It is about time…
After teasing us about an Alfa Romeo 8C in the Speed Machines lineup back in 2010, we finally get a Hot Wheels Alfa.
We don’t know how close the 8C was to being done for the Speed Machines line, but it was close enough for Hot Wheels to announce it as a new tool in the lineup back then. But two things happened:
First, the Speed Machines line was discontinued before the announced lineup was released. Two existing tools slated for the line never were made – the Aston Martin DBS and Ferrari 458 Italia (we know the 458 was to be black with racing livery, but that is all we know). Maybe one day we will see the designs that were meant for those two.
Second, and far more important, Mattel and Alfa Romeo hit a bit of a licensing snag. We have already documented the strange history of the Matchbox Giulia Sprint GTA, with Alfa licensors requiring the model to only be done in red or white, the only factory colors for that car at the time.
Things got strict, maybe a little messy, Matchbox put the model to bed, and maybe somewhere lost in there Alfa no longer allowed the 8C to be done by Hot Wheels.
Things are very different now. Talking to those in the know, I have heard that working with Alfa lately has been a dream. Evidence will be seen soon in the Matchbox range, with the 4C coming, and the Giulia Sprint casting returning in a slightly modified form. We have even seen a tremendous Alfa set from Kyosho. But for now let’s focus on the stunning 8C, the first Alfa Romeo from Hot Wheels in a very long time.
The 8C might be old news by car standards (the last of only 500 made came off the line in 2010), but with its looks, captured nicely by Hot Wheels designers Fraser Campbell and Ryu Asada, there is never a bad time for it to join the Hot Wheels ranks. Jeremy Clarkson famously dubbed the 8C one the best looking “evehr maaayde”, right before panning just about everything else about it. But in Hot Wheels land we don’t need to worry about how it handles corners, it just needs to look cool. And cool it is.
Mattel seems to be capturing “small” better than they have in the past. Like Matchbox’s BMW 1M, the 8C is small. And while there are limits to adhere to size-wise, this model looks small. It isn’t that much smaller than any other Hot Wheels car, but it looks like it is. Credit the designers.
Of course we hope to see this model in red, and I am sure we will. I assume recolors are on the way. But I love this in black. Yeah, black hides some detail, but black also highlights curves. Everyone needs a little black dress…
(Find the Alfa 8C on ebay before it is out in stores…)
Hot Wheels Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione (2014 New Models):
Great photos! While you are busy with the new 8C I will gladly give your red Superfast GTA a home. 😀 Quadrifoglio and all!
Stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning stunning
No doubt this will as impossible to get hold of as other great proper cars have been, this is what collecting model cars is all about, not crappy plastic generic stupid things, but these, real cars, that people can aspire to, the cars that generate talk, posters on children's walls, old(er) men that want to get to mid life early so they can blame a mid life crisis on buying this car.
But more importantly, above all else, Mattel has given us something that should only be done by Matchbox, the brilliant designs, colours and tampo's (in the right places), but this is not a Matchbox, it is the ugly sister brand, Hot Wheels that has delivered this gem.
A brand that generally gives us horrid cars with horrid graphics, recently has “done a Matchbox” and given us this beautiful Alfa, the fabulous Aston DB5, Datsun's, Toyota's, Mazda's The lovely Corvette Stingray and so on.
These are what the collector wants, these are what the child wants, to have a toy car to play with that is on a poster on his wall, or a copy of a car that someone he knows owns, real cars, this is what collecting is about, the love of searching, well not love, the UK has enough trouble finding any of these cars, but the love of the hunt, and then having to go through 50-60 horrid generics to try and find the one car that you really want.
I am sure that no one at Mattel reads these forums, but should you, please take on board that we love these real cars, and we want more, believe me, if you make decent cars they will sell, this year has been my lowest spend yet on Matchbox and a few HW's, but other brands have seen a surge in my spending habits, keep up the way you are going and that spend will drop further.
All we need now is a great range of British Classics, 12-24 truly British cars, Rolls Royce, Mini, Land Rover, Bentley, Austin, Morris, Lotus, and so on, that would be my ideal range, but I will not hold my breath.
In the mean time, I appreciate teh odd one or two great castings and await the odd one or two more in 2014.
i can't wait to have this car in my collection 🙂
Agreed. The subtle red interior makes it just that much better.
I will take those British Classics you speak of if they are made… 2 of each please.
Che bella macchina! Stunning car and model…As far as Jeremy Clarkson goes, he pans virtually everything he drives on the show, even the stuff he admits he really likes. I would hardly consider him to be a reputable car auto journalist / critic. He is however a very funny entertainer.The 8C mesmerized anyone that drove it, and I'm hoping in the future Mattel can figure out a way to replicate a car's sound…Mama mia!
When early pics of this car were seen online, there was a lot of worry that it was a plastic body casting. Thankfully that does not seem to be the case. Nicely done, Mattel!
-doomus
I know I couldn't shut up every time this car made its way in the lamley news….but I must wax poetic once more! The lines, are like classic roman sculpture. Bodywork that seemed as if it was designed with the golden section. One thing I will say though, I would have preferred the smaller wheels for the back, just to do the proportions more justice. Having said that, any Alfa that Mattel decides to make is better than nothing at all (except for the B.A.T, now that one was absolutely hideous).
Regardless, this car personifies all the features that I love about the real thing in the first place. It single handedly put Alfa Romeo back on the map, in terms of raw performance and aesthetics. Just good to know that at least Mattel is able to make even more than 500 of them, a thousand times over.
Man, this one is awesome with T***** (TEMPOS).
Anyways, I like this one. It is awesome in black, but Hot Wheels should do a recolor of this in red this year. But I prefer black is better though. That just makes the 8c a stunning and stellar car in black.
I have some news to say. ERRORS of the black Alfa are spotted! They're shown on Kelvinator21's Hot Wheels.