Bureau Hours: Wednesdays, 6:00am – 7:00am
Closed on holidays, near-holidays, and days following holidays.
The Bureau observes all federal, provincial, and self-declared holidays.
The Bureau has reviewed, catalogued, and in three separate instances misidentified the 1928 Chevrolet Delivery Van in 1:43 scale. Those prior errors have been formally expunged from the record and are not available for public inspection. What follows is the definitive, corrected, and Bureau-certified classification of this vehicle and its miniature representations.
By 1928, Chevrolet had firmly established itself as the volume challenger to Ford's Model T dynasty, and the commercial delivery van represented the working backbone of that ambition. Built on the Series AB National platform, the 1928 Chevrolet light commercial vehicles offered buyers a 171 cubic inch overhead-valve four-cylinder engine producing approximately 35 horsepower — modest by any modern standard, but admirably reliable by the standards of a nation still largely moving goods by horse.
The Series AB replaced the outgoing Capitol Series AA, carrying forward the same fundamental steel-over-wood construction that characterized commercial coachwork of the period. The enclosed panel delivery body was typically sourced from independent coachbuilders working to Chevrolet's specifications, meaning subtle variations in body trim, door configuration, and roof profile were not anomalies — they were simply Tuesday.
The year 1928 sits at a precise historical inflection point. Chevrolet outsold Ford for the first time in calendar year 1927, and the 1928 models were the company's opportunity to consolidate that victory. Commercial operators — bakeries, laundries, florists, druggists, and the full taxonomy of small American enterprise — embraced the enclosed delivery van as a mobile advertisement as much as a transport vehicle. Livery graphics applied directly to the body panels were standard practice, which is why modern diecast manufacturers have found this vehicle so commercially exploitable across multiple branding editions.
Production of the Series AB continued only through the 1928 model year before the significantly redesigned International Series AC arrived for 1929. This short production window has done nothing to diminish the 1928 van's collectible profile, and has in fact enhanced it.
Eligor of France produced one of the most respected 1:43 renditions of the 1928 Chevrolet delivery van, releasing multiple livery variants throughout the 1980s and early 1990s. Their castings captured the period-correct cab-over profile with commendable fidelity, and Eligor's packaging of the era — the yellow and blue window box — has itself become a secondary collector item, which the Bureau acknowledges is somewhat excessive but ultimately understandable.
Lledo of the United Kingdom, operating under its Days Gone and Vanguards-adjacent promotional lines, produced a version of the late-1920s Chevrolet delivery van in 1:64 and near-1:43 approximations. Collectors are advised that Lledo's scale fidelity was, charitably, aspirational. The Bureau has filed a formal complaint with no one in particular regarding this matter.
American manufacturers including Ertl issued promotional delivery van castings in various scales throughout the 1980s and 1990s, frequently under corporate licensing agreements with brands including Hershey's, Pepsi-Cola, and various petroleum companies. These promotional editions vastly outnumber the standard releases and represent the dominant segment of the current secondary market.
A strong example of the 1928 Chevrolet Delivery Van in 1:43 will exhibit crisp tampo-printed or water-slide decal livery with no silvering, lifting, or amateur touch-up work. The Bureau has seen things. Wheel blackwall tires should sit flush and exhibit no flat-spotting from improper storage, and the glazing — typically a single-piece clear acetate insert — should be free of yellowing or crazing.
Original packaging commands a meaningful premium. An Eligor example in its original box will reliably command 40 to 60 percent more than a loose equivalent in comparable physical condition. The box is not the model, and yet the box is very much the model.
Livery scarcity is the primary price driver for this subject. Standard Chevrolet blue generic releases are common. Regionally distributed promotional editions — particularly those tied to defunct companies, local dairies, or short-run trade show giveaways — are where significant value accumulates. A documented short-run promotional piece in verified mint-in-box condition can command multiples of a standard release from the same casting year.
Condition grades below Very Good tend to exit collector interest rapidly. Unlike some diecast categories where honest play wear carries its own nostalgic premium, the 1928 delivery van collector market rewards preservation above all other virtues.
The 1928 Chevrolet delivery van has never, to the Bureau's knowledge, competed in sanctioned motorsport. The Bureau considers this a sound decision by all parties historically involved.
The vehicle's boxy silhouette and large flat side panels made it the preferred canvas for advertising liveries during the late 1920s and early 1930s, and this legacy transfers directly into the diecast market. No other vehicle in the late-vintage American commercial category has been reproduced in as many branded variants, which means new collectors frequently enter the category believing they have found a rare piece when they have in fact found a Coca-Cola promotional from 1988 available in quantity on several well-known resale platforms.
The Bureau recommends cross-referencing any purported rare livery against the Eligor production catalogs archived in the Bureau's reference library, which is located in a room that technically exists. Acquisitions made without this verification are logged under Form 1928-RISK and are not the Bureau's responsibility.
Bureau Notice · Form ASSMRB-SEO-7
This vehicle is currently under Bureau review.
Photographic evidence has been submitted. Classification is pending rebuttal.
All Bureau classifications are automated and frequently, spectacularly wrong. That is the point.