Promotional Items

Promotional Items

Car companies often offered promotional pieces to the public and their dealers.
Many times a dealership was too small to have many of the models in the showroom.
They would receive Models of the different styles that were offered for that year. Back
in the days of custom ordering a car direct from the factory, the concept of a yard full
of cars to choose from was unheard of. Awards in the form of a car plaque were often presented to Salespeople in recognition of their accomplishments. Also, slot car racing and model car building were popular pastimes. Below are many of the items produced by various sources that represent the 1966 Model year. There are also some examples of toys from the period.

Thanks to Scott McVicker for sharing his extensive collection with the group.

AMT aqua mailer promo. Ford mailed out packages to prospective buyers with a coupon to receive this promo in the mail. Hence, they are the most prevalent, but don't correspond to any color offered by Ford. Hardtop and converible promos in Ford colors shown later were offered to those that visited showrooms.

Shadowbox car sales award - not sure what criteria Ford used to award these, maybe 10% over the previous year? These used a gold plated AMT promo body, they are usually in horrible shape when you find them. This one has been replated by a model restoration company in Wisconsin, and is much "yellower" than the original appears.	Original shadowbox - brass plate reads: "FORD GOLD CAR AWARD presented to (company name) IN RECOGNITION OF CAR SALES LEADERSHIP 1966 G.B. MACKENZIE General Sales Manager"	Cox Dan Gurney slot car - the Holy Grail of most Galaxie model and many vintage slot car collectors. Mint in the box kits sell for $3-5000! As with the Tamiya body, there are a few identifying differences from the AMT body. Most obvious is the molded in rear window restraining straps, elimination of the vent window posts, and the headlight and taillight blanking panels.
Mint Tamiya slot car	AMT ready to run slot car, using the common aqua mailer body. Used a brass plate chassis which made the center of gravity lower, but extra weight made the car slower in competition. AMT also offered an Impala Super Sport, Mercury Comet Cyclone, and Mustang fastback with this chassis.	1/48scale Palmer model
1/64, "Matchbox, "Hot Wheels" scale by Yat Ming or Yatming. I believe I picked up the first of these (bottom right) in 1982, the engraving on the mold was so exquisite you could make out the individual GALAXIE letters on the quarter panels; quality deteriorated on subsequent issues. Although listed on the chassis as a GALAXIE 500XL, there's not sufficient detail that you could call it a 7 Litre, and get away with it.	Used & abused Tamiya slot car - although very similar to the AMT model kits and promos, there are subtle differences with the Tamiya body. Whereas with the AMT you can see the engraving for the wheelwell trim, they are not there on the Tamiya, and the openings seem to extend a little wider. The rocker panels roll out wider on the Tamiya body; the headlight bezels are also thicker than the AMT. Molded on the underside of the hood: the two star Tamiya logo, and; "TAMIYA MOKEI PLASTIC MODEL CO. Made in Japan 1967"	1/32 scale model by Palmer - not near the detail of the AMT kits, but one of the few that advertised the model as a 7 Litre
Gay Toys a little smaller than 1/48 scale; a 7 Litre police car? On the rear are round taillight lenses, such as used in the '65 Custom models, and prototyped for the '66	Arcadian blue friction (flywheel) promo. There was also a maroon Thunderbird Landau, dark aqua Mercury Park Lane hardtop, and a orange Mustang hardtop also offered with the friction chassis in 1966.	Unpainted thin shell slot car body, this one by International
closeup of the Palmer 1/32 scale kit box. I have a Ford Obsolete, Supercede, Interchange catalog from December 1965 that shows dedicated part numbers for 1966 glass headlight covers, like those used on 1965 Galaxie 427 and some police cars. Is this what they would have looked like?	Aftermarket resin 7 Litre convertible body	AMT 2007 reissue
AMT 2002 reissue	AMT 1976 reissue	AMT fall 1965 issue 7 Litre convertible. For some reason, manufacturer labeled this as a 500XL, instead of 7 Litre
AMT 1986 reissue	AMT fall 1965 issue 7 Litre hardtop	AMT 1969 reissue
Estrela of Brazil fire chief car, measures about 13 1/2" long	Customized Estrela	Mint painted thin shell slot car body; a slot car publication from 1967 listed four different manufacturers of these, no idea which made this
Automodelli of Brazil 1/48 scale unbelieveable photoetch detail	AMT aqua mailer promo body mounted on Philco transistor radio chassis. Ford had salesmen's awards like this, but used Thunderbird, Mustang, and Mercury Park Lane bodies. I did what Ford didn't do, and mounted the Philco radio from the Mercury into a 7 Litre body.	AMT 1966 Mercury Comet Cyclone Indianapolis 500 pace car promo
AMT Candy Apple Red promos	AMT Antique Bronze promos	AMT Vintage Burgundy promos
AMT Wimbledon White promos	AMT Tahoe Turquoise promos	AMT Arcadian Blue promos

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