The Model Team Sets first appeared in the USA in the 1988 Shop at Home catalog. In 1989 they were added to the regular retail line and started to widely appear in stores. The intial offering of three models included the 5510 Off Road Vehicle, the 5540 Formula 1 Race Car, and the 5580 Big Rig Truck. The sets had a Model Team logo and box appearance that differed from later sets. The modern logo was adopted sometime in 1989.
The Model Team sets did not appear in most European countries until 1990 when three sets 5510, 5580 and 5590 were introduced for the first time. As far as I can tell the 5540 Formula 1 Race car never was offered in most European countries.
As of 1995 there have been 10 sets. The dates given are the copyright dates on the instruction manuals.
5510 Off Road Vehicle 1986 5521 Speed Boat 1993 5540 Formula 1 Race Car 1986 5550 Custom Rally Van 1991 5541 Blue Fury Hot Rod 1995 5571 Giant Truck 1996 5580 Big Rig Truck 1986 5581 Magic Flash Van and Boat 1993 5590 Truck and Helicopter 1990 5591 Red Bird Truck and Jet 1994
