When Wheels Catch Fire!

Welcome back to the attic! Come on up! Don't worry, this attic has central air conditioning...

In 1968 Mattel released a line of die-cast cars that took the toy world by storm. The sixteen cars were customs, race cars, and show cars. They came in at least eight "spectra-flame" candy colors. The really big deal though....was their wheels.

Before Mattel, Matchbox ruled the small die-cast world. Their cars were pretty accurate models of typical (usually English) cars. They weren't flashy, and they certainly weren't fast.

Mattel's cars fearured a new invention. They had a piano wire and bearing wheel system that not only made the cars roll much faster, but also gave them a suspension. Added to the California Custom vibe of the designs, they were unstoppable! They called them "Hot Wheels."

Many years ago, I began to collect these cars. I now have all of the 1968, 1969, and 1970 lines and I'm half way through 1971. I figured that I would share a few with you. So, today I give you the first half of the 1968 "Sweet 16...." maybe the "Great Eight?"
Here ya go!

The Beatnik Bandit was designed by Ed "Big Daddy" Roth. He nailed the Califonia over the top custom vibe.

The Custom Barracuda was a restyling of the real 1967 car model.

The Custom Camaro is sometimes claimed to be the first Hot Wheels that came off of the line, but no one really knows for sure.

The Custom Corvette was on the toy rack before Chevy released the real car. I'm sure that the guy from GM that Mattel hired away right before releasing Hot Wheels had nothing to do with it...

The Custom Cougar is one of my personal favorites.

The Custom Eldorado proved that Caddies could be hot rods too!

This Custom Firebird has the rarer light blue interior. They also had a red car with red interior.

The Custom Fleetside was, in a way, the real first Hot Wheels car. It was modeled after Mattel designer Harry Bradley's own truck. His boss asked him to design cars like it.

Well there you go! In the next few weeks I will feature more cars. Until next time, keep searching for treasure!