EL SEGUNDO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hot Wheels® today announced its year-long plans to celebrate the brand’s 40-year heritage at the 105th American International Toy Fair®. Anniversary activities were kicked off with the unveiling of a custom jeweled 1:64-scale Hot Wheels® car, designed by celebrity jeweler Jason of Beverly Hills. This one-of-a-kind car, the most expensive in Hot Wheels® history, was made to commemorate the production of the 4 billionth Hot Wheels® vehicle.      
 
The diamonds on the custom-made jeweled car, valued at $140,000, total more than 2,700 and weigh nearly 23 carats in total weight. The car is cast in 18-karat white gold with the majority of the vehicle detailed with micro pave-set brilliant blue diamonds, mimicking the Hot Wheels® Spectraflame® blue paint. Under the functional hood, the engine showcases additional micro pave-set white and black diamonds. The Hot Wheels® flame logo found on the underbelly of the car is lined with white and black diamonds. Red rubies are set as the tail lights, while black diamonds and red enamel create the “red line” tires. The custom-made case that houses the jewel-encrusted vehicle also holds 40 individual white diamonds, signifying each year in the legacy of Hot Wheels®.

“Collaborating with Mattel on the jeweled Hot Wheels car was a dream project for me,” said Jason Arasheben, president & CEO of Jason of Beverly Hills. “The car is truly spectacular and will be a brilliant addition to anyone’s collection.”

The vehicle was unveiled by multi-platinum recording artist and car enthusiast, Nick Lachey, who grew up playing with the die-cast car line. In late 2008, this unique Hot Wheels® vehicle will be auctioned off to benefit Lachey’s charity of choice, Big Brothers Big Sisters.

“Since its introduction, Hot Wheels has revolutionized boys’ toys and inspired automotive trends,” said Tim Kilpin, general manager and senior vice president, Boys and Entertainment, Mattel Brands. “The historic activities we have planned are a fitting tribute to the brand’s heritage and will allow us, and our fans, to celebrate this milestone year in true Hot Wheels style.”

In 2008, Hot Wheels® will honor the partners that have helped make the brand successful and will take to the road to celebrate the brand’s heritage with its faithful fans. These activities include:

Hot Wheels® Designer’s Challenge™

For the first time in its history, Mattel went outside of its in-house design team to seek new car designs and to honor the automotive partners that attributed to the success of Hot Wheels® cars over the years. Car designers from Dodge, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Lotus and Mitsubishi designed their version of a Hot Wheels® concept car based on the brand’s attributes of speed, power, performance and attitude. Each submitted design was created in a 1:5-scale model and unveiled this past October at the 2007 Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show in Las Vegas. In late March the 1:64-scale versions will be available at retailers nationwide as part of the Designer’s Challenge™ product line.

“I’ve been involved in multimillion-dollar concept car designs but not everyone can relate to these kinds of projects,” said Amaury Diaz Serrano, creative designer, General Motors. “But, everyone can relate to a Hot Wheels. Regardless of age, race or background, everyone has fond memories of playing with them. To be able to design for Hot Wheels is the closest I will ever get to winning an Oscar.”

Hot Wheels® Cross-Country Road Trip

This summer, fans across the country will be invited to celebrate the 40th anniversary as Hot Wheels® travels Highway 40 to bring together automotive enthusiasts of all ages. Kicking off at Mattel’s headquarters in El Segundo in mid-August, the road trip will make stops at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah; Speed, KS; Indianapolis; and Detroit, before culminating in a grand finale celebration on September 5 in Watkins Glen, NY, home to American road racing. There, Hot Wheels® will partner with the Grand Prix Festival of Watkins Glen, to participate in the annual celebratory kick-off event honoring the history of the town and race track.

At each road trip stop, Hot Wheels® will host a free event that will be open to the public. Each event will feature life-size Hot Wheels® cars, kiosks where people can create their own custom Hot Wheels® “drivers license,” family-friendly activities, and the opportunity to receive a commemorative 1:64-scale Hot Wheels® car created especially for each stop, available in limited quantities.

“40 years. 4 billion cars. It is a year of exciting milestones for Hot Wheels,” said Geoff Walker, vice president, Wheels Marketing, Mattel Brands. “We just can’t wait to get on the road to celebrate with the millions that share the Hot Wheels passion.”

For information on Hot Wheels® and its 40th anniversary activities, cruise over to www.hotwheels.com/40th.

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March 24, 2008

GreenLight Toys Black Bandit Series 1 Sold Out!

