(Find the Matchbox Moving Parts Chevrolet Rampside on Ebay here)
Every year my wife and I make the trip back to her home in Greece, and every year I visit the large “Moustakas” toy store nearby. Sadly due to the state of diecast stocks here in my part of the UK, it’s my only chance to stock up on some of my more desired Mattel products. It’s always well stocked with Hot Wheels, Matchbox, Majorette, Siku and even RMZ. It provided me with the Hot Wheels Chevrolet Corvair Yenko Stinger and Matchbox Moving Parts Bizzarrini 5300 GT that I looked at last year, and this year’s visit gifted me another fabulous Moving Parts gem in the shape of the Chevrolet Corvair Rampside.
Utility variants of the Corvair arrived in 1961 under the “Corvair 95” subseries. The engine remained the same Turbo-Air flat-six as utilised in the passenger variants, but with a few upgrades to cope with the increased loads the engine would be under. As well as a 6 or 8-door panel van (the Greenbrier), the 95 was available in “Loadside” and “Rampside” pickup variants.
The Loadside had a conventional rear mounted tailgate, but the Rampside had an innovative drop down ramp integrated into the passenger side of the loadbed to ease loading and unloading from ground level. The ramp rested at a gentle 22 degrees and could take loads of up to 1000Ibs, with a piece of rubber trim along the top edge preventing any damage to the panel whilst in use.
The Rampside initially proved popular with over 11,000 sold in the first year alone. The Bell Telephone Company even ordered a fleet as the side ramp made loading cable drums a heck of a lot easier. Demand dropped sharply however, and by 1965 all Corvair 95 variants had disappeared from the line up.
A left field and rather rare vehicle to base a diecast on then, but the Rampside makes for a superbly cool addition to Matchbox’s Moving Parts range.
This version arrived in the line in 2024 and has since been joined by a red version, however this turquoise example is far better looking in my opinion.
The paint shade mirrors an option available to real Rampside buyers: “Tampico Turquoise” offset with “Cameo White” side stripes. And of course those Matchbox steel wheels work perfectly here.
There’s pleasant detail on the front and sides, with decals adding lights, grilles and badges, though all sadly suffer from the now trademark Mattel fuzziness when viewed up close. Frustratingly there’s also no detail on the rear of the model.
It remains one of my favourite peg finds of recent months however, and it’s a delight to handle, with the ramp opening and closing with a satisfying click. If I had managed to grab one on release in 2024, this would have been a strong contender for my 2024 top 10. Instead it’s joined my growing “to do” pile of diecast customs, and no doubt many others will have already drilled, lowered and wheel-swapped their examples. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing what I can do with what is already a solid foundation.
Instagram: @alex_the_hoarder
Facebook: facebook.com/alexthehoarder
YouTube: Alex_the_Hoarder
Reddit: u/alexthehoarder
“…with a piece of rubber trim along the top edge preventing any damage to the panel whilst in use.”
Ah, thank you, Alex! You answered the question I have in mind since first I heard about that thing! 😎