Also in my garage: 382 classic car models

By Charlie Calderwood

| 18 Feb 2025

Classic & Sports Car – Also in my garage: 382 classic car models

Andrew Cowan was no doubt focused on the dimly lit, dusty road ahead of him as he roared through Bangalore in his Mercedes-Benz 280E late at night in September 1977 – but while his heroics would inspire his own victory in the London-Sydney Marathon, they also lit a fire in a young Zia Haque.

Nearly 50 years later, in North Carolina, a 1:43 miniature of Cowan’s Mercedes has pride of place in Zia’s collection.

Zia has focused on quality and structure rather than quantity, bringing to his hobby the methodical approach he has learnt as a data manager in the pharmaceutical industry.

This curated collection of classic car models includes Formula One machinery

Each model is listed on a spreadsheet and is in the collection for a reason, and Zia knows the history of all 382 of them.

All but one are 1:43 scale; the gift of a 1:73 version of his own Mercedes-Benz C43 AMG is the sole exception.

Cowan’s Benz is part of a carefully curated section of Zia’s collection, flanked by other rally machines from the 1960s to the ’80s.

“I like to look at them and compare them to the cars of today,” he explains. “Modern rally cars look humongous. They are almost out of scale.”

The signed Mario Andretti Ferrari 126 C2 is a highlight of Zia Haque’s collection

Childhood trips to Chennai’s race circuit inspired two other groups in his collection: Formula One cars and 1970-’80s endurance racers.

Each one of Ayrton Senna’s F1 drives is represented, while Mario Andretti’s varied career across F1, IndyCar and Le Mans has received special attention since Zia met the driver and had him sign a model of the Ferrari 126 C2 he piloted in his final Grand Prix.

“It’s fascinating to see the different cars he drove and in which he won titles,” says Zia.

“I look at his first Ferrari, from South Africa in 1971, and think, ‘Wow, how did drivers survive those years when safety was almost non-existent?’”

The Mazda Miata (MX-5) modern classic provides manual-shifting thrills

European sports cars of the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s are the final grouping. “That’s probably because of the era I grew up in,” Zia admits.

Icons include the Dino 246, Jaguar E-type and Ferrari F40: “I wish you could still get those cars now in the same body style, but with today’s upgraded safety.”

Zia’s risk-averse nature is well suited to the pharmaceutical industry, but means he keeps his real cars relatively modern: a third-generation ‘NC’ Mazda Miata (MX-5) provides his fix of engaging, manual-shifting fun in a country dominated by the auto ’box.

F1 and endurance racers, plus period rally cars, recreated in 1:43 scale

The collection started with a Jaguar E-type, when Zia found a Lesney model in a mail-order catalogue 26 years ago.

“You’d wait for ever back then, which shows how things have changed,” he says.

Today, Zia is known as a serious collector rather than someone looking to flip models, and that’s crucial to getting good prices and access to the best pieces.

Niche online auctioneers in the UK and Japan are his main source.

“I’ve learnt how to do the auctions properly,” he says. “You have to be patient.”

His Eastern Standard Time zone has meant plenty of late nights to deploy his bets at the opportune moment.

“The chase has become part of the fascination for me,” says Zia, whose current focus is 1970s German rally cars, particularly those that competed in the Rallye Monte-Carlo.

Shipping packages across the world inevitably leads to damage, of course, so Zia has also learnt how to repair models.

When asked why a man born in India and now living in America has focused so much on European cars – he even has a British Touring Car Championship group – Zia cites the BBC motorsport coverage he saw as a youngster.

“Sometimes I think I should have gone to the UK rather than coming to the USA,” he smiles, “because that’s the Mecca of racing, right?”

Images: Zia Haque

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