I’ve been a lifelong heavy commercial and military vehicle enthusiast, but I also like some lightweight commercial vehicles as well: especially the Peugeot J7.
Dinky Toys France did a fantastic job of modeling these very durable and popular front wheel drive vans. As a child of the 1970s, the only J7 models I saw in the toy stores I frequented were made by Solido. I never saw any new old stock French Dinky J7 models in stores here in the USA, and I didn’t even know they existed until I purchased my first Ed Force collector’s book on Dinky toys over 32 years ago. Two of the J7 vans are shown in the catalog pages below.
Dinky Toys France 1970 and 71 catalog pages (source: internet search)
They always have been expensive, especially the Autoroutes and fire department versions and aren’t often found in the USA. However, I was lucky enough to get my hands on the ones shown here. The best examples are almost always to be found at high-end diecast dealers and the big auctions in the UK and Europe. Finding them in crisp boxes (they are heavy models and easily damage the thin card boxes) complete with the leaflets, packing pieces, antenna and number plates in the little wax bag is also challenging. I still enjoy watching these when they do come up for sale to see what they go for.
The 570 J7 trio pictured below were purchased over the past 13 years. The 570A Autoroutes version came from a U.S., one-owner collection and must have been made on a Monday morning or Friday afternoon, as it’s attached the wrong way (the tailgate is supposed to face the workers): the number plates are already applied and the rooftop sign is inside the back of the van. Normally the rooftop sign is in a large bag with the number plates and the antenna. Mine has the normal small packet of the antenna and number plates. It’s also harder to find the last issue version as it contains no bonus sign and no sign artwork on the box.
Dinky was still including the sign leaflet in many of these toys though, despite not including a sign. With this box perhaps it was a last off-the-line model, as it appears to have been thrown oddly together.
The 570 Allo Fret version also came from the US, and is the more common white-roof version. It also has the serrated tab, which is always a nice find. The instructions in this one are currently folded up inside the interior and not pictured. These white-roof versions seem to be still somewhat affordable compared to the harder-to-find blue-roof ones, which I don’t find as attractive as the white roof.
The newest and final addition for me to complete my collection of the J7s was the 570P Fire Department version that I purchased in 2023. After the Autoroutes version, this is the second most valuable of the trio. The side decals on these are quite fragile, and this one is a superb example that came from QDT for what I thought was quite a good deal – despite past high sales of these. The instructions in this one, like the Allo Fret version, are also currently folded up inside and not pictured.
A 1978 Peugeot J7 brochure from my transport sales literature collection complements the models superbly.