A Colombian model car manufacturer was Chico Toys. In the 1970s, the Bogotá-based company Metalúrgicas Von Arnim produced diecast models in 1/43rd to 1/50th scale under this name based on older moulds by Vilmer from Denmark. Among others, Volvo, Mercedes-Benz, Ford Thames and Bedford trucks were released with various body styles, as well as a Bukh tractor. The quality was not on a par with the Danish products, the models were simplified and less carefully finished, and they tend to suffer from metal fatigue. A few models had the inscription "Vilmer Colombia" on the bottom. In the mid-1970s, Chico Toys also manufactured the Andin Box diecast models in a smaller scale, which were copies of Johnny Lightning models from the USA. Also in the 1970s, the company Modelos Plásticos (Oscar Ramírez Cano & Cía.) in Medellín had a contract with the Japanese manufacturer Masuda and made tinplate models from its range, among others some contemporary Datsun and Toyota coupés, as well as a Ford Maverick. 1/43rd scale plastic models from the "Chiqui-Cars" series by Nacoral from Spain were also made in Colombia by Compañía Iberoamericana de Juguetes Nacoral S.A. in Cúcuta from 1973 to 1976. Other Colombian manufacturers of tinplate models were Juguetes Navidad and Buffalo, both mainly producing commercial vehicles. Like in other Latin American countries, inexpensive plastic toy cars were also manufactured in Colombia, e.g. blow plastic models of Renault 12 and Fiat 124 by a company from Cali or a racing car model made by Sico. Handmade and handpainted wooden or clay models of the Chiva, the typical, colourful and usually heavily loaded bus in rural regions, are a popular souvenir from Colombia. Wooden and clay models of fully loaded trucks and old Jeeps, which are also still often used as a means of transportation, are also available. An exact scale model of a Colombian Chiva was released in late 2013 by the publisher Luppa Solutions in a partwork with 1/72nd scale diecast buses for the South American market. In the same year, Luppa Solutions also released a series of 1/43rd scale cars for the Colombian market, including several Chevrolets as built in Colombia by GM Colmotores.
Colombia