1. Hot Wheels is a brand of 1:64, 1:43, 1:18 and 1:50 scale die-cast toy cars introduced by American toy maker Mattel in 1968. It was the primary competitor of Matchbox.
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Hot Wheels - Wikipedia. Hot Wheels is a brand of 1: 6. American toy maker Mattel in 1. It was the primary competitor of Matchbox until 1. Mattel bought Tyco Toys, then- owner of Matchbox. Many automobile manufacturers have licensed Hot Wheels to make scale models of their cars, allowing the use of original design blueprints and detailing. Although Hot Wheels were originally intended for children and young adults, they have become popular with adult collectors, for whom limited edition models are now made available.

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History[edit]Hot Wheels were conceived to be more like "tricked out" cars, as compared to Matchbox cars which were more city or "real life" cars.[1] There were sixteen castings released in 1. Harry Bentley Bradley.[2] The first one produced was a dark blue Custom Camaro. Bradley was from the car industry and had designed the body for the (full- sized) Dodge Deora concept car and the Custom Fleetside, (based on his own customized 1. Chevrolet C- 1. 0 Fleetside). In 1. 96. 8, the first production line of Hot Wheels Cars is known as The Original Sweet 1.

Red Line Series, meaning the tires have a red pin stripe on their sides.[3]Racing track set[edit]In addition to the cars themselves, Mattel produced a racing track set (sold separately). Though it would be updated throughout the years, the original track consisted of a series of brightly colored orange road sections (pieced together to form an oblong, circular race track), with one (or sometimes two) "super chargers" (faux service stations through which cars passed on the tracks, featuring battery- powered spinning wheels, which would propel the cars along the tracks).[4]As it turned out, the Hot Wheels brand was a staggering success. The series "re- wrote the book" for small die- cast car models from 1. Matchbox and elsewhere to completely rethink their concepts, and to scramble to try to recover lost ground. Harry Bentley Bradley did not think that would be the case and had quit Mattel to go back to the car industry.

When the company asked him back, he recommended a good friend, Ira Gilford. The Flash Season Two Episode One Watch Online. Gilford, who had just left Chrysler, quickly accepted the job of designing the next Hot Wheels models. Some of Hot Wheels' greatest cars, such as the Twin Mill and Splittin' Image, came from Ira Gilford's drawing board.[2]The success of the 1. Hot Wheels effectively established itself as the hottest brand of small toy car models in the USA.

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The Splittin' Image, Torero, Turbofire, and Twin Mill were part of the "Show & Go" series and are the very first original in- house designs by Hot Wheels. The initial prototypes of the Beach Bomb were faithful to a real VW Bus's shape, and had two surfboards sticking out the back window.[5] During the fledgling Hot Wheels era, Mattel wanted to make sure that each of the cars could be used with any of the play sets and stunt track sets. Unfortunately, testing showed that this early version (now known as Rear- Loader Beach Bomb, or RLBB) was too narrow to roll effectively on Hot Wheels track or be powered by the Super Charger, and was too top- heavy to negotiate high- speed corners. Hot Wheels designers Howard Rees and Larry Wood modified the casting, extending the side fenders to accommodate the track width, as well as providing a new place on the vehicle to store each of the plastic surfboards.

The roof was also cut away and replaced by a full- length sunroof, to lower the center of gravity. Nicknamed "Side- loader" by collectors, this was the production version of the Beach Bomb. The Rear- Loader Beach Bomb is widely considered the "Holy Grail" of any Hot Wheels collection. An unknown number were made as test subjects and given to employees. A regular production Beach Bomb may be worth up to $6. Market prices on RLBBs however, have easily reached the five- figure plateau, ranging from $7.

The Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles had a pink RLBB in its Hot Wheels exhibit. It was displayed on a single rotating platform, much like the kind used to showcase precious gems. The Hot Wheels Collectors Club released a new, updated version of the rear loading Beach Bomb in 2. Hot Wheels, so Mattel came up with a new slogan for the cars: "Go With the Winner".[7] 4. This was also the year that Sizzlers and Heavyweights appeared. Howard Rees, who worked with Ira Gilford, was tired of designing cars.

He wanted to work on the Major Matt Mason action figure toy line- up. Rees had a good friend by the name of Larry Wood. They had worked together at Ford designing cars. When Wood found out about Hot Wheels at a party Rees was holding, Rees offered Wood the job of designing Hot Wheels. Wood agreed, and by the end of the week, Wood was working at Mattel. His first design would be the Tri- Baby.

After 3. 6 years, Wood still works for Hot Wheels.[8]Another designer, Paul Tam, joined Wood and Gilford. Tam's first design for Hot Wheels was the Whip Creamer.[9] Tam continued to work for Mattel until 1. Among the many futuristic designs Tam thought up for Hot Wheels, some of the collector's favorites include Evil Weevil (a Volkswagen with two engines), Open Fire (an AMC Gremlin with six wheels), Six Shooter (another six wheeled car), and the rare Double Header (co- designed with Larry Wood).

Snake and the Mongoose. This was notably drag racing’s first major non- automotive corporate sponsor, and the beginning of the NHRA’s booming popularity with high- dollar teams and championships. Silver Series, which were 3 cars, the Boss Hoss, the Heavy Chevy, and the King 'Kuda. These 3 cars were obtained through a mail in offer that included a membership to the Hot Wheels Club. These 3 silver cars had a supercharged engine without a hood and open header exhaust.

Supposedly these 3 Silver Cars were faster than the rest, because they were heavier than the other gravity models. However, 1. 97. 2 and 1. Only 7 new models were made in 1. Of the 2. 4 models appearing for 1. Also the cars changed from Mattel's in house Spectraflame colors to mostly- drab, solid enamel colors, which mainline Hot Wheels cars still use today.

Due to low sales, and the fact that the majority of the castings were not re- used in later years, the 1. In 1. 97. 4, Hot Wheels introduced its Flying Colors line, and added flashy decals and tampo- printed paint designs which helped revitalize sales. As with the low- friction wheels in 1. Mattel product strategists. In 1. 97. 7, the Redline Wheel was phased out, with the red lines being erased from the wheels.

This cut costs, but also reflected that the red lines popularized during the era of muscle cars and Polyglas tires were no longer current. During this period, there was a trend away from wild hot rods and fictitious cars and a move to more realistic cars and trucks.

The Blackwalls era[edit]What happened with Hot Ones in the 1. Hot Wheels sent them in the path of what they are today. In 1. 98. 1, Hot Ones wheels were introduced, which had gold- painted hubs, thinner axels for speed, and additional suspension that most production Hot Wheels lacked.[1. Ultra Hot wheels, which looked like the wheels found on a Renault Fuego or a Mazda 6.

Hot Wheels started offering models based on 1. Pontiac Fiero or Dodge Omni 0. Watch Patagonia Online Free 2016. In 1. 98. 3, a new style of wheel called Real Riders were introduced, which had real rubber tires.[1. Despite the fact that they were very popular, the Real Riders line was short- lived, because of high production costs. In the late 1. 98. Blue Card blister pack was introduced, which would become the basis of Hot Wheels cards still used today.

Two other innovations were introduced briefly in Hot Wheels cars in the 1. Thermal Color Change paint, and rotating Crash Panel vehicles ("Crack- Ups"). The former were able to change color on exposure to hot or cold water, and there were an initial release of 2. The latter were vehicles with a panel that, on contact, would rotate to reveal a flip side which appeared to be heavily dented.