If this van's a-rockin'

The Van, 1977

I was not aware of the term, but apparently there is a film genre called vansploitation from the 70s. I've never heard of any of the movies associated with the genre, and will likely never see any of them either.

I make no judgement on these films or the times, but apparently there was widespread belief that girls were really into guys who drove vans back then.

In any event, there are many potential uses for vans in gaming, so I will present some of the models that I have in my collection.

First up is a Hot Wheels Super Chromes Custom '77 Dodge Van which is a Dodge B series custom van.

The model has the wheelbase measurement of a long wheelbase van, but the length of a short wheelbase van in 1/72. It does seem overly wide, but not enough to be too noticeable next to my other vans.

Next are a pair of Hot Wheels Super Vans, which are undefined 70s model Dodge vans. They are a bit longer and narrower than the Custom '77 Dodge Van.

Matchbox makes a Ford Panel Van which represents the Ford E-150 Econoline.

The van is sold as 1/80 scale, but the Matchbox wiki suggests that it is 1/72 scale (based on the wheelbase).

The next pair are Matchbox '75 Chevy Vans in 1/74 scale which are 3rd generation Chevrolet Sport Vans.

All four van types compared.

I actually really want a white panel van, but none of these vans are sold in plain white. One of these days, I'm going to look for some cheap used Hot Wheels that I can repaint as plain undecorated panel vans.

The next group of vehicles are step vans.

First up are a bunch of Matchbox Express Delivery vans in 1/70 scale.

The van with the open side doors has a metal body, while the others have plastic bodies.

Next is a Toyota Quick Delivery Van in 1/72 scale made by Tomica.

Hot Wheels also makes a non-scale Combat Medic which is the length of the Tomica van, but looks to be 1/64 based on width.

It is almost 10mm wider than the Matchbox and Tomica vans, so I left it in the original packaging in case I decide to sell it.

The final group are various types of modern vans.

First is a 1/72 Tiny City Ice Cream Van in the livery of Cream Bro (a British Shorthair who apparently was the former manager of a convenience store in TST East).

Next is a 1/72 2000 Toyota Esteem (known as the Previa here in North America). The model was a premium available from 7-11 in Japan for buying Suntory Coffee BOSS products.

Last is a 1/74 Mercedes Benz Sprinter ambulance in a promotional Hong Kong Fire Services Department livery by Realtoy.

A comparison of the five van types.

I get the feeling that the Ice Cream Van might be overscale, while the Esteem may be underscale, but I haven't actually looked up the dimensions to verify this impression.