Indianapolis, IN (March 24, 2008) It will not be easy for collectors to get their hands on the latest new series from GreenLight Collectibles!  GreenLight’s Black Bandit Series 1 sold out to Greenlight Distributors before it arrived in the United States.  The immediate sellout makes the initial release of the Black Bandit series the best selling line for GreenLight thus far in 2008.  The limited production run of 4,032 per car does not seem like enough for this highly anticipated series, making the cars extremely limited and very hard to track down.

The Black Bandit series was fist introduced in 2004 as a promotional item done on a blistercard.  The first seven cars, produced by Johnny Lighting, were the VW Bus, VW Beetle, 1970 Mustang Boss 302, 1949 Merc, 1963 Split Window Corvette, 1967 Chevy Camaro and 1950 VW Split Window Beetle. The next two were Greenlight promotional cars – the 1971 Dodge Charger and 1968 Ford Mustang GT 2+2 Fastback.  Greenlight’s first Black Bandits were done as promotional exclusives through DieCast Alley.  DieCast Alley licensed the “Black Bandit” name from Greenlight for the first nine vehicles. 

The first six-car Black Bandit series consists of six cars: 1964 Plymouth Fury Convertible, 1968 Chevy Chevelle SS, 1968 Dodge Charger R/T, 1969 Ford Mustang Boss 302, 1989 Pontiac Firebird Formula 350 and 2006 Chevy Corvette Z06. 

Each car is produced with a triple-black theme; black body paint, black interior detail and custom black wheels.  The triple-black theme is the distinguishing characteristic of these “outlaw” vehicles. Besides the distinctive paint job each car will feature real rubber tires, metal body chassis, detailed graphics, engines and custom license plates, clamshell packaging, and sequentially numbered base.  All the cars are officially licensed by General Motors, Ford Motor Company and Chrysler, LLC. 

The Black Bandit Series 1 will be available exclusively through GreenLight Hobby Distributors and at Toys ‘R’ Us stores.  The series will be available at TRU stores at the end of March 2008.  Individual photos of the cars are available in the Black Bandit section at: http://www.greenlighttoys.com.

GreenLight Collectibles is a premier manufacturer and marketer of officially licensed, authentic die-cast replica vehicles.  In 2007, the company produced five distinct product lines: Muscle Car Garage™, Corvette® Collection™, Pace Car Garage™, IndyCar® Series Garage™ and Auction Block™.  For 2008, the company has expanded to twelve distinct product lines.  GreenLight die-cast replicas are available 1:18, 1:24 and 1:64 scale models and are officially licensed by General Motors, Ford Motor Company, Chrysler, Shelby, the Indy Racing League, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Daytona International Speedway, Champ Car World Series and Grand Am Road Racing Association. 

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March 14, 2008

Where will the madness end? $75 for an old Ertl model?

If you threw a bucket of cold water on a sleeping diecast collector at 2:30 in the morning and asked them which car is the most widely owned of all, he would without hesitation answer "The General Lee, of course!" Since the television show about two good-hearted cousins from the hills of Kentucky who always seem to find themselves at odds with the local law became a smash hit, collectors of model cars have clamored to own the distinctive orange '69 Dodge Charger in any and all scales. In fact, could anyone argue that the 1:18 scale Ertl 'Dukes of Hazzard' is likely the most widely distributed diecast piece of all time?

I was shocked yesterday to find the Dukes model reincarnated in the Ertl Authentics line, boasting a brand new mold, limited run of 5,000 pieces, correct door hinges (now that's real crucial!), and an overall higher level of detail throughout. But what caught my eye was the price tag. $74.99! I repeat: $74.99! As if I had any intention of actually buying one, I looked the model over carefully and quickly found rear wheels at an odd angle and the driver's side door not hung properly. In fact, every piece in the case I opened was exactly the same: obvious and noticable flaws!

"Is it just me or is it a sad day in the diecast hobby world when a worn-out old car with zero collectable value and neglible quality garners $75? Oh wait, I forgot! The door hinges are now correct and the seat belts are made out of cloth. In that case, I'll take three!"

Any experienced diecast collector recognizes that some pieces are worth their asking price and more based simply on authenticity and detail, ie. Lane Exact Detail and Exoto. But does slapping an 'Authetics' logo on the packaging and some (fake) carpeting in the trunk justify a $75 price tag? I'll admit that I was excited to hear about this release and was anticipating a higher cost to go along with the new features. But the product does not justify the cost and that's a fact. What really amazes me is that RC2 felt that the market would consume 5,000 pieces of the Authentics version while competing with unlimited numbers of the American Muscle line in regular, dirty, and movie car versions.

I can't help but feel disappointed with this diecast release and would hope that the serious collectors who have an interest in the future of the hobby will decide to pass on this one. No one can argue that limited edition runs of high-quality pieces are good for the hobby, but $75 for a hum-ho Ertl is absurd. Five years ago this model would have gone for not a penny over $40 - which is about what it's worth.

