Did you want to be a truck driver as a kid? I did, so naturally I asked Mom and Dad, and/or Santa, for a Johnny Express. This 1965 Johnny Express truck toy can be found here on Facebook Marketplace in Golden Valley, Minnesota, and they’re asking $100. Here is the original listing. I could not resist sending in this tip, given my lifelong love of these things.
Here is one that’s listed on eBay for just under $100 – although shipping is just over $100?! Ouch. There are several listed on eBay, but none of them seemed to have the driver, so this one in Minnesota seems like a bargain, even though other parts are missing.
I can’t even convey (or is that convoy?) how much I wanted one of these things as a tiny truck-driver-in-training tot. I may have told my parents that I wanted one more than I wanted to eat, which could be why I’m 40 pounds under my ideal weight for my 6′-5″ height today. As you already expected, I still have my Johnny Express, and it still has the original box. Some things apparently never change with some folks, including me. It’s at my childhood home in another city where my mom still lives; otherwise, I would have taken photos of it to show you here. Mine is complete, and this one appears to be missing a couple of parts, but they should be able to be tracked down on eBay or other sites.
If your dog chews up the rubber driver figure, finding another one shouldn’t be hard; here’s one on eBay for just $15. You can see that the mirrors are both missing, and three of the load “stakes” are missing, so you’ll have some work to locate those, unless you have a 3D printer, which will be your best friend with a rig like this one. This forklift still in the box is tempting, but which one of you am I going to leave all of this stuff to when the time comes for that?
Topper Toys made the Johnny Express truck with many accessories from 1965 for several years, and I have to admit that this rabbit hole of looking at listings and things on eBay and other sites has me wondering if I should add to the hoarding collection. I never had any of the other trailers besides the flatbed seen here, which is said to hold 200 pounds, with an internal steel brace, but there were tanker trailers, some black cardboard tubes sold as a “pipe kit,” and many others. There was even a military troop carrier trailer. COME ON, I can’t get it. I can’t. There was a bridge kit that was five feet long, and so many other toys that were made by Topper for the Johnny Express truck that it’s fun to run across all of them again, so many decades after I got mine in the late 1960s.
Four D-cell batteries provided the juice (Tesla Semi, look out!), and I can still hear it whirrrrrrring now in my brain. Or I think that’s what the whirring sound is. Hmm… The controller is pretty straightforward, no pun intended. Unfortunately, this one is missing the decal on the stalk, and as they all are, it’s a little twisted. That’s how you turn the front wheels: you twist that end piece clockwise or counterclockwise, so yes, it has power steering! You push the stalk forward to move forward and pull it back to go in reverse. You can steer at the same time, so you could practice backing into parking spots on the floor that you made with masking tape. Or maybe that was just me. Maybe that’s why I still back into 100% of parking spots to this day, 55 years later. Thanks, Topper Toys, for making me a better driver!
This basic rig is just under three feet in length with the standard flatbed trailer. Of course, Topper Toys, the same folks who came up with the Johnny Lightning line of vehicles, offered a cargo kit for that flatbed trailer. If you don’t want a Johnny Express after watching this 1960s commercial here on YouTube, then I don’t know what to say. Maybe you just have better sense than I do, because now I want to start reliving my childhood and start collecting a few of these things. Have any of you had a Johnny Express truck? I know a few of you are actual truck drivers; any thoughts on this truck toy?
I love this thing!!!! I would’ve given my eye teeth for one. That being said, this would be great for a collection. Especially that bridge. I’m thinking they were copying an International? ( I was looking at the steering wheel and it got me thinking in that direction). Maybe Scottys truck needs a few new friends. Thanks Scotty!!! This is great!!!
Thanks, Dave! Ha, you’re the steering wheel guy for sure; that’s good stuff. I never thought about what truck they might have been going for, that’s a good question.
Did I want to be a truck driver? Silly question, much to my fathers dismay, I might add. In our travels, we would purposely go past truck stops, because my old man refused to associate with THAT ilk. I became a truck driver mostly out of spite. I don’t recall having any specific toys relating to that, it kind of just happened,,,for the next 40 years,,,ugh.
Looking at the toy, as simple as it might be, it actually does give you an insight on how semis work, and backing up a toy eliminates a lot of damage. The truck itself doesn’t resemble any particular make, it does look a lot like the FWD cabovers, that resembled a window air conditioner, great find, and what BFs, BFs. Thanks SG!
Scotty, I had one of these as a kid! Somewhere there’s a picture of me with it…Thanks for the GREAT writeup!
Is this for kids only? Asking for a friend.
Xmas 1967. I wanted one of these SO bad. Got a guitar instead. My disappointment persists.
Hey Scott, getting a guitar isn’t all that bad. I got one and wound up
playing over.the road for 20+ years. Could’ve done better than I
did but couldn’t leave the alcohol
alone. Been clean and sober nearly 50 years now and sometimes I still play.
I have one of these. The truck. I don’t have the batteries to see if it still works. I was considering how much better it would be if I R/C converted it!
I had a Johnny Express and had a ball with it until the damned batteries leaked and destroyed it
I remember having a Johnny speed and a Crusader 101with almost identical, remote controls. Johnny speed however was much more fancier and had some fake plastic gauges and things. They were lots of fun and my grandfather never kept any batteries in this flashlights for very long.
Served in the U.S.M.C, 1984-88. I was granted the opportunity to get a ride in a troop carrier trailer a time or two. In the Corps they were referred to as a “cattle carrier”. If I remember the seats were wooden benches and they had no issues with packing us in!
Yeah, i still have mine as well and I’m 68. lol! Cool toy in the day!
I received one for Christmas in 1965, still have it and bought every accessory they made for Johnny on eBay over the years including a black version.
Many were unused mint in the box too!
Can’t beat the toys in the sixties and the hours of looking at the toy section in the Sears Catalog.
Christmas 1965 I got mine (I was 6). I had the tanker and accessories as well as the cargo, conveyor belt and fork truck. I was amazed that I could stand on the trailer and it would actually carry me around.
I have a grandson turning 6 and I plan to buy all the parts and accessories I can find this next year, but I will have the running gear upgraded and have the controller converted to remote control. I want him to have a RestoMod Johnny Express!
Hi Chuck, Exactly my situation. I think my grandson would love this. He is now 2 years old and when he is a bit older I will convert it. Good luck with your project!
I’ve got the 1963 model that looks like a 1963 Pontiac convertable…..need to get a picture….has that same looooong cord attached to it.