Help needed to see if I've bought 'fake' diecast cars!

[Joshuasmummy]

Hi everyone, I'm a new member here so firstly 'hello'! Me and my son have just started this year collecting diecast cars from Pixar Cars 1 & 2. My little boy is autistic and has various other problems and one of the very few things he likes is Disney Cars so the more time we spent playing with them, watching the movie's etc-the more time I spent wanting to collect them!

Anyway I just spent a small fortune (on ebay) buying a bulk lot of cars and they have arrived today and I'm worried they are 'fake' if you can get such a thing? Is there any tell tale signs I should look for that would give away they are fake? The packaging is quite damaged, so perhaps it's just that that's making me think they are different to all our others! But they look a bit different, only slightly....they also say 'Republica Argentina' on the back-is this normal?

I'm in the Uk if that's any help?

Any help would be much needed as I've spent a lot of money on these!

Thanks everyone!

[DaFickser]

Hello and welcome
Some pictures might help to clearify this for you,

[Joshuasmummy]

This is one of them-Wingo-and has no code underneath and says 'Made in Thailand' none of my other cars are like this?photo(1987).jpgphoto(1990).jpg

[Joshuasmummy]

Thanks DaFickser-I've just uploaded some before I saw your reply, I also can take some pictures of the packaging if needed?

[David Vincent]

No problem Josh, you have a genuine car. The very first Desert serie was manufactured in Thailand and there was no serial number under the cars. Just when they switch to the 2nd serie entitled Supercharged, Mattel changed the production from Thailand to China and they added serials.
So your Wingo comes from this 2006 Desert serie:
wingo_desert.jpg

[Joshuasmummy]

photo(1988).jpg

Thanks! Here is the packaging and below are a few pics of one of the cars-I opened it to inspect it!

[Joshuasmummy]

Ah phew! I was getting worried because the car itself feels different in quality and the tall back part is a completely different plastic to the metal car-it just felt...not as a good quality! Thanks for clearing that up for me!

[DaFickser]

The car itself looks like the one we have, although the one we have had some green on the front spoiler (bottom)
The missing number could indicate it's from backdoor seller from China maybe..

[cac1959]

As others have mentioned (thank you, David Vincent, DaFickser) and your package confirms, you have a Wingo from the Desert Back 12 series, the first series of Cars released... for many countries, additional wording appears on the card or cardback - Argentina is one of them as your card says.

As far as part of Wingo being plastic, not all Cars are made entirely of metal... for example, Mater and Brand New Mater were almost all metal during the Desert Back and Supercharged series... by the time it was released in the Race o Rama series, it was significantly lighter due to more parts being made of plastic, a move that was done to save money... when Brand New Mater was re-released on the 2013 cardback, Mattel had gone back to using more metal and it was heavier... in fact, many of the 2013 Cars are re-releases made with more metal and less plastic (example: Finn McMissile, Security Guard Finn McMissile, and more).

I've seen a few people who make customs create their own packaging for their custom Cars (Custom Toy Revolution is one who makes fantastic custom Cars)... otherwise, I've never seen a Car in packaging that was not the real deal... most Cars today are made in China... a few such as the recent Take Flight series, are made in Thailand... some of the earlier Cars did not have production codes on the bottom of the Car but it's on the cardback.

Welcome to PCD. If you haven't already done so, please post an introduction thread in the new members area at:
http://www.pixarcarsdiecast.com/foru...-Introductions

[wintermelon]

Interesting topic...

Site Note:
Currently, there are a bunch of fake loose cars now being released from China.
It is as good as the real deal. Therefore, if possible avoid at all cost (due to possible used of lead paint) and buy carded stuff.

[carscrazy]

Interesting topic...

Site Note:
Currently, there are a bunch of fake loose cars now being released from China.
It is as good as the real deal. Therefore, if possible avoid at all cost (due to possible used of lead paint) and buy carded stuff.

I have noticed some loose ones being listed from China on ebay as a buy it now for £1.00. Alarm bells should ring if cars are bein sold that cheap! Even included diecast franks. Just hope people dont buy them for the little kids

[tysonperuzzi]

Hello, I've the same problem.... I'm from Italy. I've bought several diseny pixar cars for my children in ebay. How do I know if they are genuine ?

[Ferris]

Hello, I've the same problem.... I'm from Italy. I've bought several diseny pixar cars for my children in ebay. How do I know if they are genuine ?

The only way to know for sure is to buy packaged items, but generally if you look at the bottom of the car, most of the fake ones are missing the white numbers (production codes).

[tysonperuzzi]

Yes it's really, but I bought a lot of disney pixar car made in Thailand and they haven't any code... right? (I've bought without any packaging). If I post the photos, is it possible to recognize them? Thanks a lot.....