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March 11, 2008

19th Annual "Route 66 Rendezvous" Car Show

The 19th annual Stater Bros. Route 66 Rendezvous® is set for September 18–21, 2008 in downtown San Bernardino, California. Mark your calendar to attend the largest cruisin’ classic car show and the largest automotive celebration of the historic Route 66 Highway.

Registration is limited to 1,900 pre-1974 classics, customs, hot rods and other vehicles, which will receive an assigned reserved parking space for the 4-day event. Vehicles cruise a 36-block area of downtown San Bernardino with over 500,000 spectators enjoying the beautiful cars, food, vendors, sponsor displays and live entertainment.

The Contests are always a hit as registered vehicles can participate in the Neon Light, Open Header, and San Manuel Indian Bingo & Casino Poker Run Contest. The Burnout Contest on Saturday at the Orange Show Speedway is always an event that brings the crowd to their feet. The Burnout is open to registered vehicles along with the general public. Back by popular demand for the third year is the Model Car Contest on Saturday. The general public is invited to participate and enter a model into one of several categories to be judged. The Stater Bros. Court Street Stage is a blast to the past with four-days and three-nights of live entertainment ranging from rock-a-billy to 50’s & 60’s rock ‘n roll music.

Visit the Route 66 Website for more information and photo gallery!

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March 07, 2008

Major Ertl Announcement! Read the press release...

South Bend, IN – Auto World (a division of Round 2, LLC) has signed a licensing agreement with RC2/Learning Curve Brands, Inc. of Oak Brook, Illinois. The contract will allow Auto World to produce and market plastic model kits under the well-known brands of AMT, MPC and Polar Lights. Also included are the rights to manufacture 1:18 and 1:24 scale die-cast replicas using the trademarks of American Muscle and Ertl Collectibles. In addition, Auto World will now be handling production of Custom and Premium promotional die-cast vehicles for RC2’s current C&P customer base, with sales continuing through established representatives.

Thomas E. Lowe, President and Owner of Round 2, is now assembling a team of knowledgeable plastic model and die-cast specialists who are excited about this license opportunity and passionate about reintroducing these brands to their respective communities. Lowe states, “Our goal is to bring back many sought after vintage kits of all types from the AMT and MPC tooling banks, some that haven’t been available for decades. We've recruited model kit expert and creative designer John Greczula from Retro Hobby, Inc. to work with us. The American Muscle tooling bank has great potential, too, and Craig Flickinger, who was the Product Manager for American Muscle for several years, is on board to ensure that collectors are kept as priority one. Using our own production facilities, we will have the capability to adjust quantities of the model and die cast lines to satisfy market demand. We will not rely solely on old tooling, but will develop new tools as well.”

Further, Lowe states, “2008 is going to be a roller coaster ride for us as we prepare our game plan and get things moving. There is an incredible amount of information to be absorbed and organization that must take place. We understand the modeling and die-cast markets have changed and that several large mass-retail chains are beginning to turn their backs on stocking these products. We will try and slow that down by introducing new and innovative products, hopefully enticing them to support our brands. I learned a lot when I ran my previous company, Playing Mantis, and I intend to use all of my knowledge and contacts to the maximum. For me, it’s an opportunity of a lifetime.”

Tom Lowe and RC2 Brands, Inc. are no strangers to each other. Lowe, an entrepreneur known for his expertise in collectible automotive subject matter, sold his first company, Playing Mantis, Inc. to RC2 in 2004. Lowe founded Playing Mantis in 1994 and resurrected the classic Johnny Lightning brand, producing small-scale die-cast replicas and electric slot cars catering to the adult collector. Enthusiastic response resulted in phenomenal growth of the brand, and spurred Lowe to venture into other areas, including Polar Lights plastic model kits and Memory Lane seasonal product.

Round 2 was established by Lowe in 2005 and reintroduced electric slot cars under the Auto World brand, an iconic hobby catalog trademark which Lowe purchased from Auto World’s founder, Oscar Koveleski.

Round 2 is an innovative collectibles company located in South Bend, Indiana. Its family of brands includes Auto World, currently featuring X-Traction, ThunderJet and Super III 1:64 scale electric slot racers and racing sets; Forever Fun Holiday Collectibles, featuring detailed recreations of favorite holiday characters and EarthGlow Candles, featuring unique licensed candles and candle toppers. Round 2 is proud to add AMT, MPC and Polar Lights model kits, American Muscle and Ertl Collectibles die-cast to its portfolio of brands.

