Research work
12/10/2025
What is it? This question is not only asked on old postcards or in newspaper articles from days gone by when a street scene with a car is depicted. Of course, the classic car editor is happy to take up the challenge when the question of year, make and model is raised. In my case, this was also the case when I was asked by a book publisher to find out which car the travelers and photographers were using on a trip through the Balkans. In this case, it was a Ford V8 - a good choice for the rough terrain - from the mid-1930s.
But even toy cars sometimes have their secrets. It's not always just a case of the manufacturers having made such a lousy replica of a particular car that even a trained eye has difficulty recognizing the original. There are also cars that are so rare and unique that it is simply too far a stretch to deduce the model from the original.
A while ago, for example, I found a red Wiking car in a small cardboard box. According to the 1950 catalog, it is the "sports four-seater with figures", item number T3. Here you can see it on my modest model railroad.
Connoisseurs refer to these early models as "Quetschachser". A pure fantasy product, as I thought. However, it would have been the only car of this type in Wiking's range at the time. On the other hand, I was completely unfamiliar with this shape. Only the radiator grille reminded me of something...
Is this a Veritas Nürburgring? Who knows. I haven't been able to find any other explanation so far. I'm always open to useful tips. By the way, the yellow car in the background is probably a penny car from KoHo and is supposed to be a Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing.
