, it went on to win many World Rally Championship races, as well as the 1985 and 1986 championships themselves. Sadly after 1986, Group B cars (of which this was one) were banned, and with it Peugeot’s foray at the time in the WRC.

The red number 205 on the side was its initial release. In 1985 the number turned black and in 1986 production moved from Macau to China and the number turned purple. Over the course of the next 4 years, that purple went from very dark to very light. But the initial red was my toy.

This isn’t the original. I wore it out playing with it so much and had to get an upgrade. But as I said, it was my fastest. Inspired by how it was so commanding in the WRC, whenever I would race any of my models, this would always win. It could be against a supercar, a Porsche Turbo, a dragster, or anything that was supposedly faster in real life. But I was a kid. The Pug was the fastest. It always won in the end.

I still remember some of those races in my head. Fond memories!