Despite all the high-performance, exotic sports cars that define my current diecast collection, I grew up on diecast semi trucks. I had a few buses and off-brand tractor-trailers, but the bulk of my childhood collection was made up of Matchbox Convoys. My bias here is obvious, but I still think that era of Matchbox Convoys (with shipping containers on flatbeds and endless licensed decos) was an all-time high for the Matchbox brand.
Since then, the Convoy brand has felt lost, without any trucks that really captured people’s attention. In an era where the diecast pegs were always bare, it wasn’t unusual to find Convoys hanging on the pegs, so much so that both Walmart and Target no longer carry the line. It seemed like the end for one of the best Matchbox lines…
So imagine my excitement when Matchbox teased the new Shell tanker truck. Not only does this feature the return of the Shell brand, but it also has a licensed Western Star 49X cab!
This Western Star 49X is a huge step above the Convoy cabs of my childhood, with that incredibly cool Shell livery to match its trailer. Back in the mid-2000’s, Matchbox would match the color of the cab to the trailer, but we never saw the cab detailed with any logos or other printing (outside of a few in the Super Convoy line, anyway). On this Western Star, we have the Shell logo and paint scheme, and even the USDOT registration info on the door! Since this is a licensed cab, we have a Western Star logo on the hood, too. The only downside is the lack of an interior, though I think the extra detailing on the cab makes up for it.
The front of the truck is dominated by that distinctive and imposing vertical-slat grill, complete with a printed Western Star logo at the top. Flanking the grill are printed headlights that are missing the 49X’s orange LED strip, but they’re still a very welcome sight. Matchbox even printed the silver trim piece above the windshield!
The MBX Tanker Trailer is familiar, though the bottom of the trailer appears to have been slightly modified compared to the trucks of my childhood. That familiarity is not a bad thing, as this has always been a good-looking trailer design, with separate pieces allowing for fun colors on the tank section, as we see here. Unlike older Convoys, the detailing on this trailer is printed, so it should hold up better than the stickers Matchbox used previously.
Since all modern Convoys come with a themed car, Matchbox includes a 2019 Mustang Coupe in a Shell V-Power livery to match the truck. The Mustang Coupe is a casting that I quite like, but it just looks cheap without the front and rear detailing. The completely smooth rear lights section is the biggest problem – it’s clear this model was never designed to be without printed tail lights, as there’s no detail at all on the back of this casting.
The poorly detailed Mustang really doesn’t matter though, as you buy a Convoy for the truck, and the truck is exquisite. The buying, however, represents a bit of a problem. As I mentioned, neither Walmart nor Target carry the Convoy line anymore, which means (in my region) these models are nearly impossible to find. They will occasionally pop up at an auto parts store…but that’s about it. Obviously, it’s not a huge deal for me to order these Convoys online – they’re readily available at hobby dealers like Village Diecast and Jcardiecast – but ordering them online won’t be as easy for kids who don’t have access to a credit card. It saddens me that the next generation won’t be able to grow up with the Convoy line as I did, especially because these trucks served as a gateway into the world of performance cars that I now enjoy. I can only hope that the Matchbox team can find a way to bring these Convoys back to mainstream retailers, because the kids deserve it!
diecastleno.com 
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