Scalextric C3829A 60th Anniversary Collection - 1990s, BMW E30 M3 Limited Edition

As Scalextric moved into the 1990s it followed another shift in motorsport. Throughout the 1980s rallying and Group B had dominated the airwaves and press, but as that declined, touring car racing, most notably Super Touring, took its place. As the BTCC, DTM and other national series gained in popularity, Scalextric began producing these cars.

One manufacturer above others dominated this form of motorsport, BMW. Although production of the BMW M3 E30 started in the ‘80s it saw considerable success in the early ‘90s, winning the BTCC title in 1990 and 1991, along with numerous DTM, Italia Superturismo Championships and Australian races. It also enjoyed considerable success in the rally category.

As the decade moved on, the BMW M3 E30 was to be found racing in lesser series and is even now a common club racing saloon car; as well as being an icon all other performance saloons aspire to. Other new items introduced in the ‘90s by Scalextric were the horse racing sets, as well as various cars driven by the greats of the era: Senna, Schumacher and Hill, all immortalised by Scalextric. With design moving to CAD rather than pattern making and 2D drawing, Scalextric was rapidly accelerating towards the 21st century.