So far throughout the current series of Diecast Delights postings, I’ve been called out on the fact that all the cars I’m posting appear to be of Russian origin. Well, yes, you’re right. And it’s all because, until recently, none of my model cars at all represented this region and, though there’s a high risk of overdose, I’m quite enjoying my current addiction.

Today we wind forward to, as near as dammit, the current day, with a 1:43 rendition of the AvtoGAZ 2112, in Police INTERCEPTOR (or something) trim.

I saw a 2110 once in the UK, but only once. The 2110 was the sedan version, the 2111 the station wagon, and the sleek, streamlined 2112 the hatchback flavour, which we see above and below. The car was sold in various European locations, but naturally we were denied its charms.

In fact, I remember first reading about the 2112, several years after production began, in a World Cars catalogue and finding it nigh-on impossible to make the mental leap from the old Lada Nova / Riva and the Samara to this rather more contemporary device. Being honest I know next to nothing else about them. But its presence is assured on my shelf for years to come, thanks to its existence in die-cast form.

Yes, those smashing blokes at DeAgostini have done it again, and thanks to some kind of strange marketing weirdness there appears to be a global surplus of them and you can snap them up from popular online auction sites for hardly any money. And you should, because everybody needs a bit of Lada in their life.

The model itself is about as good as you can expect from a model coming in at a sub-premium price point. Firstly, the proportions seem bang on even if the ride height seems a little vertigo-inducing, although that could well mimic some arcane Russian traffic-police pothole-proofing precaution on the real car. Nevertheless, the casting is clean and accurate and the detailing is impressive.

In common with so many of the models in this series, the wheels are accurate and bespoke to the model, the decals are crisp and accurately placed and there are a great number of separately produced, hand attached components involved, and in this case they’re pretty much assembled the right way.

It only really loses a few points for the lights. The fronts are ever-so-slightly miss-moulded and don’t quite fit the apertures snugly, and the rear light band looks a little crude, with an obvious pair of mounting nubs. But, really, you can’t complain about these minutiae when you consider the next point, and something I’ve kept secret until now.

This model, all these models, have come from this source: Poundland.

Yep. For some reason a massive number of these things have arrived in Poundland branches, still in the blister-pack packaging that they originally would have been attached to the front of a monthly magazine in, and with no English wording anywhere to be seen save for a tiny sticker reminding you that it definitely ISN’T A TOY and is NOT TO BE SOLD TO UNDER 14’s. Of course, there’s a risk of part detachment and subsequent infant digestion. But I’ve no kids, and I’m relatively careful with what I put in my mouth, so that’s OK. A quid well spent.

 [Images: Copyright 2014 Hooniverse/Chris Haining]