Today's Object of the Week is a rare car that fetched a huge price at auction - but you can't drive it.

A rare toy car measuring about three inches fetched a premium price at a North East auction.

The Volkswagen Beetle Rally Car turned out to the be the star lot at the 'Matchbox Magic' sale held by Vectis - a leading specialist toy auctioneer, based in Thornaby - this week.

The model was in a pre-production colour trial, with a yellow body, clear windows, ivory interior, a bare metal base - which had not been zinc plated - and chrome hubs with black plastic tyres.

The Northern Echo: The rare base of the Beetle with the 'Made in England by Lesney' stampThe rare base of the Beetle with the 'Made in England by Lesney' stamp (Image: VECTIS AUCTIONS)

And it differed from production versions in a number of ways. The body casting front and rear wings extended below the front bumper, the front 'Monte Carlo Rally' plate was a thinner profile, and the base - without copyright date - stated 'Made in England by Lesney' rather than 'Made in England Lesney Prod & Co. Ltd'.

Two buyers really wanted the rare model which pushed the price up to more than you might pay for the real thing - an eye-watering £6,960.

Specialist Julian Royse, auctioneer for the Vectis sale, said that the reason the Beetle sold for such a high amount was down several factors.

"Firstly, VW Beetles are highly sought after in any variation - they are a popular subject to collect," he said.

"The item was desirable as it was a pre-production model in a rare colour variation, and with a different casting. There are expected to be only a handful known to survive."

He added: "A big factor is also the provenance - the model came from an ex-Lesney employee so came direct from the factory - having been stored a number of years - and then to us.

The Northern Echo: The price of the Matchbox model was pushed up due to there being two interested buyersThe price of the Matchbox model was pushed up due to there being two interested buyers (Image: VECTIS AUCTIONS)

"And the biggest factor is that there were two buyers, who really wanted the model.

"There was a large commission bid left before the sale started and an internet buyer kept bidding against it. The commission bid won."

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The Beetle was just one of a number of lots in the sale, which achieved some incredible prices - 11 lots selling for four figures. The total price realised for the sale was £131,650 (inclusive of buyers premium).

Among the other Matchbox lots were:

  • Superfast 14b Mini Ha-Ha Dragster, which realised £2,040;
  • King Size K11 DAF Articulated Car Transporter (£2,520);
  • AEC Horse Box (£1,320);
  • Superfast 32b Maserati Bora (£1,320);
  • Superfast 34b Ford Mustang Vantastic ( £1,320);
  • Superfast 45a Ford Group 6 - with orange body (£1,800);
  • Superfast 45a Ford Group 6 - with red body (£1,800);
  • Super Kings K94 Saval Kronenberg B.V. MAC 12 Airport Crash Tender (£1,680);
  • Superfast 70d Ferrari 308 GTB (£1,680);
  • Superfast 6b Mercedes 350SL (£1,440).

For more information on Vectis Auction, visit www.vectis.co.uk/