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"Tiny cars, trucks get his motor running: Small-scale collector"

Club president has more than 1,000 miniature vehicles in his collection, which spans decades.

This one goes out to the 45-year-old businessman who, when nobody's looking, still plays with his toy 1976 Cadillac Coupe Deville.

This is for the granny who occasionally dusts off and admires the 1/24 scale 1965 Studebaker she keeps under her bed. This is for the 25-year-old slacker who still hasn't gotten rid of his Hot Wheels stash. There's hope for each and every one of you closet collectors who are too embarrassed to share your passion with friends and family members. The Tucson Miniature Auto Club is a haven for those who not only see nothing odd about stockpiling toy versions of their favorite automobiles, but also see it as a personality plus. Prospective members can find out about joining the club by visiting the Web site. President Lou Pariseau, 68, says his club meetings are a haven for toy-car enthusiasts of all racing stripes. Some collect old pre-made toys, and others build plastic models from kits. "It's an interesting time," said member Jerry Rettig, 70. "We get together with a bunch of people - there are roughly around 85 people. Most of us have very similar interests in the automotive world in both real cars and toy cars." Some club members are professional collectors looking to turn a profit; others are experts in antiques and collectibles; and many are just everyday folks who fancy miniature vehicles. And at least one - Pariseau - is a man who uses the hobby as a sort of fantasy. The retired salesman started off as an aficionado of regular cars, but, once his collection grew to 13, he decided that the hobby was too money- and space-consuming to continue. His decision: sell his big cars and start buying little ones. Now his collection has grown to nearly 1,000 pieces, the crown jewel of which is his 1949 Oldsmobile, a rare promotional car distributed by dealerships at the time. Pariseau estimates the toy is worth between $350 and $375. Pariseau says his diecast model car hobby invigorates him. "One of the things it does for me is it keeps me active," Pariseau says. "It keeps me going. I do roughly 12 shows a year in Arizona." One of those shows is Sunday's Tucson Collectible Toy Show and Sale. Pariseau's group puts the convention together, and last year it drew 2,000 paid admissions. The collector says his show is one of the two largest west of the Mississippi River. The show offers a place to get a toy-car collection started. Those who visit the show should beware. Toy-car lovers have a way of making their hobby grow on nonenthusiasts, even the most doubting of them. Take 47-year-old Sharon Scott, now a club board member, who started off being a bit uncomfortable with the hobby of her husband, William. "I thought it was just a little strange," Sharon Scott says. "I met this guy who had a whole bedroom filled with little cars and boxes stacked on boxes. It was kind of weird, but he could be at a bar (instead)." Their 3,000 model cars fill up two bedrooms and half the family room of their home. "They're our retirement account," Scott says. "It's much better than an IRA." Scott is a complete convert to the world of toy-car collecting who brings others into the field, just as her husband did for her. "There's not a car in the world that you can't own when you collect them in miniature," Scott says. "We were never able to afford the muscle cars we wanted, but this way we can own anything we want, any color we want. It has a lot of appeal. Building models is a great stress reliever."

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March 02, 2008

AutoFest 2008 Model Car Show and Events

The Sixth Annual AutoFest Model Car Show and Events will be held this year from Augist 22 - 24 in South Bend, Indiana at the Comfort Suites Hotel. Events will include gravity racing for a Pink Slip Racer, grudge match racing for ADDWC, custom contest for slot and diecast cars, slot car racing, and the Fest Feast on Friday night - admission includes dinner as well as the Johnny Lightning Mopar and a suprise! Be sure to check out the Images section of the website to see exciting pictures of past shows and the super-special cars. Plan now to be a part of this year's events!

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Jada Toys Obtains Exclusive on Next-Gen American Muscle Diecast

At the prestigious Detroit Auto Show on December 21, 2007 Chevrolet officially announced the 2009 Corvette ZR1 - an American supercar that brings the technology and engineering refinement of carbon-fiber, ceramics and electronics together in a distinctive design. The ZR1 is instantly recognizable, with perhaps the most identifiable feature a raised, all-carbon-fiber hood that incorporates a clear, polycarbonate window. The window provides a view of the top of the engine's intercooler, with the legend "LS9 SUPERCHARGED" embossed on the left and right sides, and an engine cover with the Corvette crossed flags logo debossed at the front.

Jada Toys, makers of popular diecast and r/c model cars in multiple scales, has announced their exclusive license to produce the '09 Chevy Corvette ZR1. The American Modern Muscle assortment from Jada includes this American icon, 2009 Chevy Corvette ZR1. The ZR1 is available in all diecast scales and radio control assortments. Check with your favorite diecast model car dealer for availability and pricing!

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