This was a no brainer at Mattel, wasn’t it?
On the heels of Corvette’s 60th birthday last year, it is time to celebrate 50 years of the Mustang. Hot Wheels doing a special Mustang makes a ton of sense. We just wish they had done it a little better.
We definitely like the card art. Putting pics of the real cars on the card, all in white with black trim, is a very nice touch. We even like the design on many of these. The ’71 and ’07 look great, for example.
But isn’t there something about this set that suggests that Mattel just took some recently-used castings that must have been lying around the factory and just redecorated them and released them? That may or may not be the case, but we can’t figure out why some castings were used.
The ’71 Boss? Perfect choice. ’62 Concept? Very appropriate. The ’07? For us it is the best of the current (or semi-current) Mustang castings. The ’92? It has been very popular, and makes sense. The ’12 and ’13 Customs? WAY too custom to celebrate Mustang heritage. The ’03 Cobra? What the f*#@?
Variety is the spice of life, but there is almost too much here. Why not the 67 or 68 Shelby GT500’s? The ’65 Fastback? And there are many others that we are sure many of you can come up with.
Of course this is just our opinion, and we are not by any means the Mustang enthusiasts that many of you are. We would love to hear what you Mustang nuts think about this set.
So since there are 8 cars in the set, we are breaking it up in two. Here is Part 1, featuring the first four cars of the set. Part 2 will come later in the day. Let us know what models you like and don’t like.
Enjoy…
Hot Wheels Ford Mustang 50th Anniversary Set:
1967 Ford Mustang
’71 Ford Mustang Mach 1
’92 Ford Mustang
The ” '03 Cobra” is actually a 1998 Cobra, obviously was done as a road racer. So it fits OK.
Personally, I think the '63 Mustang II concept should have been used instead of the '62 concept.
But I agree on the '12 and '13 Mustangs, they are useless for this set.
-doomus
Nitpicky detail: the “C-stripe” on the side of the '67 Mustang in the set didn't come about until '68. But then again, none of the rest of the black stripes on that model were ever used on a production Mustang, so why worry?
The 71 and the 92 are perfect in everything. The 67 has almost the same deco of the red and blue ones released a few years ago, and they're using that shade of yellow that ruins every model. I like the 62 concept, but those sporty stripes don't fit well.
Personally, I think this was a pretty decent lineup. Yes, I would have preferred a stock '12 and '13… but then I would have preferred Hot wheels to make stock versions in the first place. Yes they're custom, but customization is pretty much what an '05-'14 Mustang is all about. So in that respect, I think that those two are perfect to represent the Mustang for those years. I'm about as big a Mustang fan as you're going to find, so if I can see the merit in these models, anyone should be able to. The one thing that bothers me about this set is the “'03 Cobra” it's actually a '98 Cobra road race car. Heck, it even has a copyright date of '97 on the base, and they couldn't have figured out that they were labeling it the wrong year? Aside from that, I'm fine with the model itself being in the set. I would have preferred to see the superb 1994 GT casting with the hard to find coupe roof released in an accessible way for once, but that casting has been retired, so the Cobra road race is a fine representation for that era of the Mustang timeline. I also may be the only one that thinks this, but I think the set should have included the Mustang 2. No, not everyone likes that car… at all… but it was an important time in the Mustang's history. With the fuel crisis taking a major toll on muscle cars, Ford found a way to keep a popular nameplate going successfully through a time when the other major pony cars were just good looking shells with anemic drive-trains. Without the Mustang 2, we wouldn't have the Mustang how it is today, and that's a pretty important role to honor in my opinion.
Alright, the older ones first.
So anyway, all of them classics look good. The '62 Mustang concept, '67 Mustang, 1971 Mach 1, and '92 Mustang.
The deco on all jut truly look awesome. They fit really, really well on them. Let's see when part 2 gives some more attention to me.
The '03 Cobra used isn't even an '03. It's the '95 Cobra casting. The '99 Mustang casting would have at least been the same body style.
I agree 100% on the Mustang 2. I am not a huge fan of the car. Not many people are. I do have very fond memories of riding around in my neighbors as a young boy. I'm sure others would be willing to shell out a dollar or two just to have one. It would look great in the period orange. Silver with red interior would be choice as well.
Personally I think that the '65 Mustang Convertible, or the '65 Fastback would have been the best choices, but once again they drop the ball. The '71 and '92 are suitable choices though. But I agree though, the '12 and '13 customs have way too much going on. For modern stangs I would have put in the Boss 302 Laguna Seca. Now that is a good looking model.
Nothing special about these at all. So far they look like they are just ho-hum mainlines. This is the Mustangs 50th anniversary being “celebrated” and not a real rider in sight. Probably plastic chassis too. *yawn*
I'm OK for most of the selections, except with the '62 Concept (I won't even call it a Mustang. Not worthy). This car was scrapped soon after its conception and a few marketing displays. It has NOTHING to do with the Mustang idea of a light, conventionally-designed, affordable, easy to produce ponycar that eventually became the Mustang we all love. Mustang II Concept was to me, the first REAL Mustang….
Then, Mattel misses the opportunity of releasing its first stock Mustang II (74-78) (not the Funnycar version from the Fast Ones). The Mustang II, albeit poorly respected, was a true Mustang, that carried the name successfully for 5 years. It was the right car at the right time. And it gets no respect. Even from diecast makers! It would have been great to see the Hardtop and Cobra Liftback versions of the MII in Hot Wheels form. But if it doesn't happen in the 50th Anniversary year, it will probably never happen, and I hope I'm wrong. Great Post, thanks!
Ceasar
Memo to the HW team: you don't have to put PR5s on EVERY plastic wheel release of the '92 Mustang. What happened to the days of putting 5-spokes and MC5s on them? I'd still get this one if I saw it on the pegs, as I still like the overall presentation, but please, put some different wheels on the '92 next time.
(Keep putting 5-spokes on the '71, though!)
i noticed these and now i see wall-mart has a set are they the same i have been trying to complete the regular set (3cars so far)
also does anyone have a list on the set with #'s ? so i can double check my cars i have, plus i have the real thing a mustang fully restored from 64 1/2
I have this set. I am not that impressed. 4 of the cars are nice and 4 look like the cars collectors leave behind on the pegs. The Corvette set is a much better set. Hot Wheels should do a Volkswagen set. That would be a really big hit.