Matchbox Provides 12 Reasons Why Starting a New Collection Would Be a Fun Idea

We're seeing more and more Matchbox cars with each passing year, it seems. Mattel is investing a lot of time and money toward bringing the company back to its former shine and glory, and it seems to be working out just fine for them.

There are several series and formats available for collectors out there, and one of them categorizes vehicles by country of origin. This year we've seen sets of 12 cars representing the United Kingdom, Japan, and France.

And today, we get to see all 12 vehicles representing Germany. First things first, you can't help but appreciate the simple yet efficient design of the art card. Then, you'll notice that the series includes five vehicles from Mercedes-Benz, two from Porsche, two from Volkswagen, and only one each from both BMW and Audi.

The first vehicle inside this set is the Mercedes-Benz S 123 Station Wagon. This casting has been used by Matchbox since 2019. You're looking at a simple design of a classic vehicle, and it's not quite as exciting as the new Mercedes-Benz AMG E 36 Estate from Hot Wheels. But then again, the two brands have different target audiences, each one with its own set of preferences.

The Porsche Cayenne Turbo does not have a Hot Wheels equivalent, and we doubt that's going to change anytime soon. This almost looks like a premium model with those five-spoke wheels on, and you can also find some previous generation ones if you fancy a German SUV collection. Speaking of which, you'll also find a 2015 Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe and a G-Class in the German series.

The GLE Coupe is now back after a two-year hiatus, and it's not the first time we get to see it painted in this shade of grey. Earlier on, we spoke about the idea of mixing items from both brands inside a diorama. While you'll find various service vehicles in Hot Wheels stores, they don't seem to achieve the same level of realism as Matchbox ones do.

And the Germany series has got three cool items inside that fit that description: the BMW M5 and Mercedes-Benz Unimog U 5023 police vehicles and the Scania P 360 Fire truck.

It may annoy some of you that the BMW and the Mercedes-Benz have been used in National Series before, but then again, if you're just starting, it will be easier for you to get the current model. One of the newest castings featured in the Germany series is that of the Porsche 918 Spyder, as it was just released this year.

A Hot Wheels equivalent exists, but it just looks like a toy car compared to the Matchbox version. Metalflake Dark Grey might not be the most exciting color out there, but it works nicely with the gold multispoke wheels. The 2019 Audi TT RS Coupe isn't half bad either, as it brings a bit of color to an otherwise quite somber series.

Two of the oldest castings seen here are the VW Golf V GTI and the 1962 Beetle. The Beetle has been around since 1999, although this retooled version was introduced in 2018. The Golf looks great in Metalflake Purple, and we just talked about it in a recent story focused on the commercials VW developed for it.