Frank Hornby established Meccano Ltd. in 1908 to make metal construction sets and model railroads. In the early 1930s, Meccano made many types of tin plate and other metal cars and in 1934 the name "Meccano Dinky Toys" was used for the first time. The name Meccano was dropped and the brand became DINKY TOYS until 1971. Dinky Toys was the brand name for die-cast zinc alloy miniature vehicles. They were made in England from 1934 to 1979, at a factory in Binns Road in Liverpool. They had production lines in several countries over the globe, with some country specific models.
Due to heavy competition of cheap labour countries, the factory closed its doors in November 1979. The Dinky trade-name changed hands many times before ending up as part of Matchbox International in the late 1980s. Later it became part of the US giant Mattel.
In 2008 French publishers, Atlas Editions, began to reissue models previously available as Dinky Toys under license from Mattel.
A diecast VW Panel Bus with cutout windows and a clear plastic window insert. Details of the door seams, handles, side air vents. There is a dab of silver paint on the headlights, VW front emblem and front and rear bumpers. Black plastic or grey metal wheels on metal axles. The Bus is painted yellow with HORNBY DUBLO red lettering in the sides. Catalog number 071 VOLKSWAGEN Bus.
