#Hot #Wheels #Chasing #Competition #WorthPoint
Netflix and Mattel Television have recently teamed up to bring the fastest model cars ever made to life in a thrilling new show that debuted March 4, 2024. Despite being firmly placed in the kid’s category, it is a safe bet that fully grown Hot Wheels fans will also tune in to get their fix of ultra-fast engines, outrageous mods, and those iconic bright orange racetracks.
As a ’90s kid, I picked up a new Hot Wheels car every other weekend. At that age, I was more of a racer than a collector. The thrill of getting a car none of my friends had was unmatched, and trading them in the playground was the highlight of many school days. I probably made a few terrible deals and gave away highly collectible classics in exchange for the most common cars on the market, but all that mattered in those days was having fun.
Hot Wheels first came about as Mattel’s attempt to rival the popular Matchbox series of toy cars produced by the Lesney Products company. Earlier, Mattel had secured widespread success with the legendary Barbie range of toys and was seeking new markets.
The first Hot Wheels cars hit the shelves in 1968, and real automobile designer Harry Bentley Bradley was hired to create the initial sets. Packaged in boxes bearing the instantly recognizable flame logo, the toys were a smash hit and have continued to enjoy success to this day.
Hot Wheels Origins: The First Sixteen
Known as “The Sweet 16,” the original 1968 set consisted of sixteen cars in various colors. Early cars from the first decade of Hot Wheels are known as “Redline” thanks to the red strip on the tires. Authentic Redline cars will naturally be worth some money due to their age and rarity. As always, better condition results in higher value, and a toy in an unopened box will fetch the highest amounts.
Because the original sixteen cars came in different colors, each model and color is of a distinct rarity. For example, a brown version of the iconic Silhouette can go for several hundred dollars.
There are plenty of other fascinating details to get to grips with for any collector who wants the rarest models. For example, the Volkswagen model had variants without sunroofs, considered rarer than the more common sunroof version. A no-sunroof (or “NSR”) original 1968 Volkswagen might go for thousands of dollars.
It is worth remembering that the original sixteen were priced at just 98¢ each at the time of sale. To say that their value has increased would be an understatement. These fun toys have become serious collectibles and potentially very lucrative for anyone who might have some lying around the attic.
Of course, once you’ve got your cars, you’ll need something to race on. Hot Wheels has produced a vast array of tracks over the years, often with increasingly action-packed courses. If you have a sealed box of an early track, you might just be looking at several thousand dollars.
Mattel Corners the Market
In 1997, Mattel acquired Matchbox to produce alongside Hot Wheels. As the number of vehicles expanded, so did the number of tracks. Some of these tracks had crazy concepts—the “T-Wrecks” course will be nostalgic for anyone who remembers the early 2000s and was often sold out in toy stores across the land. Nowadays, even a damaged boxed version can go for around $200. My brother got the track when it came out, and we spent many happy hours racing each other.
The year 1998 was the 30th anniversary of Hot Wheels and also the year I started truly getting into the cars. One of the first cars I remember playing with was the classic remake of the Rodger Dodger. If I’d hung onto it (and never taken it out of the packaging), I could get around $30 for it today. But then, of course, I would never have had any fun with it.
With a brand as prolific as Hot Wheels, potential new collectibles are always coming out. In recent years, Hot Wheels has partnered with other brands to produce a range of character cars. You might just be able to find a car based on your favorite character —whether it’s Batman, Chun-Li, Wonder Woman, or even Skeletor. These are sure to be great investments for the future —as well as simply being cool things to own right now.
(Some of) The Rarest Hot Wheels of All Time
There are also several ultra-rare, one-of-a-kind Hot Wheels cars. In 2008, Mattel produced a diamond-encrusted Hot Wheels car to celebrate the franchise’s 40th anniversary. The car was based on the so-called “lost design”—a car drawn by Otto Kuhni for the original Hot Wheels packaging but never produced as a die-cast model until then. The model is cast in 18-karat white gold and covered with over 2,700 jewels, so it’s no surprise that this one-of-a-kind Hot Wheels was valued at over $140,000 at launch.
Sadly, collectors can’t get their hands on the legendary diamond car, but other opportunities exist. Another unique Hot Wheels is the autographed Tesla Cybertruck, which bears the autograph of Elon Musk. It currently stands on offer for $29,999 on eBay.
The 1969 pink Rear-Loading Beach Bomb is a prototype model, of which only two were ever produced. One, which had been in the possession of a Mattel employee for some time, was finally sold for an impressive $175,000.
Still Racing?
I don’t regret giving away most of my collection to family and neighbors’ kids. As addictive as it might be to build up a huge collection, Hot Wheels were, first and foremost, made to be toys. Letting them sit in their packaging will never be as fun as racing them around whatever elaborate tracks you happen to have on hand.
Even in the least competitive of us, there is still a ten-year-old kid racer just waiting to get out—and with Hot Wheels constantly producing exciting new releases, there’s not likely to be a shortage of new cars to collect any time soon.
Matthew Doherty is a writer, editor, and teacher specializing in all things history-related. His work has been published in the UK Defence Journal, the Small Wars Journal, and The Collector. He holds an MSc from the University of Edinburgh and a BA from the University of Leeds. In his spare time, he also writes science fiction stories.
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