120: Happy Cab

DINKY 120 HAPPY CAB (1979-80):

The Dinky 120 Happy cab was produced in 1979 and like its counterpart the 115 United Biscuits Taxi lasted just a year till 1980. The model was based on the chassis of the 475 Model T Ford.

As Dinky’s financial crises grew they came up with plans to get more out of the existing moulds and the baseplate and wheel tooling of the Dinky 475 Model T Ford was modified to create the  115 U.B. Taxi and 120 Happy Cab.

VARIATIONS:

The earliest version had yellow wheels but there is a variant with unpainted wheels possibly made as the line came to an end and the yellow paint ran out.

One version had a taxi sticker at the front similar to the #115 United Biscuits version

And a version with no front, back or roof stickers, probably towards the end of the production run when Dinky had run out of stickers.

PROTOTYPES

A prototype version with ‘drag’ racing wheels, the smaller ones from existing stock used by various racing cars and the 361 Galactic War Chariot,  was sold by Vectis in 2020.

And finally as featured in Model Collector June/July 1989, a  ‘Police’ version, with more than a nod towards the ‘Keystone Kops’ and keeping to the Happy Cab wacky theme.

BOX:

CATALOGUES:
The Happy Cab was promoted in the 1979 catalogue alongside the similar United Biscuits Taxi which was never commercially available in toyshops.