1956 Bandai, Ford Red Cross Ambulance in Original Box
Fabulous white tin litho two door Ford station wagon Red Cross ambulance. Superb near mint condition. Complete with original color illustrated box. This friction drive vehicle features a large international Red Cross emblem on the roof and a second smaller emblem on the lower rear hatch. Complimenting the emblem is a hood mounted searchlight (right) and siren (left). Both are metal pieces, not plastic. The interior includes a wide, green dotted bench seat up front. The area behind the seat is open and lithoed with a corrugated metal flooring. It has a fully lithoed, embossed dashboard with the Ford logo on the glove box. The floor section is enclosed and lithoed making it look very realistic. The steering wheel and column are all metal. The front and rear windshields contain the original celluloid panes. Both are framed with chromed tinplate. The rear windshield functions as a two piece hatch with a pull down platform and a lift up window. A single hinge located on the inside of the wagon pulls out to fully open both hatch sections. It's also important to note that the exterior of the lower hatch section was lithoed slightly yellow. This was factory produced to distinguish it from the surrounding body. Additional chrome plating includes the metal hood ornament, the embossed wrap around front and rear bumpers, checkerboard grille, headlights, taillights, embossed side molding, and the accurately rendered Ford color logo radiator ornament. The embossed hubcaps are outlined in white, red, and black. A Ford logo appears in the center of each cap. The tires are solid rubber. The chassis details were all embossed and lithoed silver and black to make them stand out. This entire under section is a single plate enclosing the body. The original box shows a full color illustration of the ambulance backed up to a hospital emergency entrance. The side panels show several uniformed men carrying a stretcher towards the car. It's advertised as "friction with siren". The siren is actually the noise made by the friction motor. Size: 12" Sold: Jun. 2005
Price Sold: $ 316
