Pioneer Bengal Charger Packaging Correctness

[oldtimer]

I have purchased two Pioneer Bengal Chargers from two separate sources. One of the outer sleeves has the Assasin's Wedding Sticker attached to the upper right front of the
outer sleeve and the other does not.
I am keeping one for collection purposes and will either race or sell off the other. In my choice to collect one of them, which would be the more correct sleeve/car to keep? Because this particular Charger is not a Charger involved this the Bullit/Assasin Group, I would think the non-stickered sleeve would be correct. I have heard others say that some over-zealous factory workers may have placed the sticker or sleeves on non-Bullit/Assasins Chargers...or could this happen at a retail level before my purchase?
Can anyone clarify?....Which would be the most correct Charger for collection?...Thanks.

[Modlerbob]

If the Assasin's wedding sticker was only applied to a few packages it is probably the more valuable item from a collectors standpoint. Like a double pressed coin mistakes are sometimes more highly prized

[Ember]

You are correct about the over zealous factory workers. Impossible to know how many have the sticker on them. Which one to keep depends entirely on your reason for collecting in the first place.

Either one is equally valid as the are both official. One could argue that the one with the sticker is earlier in the production run, so is the one to keep.

[oldtimer]

Thank you Gents,
The Assassin-stickered "Bengal" will be put away........Thanks.

[TsgtRet]

My Bengal had the "Wedding Sticker" on it but since I buy my cars to run, not collect, the case and sleeve went by the wayside. Lynne is correct that the sticker was earlier production and an "oops" by the factory.

[Ember]

One of the fun things about language barriers. :) I do believe in the factory the car was known as the dodgy charra.

[bobbyraz49]

[JULES]

I can shed a bit of light on this, oldtimer.

The P005 Bengal Charger shipped out of China on December 14/15th, 2010. I spotted that the white sticker had been applied to the sleeve during a random batch check of dealer cartons. I immediately asked that all shipments were halted until the entire production run had been unpacked and the sticker removed. At the time, what I did not know was that several cartons had already shipped by air. My records showed that they went to Armchair Racer in Australia and Fantasy World Hobbies in the US.

I did ask that all the stickers be removed by the dealers but evidently this did not happen. I think it is a fair guess that 72 models have this white sticker applied to the picture sleeve.

Why did the China factory do this? Simple, really. The previous Dodge Charger they made was the P028 white 'Shotgun' version. This had a white sticker applied. Oriental logic assumes that if a previous product had a sticker applied then the next product would have a sticker applied. The fact that the sticker's message was irrelevant to that model would not have registered with a non-English speaking/reading worker. The sticker might have well have said "eat 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day". They would have still applied it because it was applied to the previous toy car.

Funnily enough, Ember, I still refer to the Charger models as the "Dodgy Chara's". Once you have heard that said a 100 times, it won't leave your head.

Jules

[Modlerbob]

So, with less than 100 survivors and rarity being a key ingredient in collector value, it seems the error should have the most value, to collectors.

[jcis4me]

[R/TRandy]

[VenturaAlfa]

Wow, Marty, did you really just post that? 3 to 5 times what the other cars are selling for is not enough for you? $160-200 is more than enough to pay for a small plastic car that sits on a shelf, even a rare one.

I have one of the cars like Randy posted with the sticker on it and I have been watching them. I knew of the issue early on and have followed how they have done. Never planned on being a collector or reseller but the cars have been bringing $30-50 more than the regular Bengal Chargers on that site we all love to hate and I am thinking I may have to sell it to buy a couple of the Pioneer Camaros and Mustangs or save it for the Donahue AMX.

Jules, nice to see you back posting. You are putting out some beautiful cars these days. Hopefully that means your production issues are resolved.
But, I still have to ask the same question that has been asked many times, when are we going to see the AMX? :angry-tappingfoot: :lol:

Ventura Alfa

[JULES]

[jcis4me]

Just sayin...
Value is in the eye of the beholder! All this to say . . .
Value of a collectable is how much some one is willing to pay
Marty

[jcis4me]

Jules!
Can't wait for the Alan Green Camaro! :text-bravo:
Waiting with anticipation!
Marty