Auto Pilen

Vehicles in Auto Pilen's lineup were mostly European and included Ferraris, Porsches, Renaults, Citroens, Mercedes-Benz, Volvos and some American cars as well. There was also a line of at least eight Formula One cars in 1/43 scale from the 1960s including BRM, Ferrari, Lola-Climax, Lotus-Climax, Cooper-Maserati, Brabham, and Honda. A few helicopters and airplanes were available. Numbering for the regular 1:43 series began with an "M" (perhaps reminiscent of Politoys M-Series) and went from 300 to 500.

Since this was a Spanish company, FIATs are not shown as FIAT, rather they are SEATs (pronounced 'say-ott'). This was FIAT under license in Spain – starting in the 1960s – long before Volkswagen took control of SEAT. Thus it is the SEAT 600, the SEAT 850 Spyder, the SEAT 127, etc.

For all the complexity of origins of the models, however, the products were uniformly of very high quality. Most were done in a refined and handsome manner, with evenly applied colors (Sinclair 1979, p. 392). The paint application was often in a brighter, almost spectraflame (though that is a Mattel term) appearance (Johnson 1998, p. 15). There were many opening features and hoods, trunks, and doors matched the bodies with satisfying precision. Finished parts were thin and svelte and models appear much like Solido – not heavy-handed like some British Dinkys and Corgis.

Tyres were rubber and wheels authentically matched each model – where a generic one was necessary, a handsome wire wheel was employed similar to those seen on Politoys M Series. Sometimes the chemical reaction in the rubber compound of the wheels could cause melting of the plastic on the base plates of the display cases, but unlike Sablon diecast made in Belgium (which also had Spanish associations) whose plastic wheels all melted with contact with rubber tyres, the problem was avoided on Pilen models by using metal wheels.

These models did not appear rushed into production, though some have experienced cracking of faulty zinc alloy conglomerate 15 to 20 years later. Pilen in the mid-1970s was right up with other 1:43 scale companies packaging their models in clear plastic display cases. The screws used to hold models to the orange and yellow plastic bases, however, held them tightly and the tyres often melt and become fused to the plastic of the bases. This is due to a chemical reaction to a softener in the rubber of the tyres. With a bit of coaxing, usually the tyres pull free from the base with no damage.

Typical Pilen brochures were thin narrow folded strips 1 3/4 inches wide which normally advertised thirty cars. On the opposite side, the collector was reminded that five of these strips could be collected and remitted to receive a key chain from "Escuderia" Pilen – such diecast trinkets had been traditional Pilen products for some years. Auto Pilen models were the main diecast toys seen in Spanish department stores El Corte Ingles and Galerias Preciados in Spain in the late 1970s.

Pilen's model selection appears taken (whether by direct copying from blueprints or through available dies) from a variety of other producers, especially French Dinky Toys. Some tools from Meccano s.a. were transferred from Calais to Pilen in Spain so the models made by Pilen were Dinky castings – the base plate of which had been modified from MADE IN FRANCE to MADE IN SPAIN. For example, the Talbot/Simca/Chrysler 1100 saloon, Renault 12 saloon, Mercedes 250 coupe, Ferrari P5, Citroën CX Pallas, and Matra-Simca Bagheera were French Dinky castings (Dinky Toys Encyclopaedia). Later versions of these cars, though, did not say Dinky anywhere on the base plates.

So, from 1974 until 1981, several French Dinky Toys passenger cars were made by Pilen. Bickford says that originally there was an agreement to market the French Dinkys in Spain, but most were sold under the Pilen brand name (Bickford 2009). The French dies were used, but of course the base plates were altered, hiding that fact. These cars were almost exactly similar to the French dies, but with Pilen's own paint finishes. Some were modified and updated by Pilen such as the Citroën DS 23 or the Renault 16 and were sold either under the marque Dinky or Pilen with distinct base plates and packaging. It could be said that these were the last genuine Dinky Toys (Dujardin 2014), though Gardiner and O'Neill (1996, pp. 70–71) show two complete pages of "Dinky, Spain" without ever mentioning Auto Pilen!

Dinkys made in Spain were made available to the French market. The last six Dinky issued in 1980 were Pilen models fitted with a Dinky base plate (The Dinky Toys Encyclopaedia).

They were :

• 11500 Citroën 2cv
• 11539 Volkswagen Scirocco
• 11540 Renault 14
• 11541 Ford Fiesta
• 11542 Simca 1308 GT
• 11543 Opel Ascona

The Oldsmobile Toronado, the 1963 Corvette Stingray, the experimental Chevrolet Corvette-like Astro 1 and the Adams Probe all appear to have been recastings of previous British Corgi models. Though Tekno also made a Toronado and Pilen's Toronado had opening doors similar to the Tekno, the general look and opening headlights appear more like the Corgi.

Several Pilen models were dead ringers for French Solidos such as the De Tomaso Mangusta which Dinky also made, but Pilen's version was more refined like the Solido, while the Dinky was rather thick and distorted. Pilen's Opel Manta was likely a Solido replica, as well as the Mercedes-Benz C111 rotary concept. Pilen had a Porsche Carrera 6 race car like Corgi and Solido, but the details of the Pilen model match the Solido.

A couple other models appear to be copies of previous Politoys models of Italy: the Ferrari Modulo Pininfarina and the Lancia Stratos Bertone. The American Ford GT Mark II is very similar to the Mebetoys (also of Italy) version, and the SEAT (FIAT) 850 Spyder is like the earlier Mercury, another Italian model producer. The company's Chevrolet Corvair Monza open cockpit concept is a doppelganger of the Danish Tekno issue. It seems either Pilen had direct access to dies of many toy makers (which does not seem very likely), or it had superior skills in creating new castings closely matching various existing vehicles – perhaps with the help of blueprints.

A few models have mysterious origins. The AMC Javelin doesn't seem to have a counterpart elsewhere and neither does the Intermeccanica Indra or the Monteverdi Hai 450, though models of all of these appeared afterward made by different manufacturers. One possibility is that these were new French Dinky castings that had not appeared elsewhere and were to be introduced when the 'Spanish Dinky' line was to premier. Considering the care and quality seen in many of the Auto Pilen models, it is also possible that a few models were done in-house.

Auto Pilen also made a line of Matchbox-sized 1/64 scale cars, but these are more rare. Besides a SEAT 131 Wagon, a SEAT Ritmo, a Renault 4F (Van), a Peugeot 504, and a Range Rover – among others – were made but little is known about them. The Range Rover casting was shared with Guiloy which brings us to the subject of Pilen's connections to other Spanish diecasters (Willoughby no date).