Matchbox/Lesney 68b; Mercedes-Benz Coach; Orange & White

I think this is a model of the Mercedes-Benz O319 Minibus, a picture of which I found on the Internet and looks very like the Lesney item, it is not a large coach at all, just 12-20 seater or so. The Matchbox model is from the regular wheels era and when Superfast came in this one was deleted without being updated to the new wheels. It is seen with a turquoise or orange lower body, the upper body is always white plastic.

The Mercedes Coach (68b) was released in 1965 and remained in production until 1970. The turquoise version is harder to find and tends to be worth a little more than the orange.

This Matchbox/Lesney was sourced in May 2013 from Lacy Scott & Knight auctioneers