There are some brands and models I’ve wanted to get on Lamley for a while and Herpa’s short lived 1/66 line is just one of them. They’re not particularly easy or cheap to get hold of but a recent trip to Vienna and the fabulous Modell Auto Markt Wien finally gave me the opportunity to add one to my collection. And it’s probably the best one in my opinion: the W202 series Mercedes C220.
The W202 series was the first generation of the Mercedes C-Class model. Production began in June 1993 and continued until July 2000 with over 1.8 million produced. The C220 model featured either a 2.2 litre four cylinder M111 petrol engine producing 148bhp, or a 2.1 litre diesel with 94bhp. Diesel models were particularly popular as taxis due to solid reliability and W202s are becoming increasingly desirable “modern classics” especially in the higher trim levels.
Finished in a shade clearly inspired by (or intended to be) Mercedes “Vivianite Grun”, Herpa’s 1/66 version is a really brilliant little model.
Herpa are normally known for their 1/87 and aviation lines but during the 90s they turned their attention to 1/66 scale and thus began the Junior/Metall line. But it appears their pricing put potential collectors off and the line faded fast despite solid construction and very neat looking models.
The C220 is my personal pick of the small range. As well as the Vivianite Grun, other C220 colours were yellow, red and silver with the range also including a Notarzt (emergency doctor), Feuerwehr (fire service), Polizei (police) and Taxi liveries.
Despite the fact the decal and detail work is pretty basic I really like it. The colour and proportions are perfect and with the metal base it feels solid and well constructed.
There’s a lightly detailed interior present blighted by a ridiculous vertically mounted steering wheel a la Conrad G-Wagen or XCartoys Audi 100, but it doesn’t detract from just how cool this model is.
It’s a real shame this line didn’t live on as it showed a lot of promise. The C220 is one of my favourite finds of this year and rest assured I’m already searching for more Herpa cars to share with you on Lamley.
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These were on the early part of detailed 1/64 models. I think at the time it was only AutoArt and Minichamps also offering higher end models then. I have most of these Mercedes and BMWs. They did a good job on them. I didn’t realize they are getting hard to find or expensive. It would be interesting to see what they would be like if they continued.
They were a real flash in the pan. As well as the Golf VR6, the booklet that came with mine showed “racing” decals for the Opel Corsa and Golf and some colours for the other cars that I don’t think ever got released. Herpa had/have a huge catalogue of 1/87 castings, one would have though the 1/66 range would have had a lot of blueprints and CAD files to choose from.