Earlier this month, Mattel’s Hot Wheels celebrated its 50th anniversary.
Hot Wheels was born in 1968 when Mattel co-founder Elliot Handler challenged his design team – which included a General Motors car designer and a rocket scientist – to create a toy car that was cooler and performed better than anything on the market. They answered with the first-ever trackable toy car.
Handler was so impressed by the car’s groundbreaking design and performance that his first response when he saw it rolling along the floor was: “Those are some hot wheels!”
Soon, deals were in place to recreate muscle cars from the Big Three automakers, along with a patented independent suspension to complement the speedy wheel design. The Hot Wheels Custom Camaro hit shelves in May 1968. It was quickly followed by 15 more 1:64-scale speed machines.
This first edition of cars became known as the “Sweet 16” – now among the most valuable and collectible toy vehicles ever made.
“For 50 years, Hot Wheels’ intuitive vehicle play-pattern has contributed to its success as the No. 1-selling toy in the world,” said Chris Down, senior vice president and global brand GM, Hot Wheels. “Since its introduction in 1968, the brand has evolved from a simple toy into a true lifestyle brand that champions the challenger spirit through gaming, digital content, partnerships and live experiences spanning multiple generations and ages – this has allowed the brand to remain relevant to kids and adults and see record growth over the past three years.”
To celebrate the anniversary, Hot Wheels is introducing a yearlong lineup of live experiences, new products and content.
Live Events
The lineup of live events includes the Hot Wheels Legends Tour, a traveling car show in search of a custom car worthy of being made into a Hot Wheels die-cast toy.
The tour launched at Hot Wheels headquarters in April 2018 and will be visiting 14 Walmart stores across the United States. One winner will be chosen from each stop to earn a spot for their car to be shown at the 2018 SEMA Show in Las Vegas, where one vehicle will be chosen and immortalized as a Hot Wheels.
Other live events will include the Hot Wheels IndyCar Junior Grand Prix, a karting competition for kids ages 8-14. The top-three finishers in each qualifying race will win a trip to the Grand Prix of Sonoma and the chance to compete in the final championship race at K1 Speed San Francisco in September 2018.
Starting this month at the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, the “Hot Wheels: Race to Win” exhibit will return to the world’s largest museum for children. Fans will get a firsthand look at the science, speed and safety of motorsports with Hot Wheels cars and tracks, positioned alongside full-sized racecars, artifacts and memorabilia.
Products
Product launches will include:
- Hot Wheels 50th Originals Collection – On May 18, the official birthday for Hot Wheels, the brand releaseed replicas of five Hot Wheels originals from the “Sweet 16” with legacy graphics, original packaging and original detailed Spectraflame paint, Redline wheels and a collectible button. Each car will include a code where one winner in the United States will win a life-size 50th-anniversary Hot Wheels Camaro.
- Hot Wheels City – For the youngest Hot Wheels fan, the brand is introducing Hot Wheels City, a system of play that blends imaginative vehicle “push-around” play and classic “crash-and-bash” action.
- Hot Wheels Augmoto – Using augmented reality and connected play, Hot Wheels Augmoto is a smart-device-controlled track-set that adds unprecedented control and gaming to a physical Hot Wheels racing experience.
- Hot Wheels Rocket League – Hot Wheels has seen tremendous success in the gaming space, and in 2017, the brand partnered with Rocket League to put Hot Wheels vehicles in the world-renowned game that mixes driving with soccer. The Hot Wheels integration was so successful that the two-brands are releasing a physical version of the game as an RC arena set (Hot Wheels Rocket League RC Rivals Set) in holiday 2018 and additional in-game DLC later this year.
2018 Camaro Hot Wheels Edition
The 50th-annivesary celebration will include “an array of products and partnerships that pay tribute to the brand’s iconic heritage from best-in-class partners that share our values and bring authenticity, credibility and expertise in their categories that resonate with our fans,” according to Mattel.
One of the highlights is the 50th-anniversary edition of the Hot Wheels Custom Camaro.
The first Hot Wheels toy created was a 1968 Custom Camaro, and to celebrate its anniversary, Hot Wheels partnered with General Motors to create a life-size version of the die-cast. Available for purchase in 2018, the full-sized 50th-Anniversary Hot Wheels Camaro includes exclusive Hot Wheels features such as a Crush-Orange paint job – referencing iconic Hot Wheels orange track – unique interior and wheels and commemorative Hot Wheels badging.
To learn more and stay up to speed on how Hot Wheels is celebrating its 50th anniversary, visit HotWheels.com and follow #HotWheels50.
