About Models118

From a Personal Collection to a European Destination

Katarzyna Tyła has been collecting model cars for as long as she can remember. It began in childhood with Bburago and Maisto — the bright-colored Ferraris and Lamborghinis that sparked a fascination with automotive design in miniature. Over the years, the collection grew alongside her knowledge: from entry-level diecast to museum-quality pieces by Minichamps, CMC, and AUTOart. Shelves filled. Display cabinets multiplied. The hunt for discontinued models — pieces that manufacturers had stopped producing and that only surface on the secondary market — became a passion in its own right.

By 2021, after nearly three decades of collecting, the step felt natural: turn that expertise into a store. Models118 was built to be the kind of shop Katarzyna wished had existed during all those years of searching — one place where collectors could find the latest releases from Norev, GT Spirit, and AUTOart alongside hard-to-find used models that had vanished from regular distribution. Not a faceless marketplace, but a curated shop run by a collector who understands why a discontinued piece from 2017 can be worth more today than when it was new.

Why “118”?

The name comes from 1:18 — the most popular scale among serious collectors. Large enough to capture every detail of the original car, from the stitching on the seats to the calipers behind the wheels. It is the scale that turned a childhood hobby into a lifelong passion.

What We Sell — And What We Don’t

Models118 specializes exclusively in collectible scale model cars for adult collectors. Precision replicas of real automobiles — crafted in diecast metal or resin — in scales 1:18, 1:43, and 1:12. These are not toys. Every model reproduces the original car’s bodywork, interior, engine bay, and livery in meticulous detail. Many feature opening doors, hoods, and trunks. The catalog spans over 160 car brands and more than 100 manufacturers — from Minichamps and Norev to GT Spirit, AUTOart, Kyosho, IXO, OttOmobile, Almost Real, CMC, BBR, Spark, and KK-Scale. Alongside new releases, Models118 offers a large and constantly growing selection of used models — pieces that are discontinued, out of production, and unavailable through normal distribution. For collectors hunting a specific model that the manufacturer stopped making years ago, this is often the only way to find it.

New and Used — Two Sides of the Same Market

Most model car shops sell only new stock from manufacturers. Models118 covers both sides: new releases for collectors who want the latest, and used models from the secondary market for those chasing pieces that no longer exist in regular retail. A used model does not mean a lesser model — it means an unavailable one. Many arrive in mint condition with the original box. The value of these pieces often appreciates over time precisely because the manufacturer will never produce them again.

Where We Ship

Models118 ships from Poland to collectors across Europe and beyond. The store operates dedicated local domains in 27 countries — including Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Japan, and all EU member states. Each domain offers localized language, currency, and shipping options. Orders are dispatched with full tracking and insurance, regardless of destination.