It really is a no-brainer. Take the Fast & Furious license that Mattel has been taking advantage of a ton the last few years, and put it to its best use in a Car Culture-like line.
And it is finally here. The first mix of Fast & Furious Premium will be out next month, and there is no doubt it will be a super popular line. The first mix is “Fast Imports” and mixes in JDM and Euro models. Mattel released the art images a few days ago:
The Car Culture influence is all over this set. Card size to start, card art as well (note the rotating cars in the background), and of course the premium models. It might seem that this should have been released years ago, but a line like this would never have been touched without the constant success of Car Culture to back it up.
And honestly, many of these cars, even outside of the film franchise, would look perfect in Car Culture. The R32, Escort, and Lamborghini are all stock, and would fit anywhere. Only the R34 and S15 look specific to the film, with their specialized decos.
And honestly, I could care less about the FnF link, I am just glad the films exist to justify a line like this. It could lead to some super cool castings, even though I may not be too fond of the decos they will sport. FnF is stuffed with cool cars, it is just that many of them came in maybe not their best outfit. At least they came.
I am not complaining though. When you think about the array of cars seen in the films, and when you see that Hot Wheels isn’t afraid to do cars that didn’t have the most prominent role in the films (think R32), it can’t help but make you excited about what could come.
And they are. I have seen the second mix, and yeah, it is super cool. Prepare for FnF overload.
Tomica premium’s r32 is much better and detailed. Why Mattel doesn’t come up with Dom’s red rx7 is beyond me. The FD casting already came out in many recolors, yet they didnt think of this. Instead, they keep pounding skyline r34 to death. Those people over at creative department need to be fired!!
pero aca estamos hablando de Hot Wheels…. es decir, una marca mas accesible en precio PARA TODOS.
tomica premium claro que es muchisimo mejor y mas detallado… pero el precio es mucho mas elevado.
Si hablamos de marcas buenas y detalladas, hablemos de AutoArt, BBR Models, WSI, TEKNO, MR COLLECTION MODELS, SPIRIT, SPARK… etc etc…
Tomica’s Premium R32 suffer from hideous large door gaps due to the opening doors, so no, Hot Wheels does it better.
Yes, but they are both black, so that helps hide the gap, unlike the white r33, I admit that is glaringly hideous
I’m excited about this line for the same reasons listed in the post…it’s a great Car Culture-equivalent opportunity for some cool cars to get the premium treatment, independent of the FnF franchise. I’ll be more on the lookout for the models with clean, non-movie-related decos. I’m most interested in the Escort, Gallardo and R32 from this first batch.
Will these be at the same $5.49 price point as Car Culture?
I was honestly hoping the sneaked VW Mk3 Jetta would have been in this release as well. But definitely will be picking up a set.
You hit the nail on the head Lamley! I agree wholeheartedly. If it takes a popular license like The Fast and The Furious to be the vehicle that brings us well detailed sports cars and exotics, then I’m all for it and will happily overlook those models with gaudy paint jobs and tacked on body extensions.
I hope to see more new models that weren’t done before. Getting boring seeing the same thing over and over again.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it againI: I’m so excited for the Gallardo!! I always wanted to see a premium version of it since it never got that treatment (the Gran Turismo and Forza don’t count as they had racing liveries) and here it is. Hopefully people will be busy with the Skylines and Silvias and leave the Gallardo alone so I’ll be able to get it at a good price. I’m also excited for the R32 and Escort since both are, like the Lambo, fairly stock. The R34 and S15 are also very nice but they’ll only join the collection if I find them at a reasonable price. All in all, I’m very excited and can’t wait to get my hands on these!
P.S. – I’m also eagerly waiting for your showcase video on this set and I hope there are some interesting things in it (FnF update!? Gallardo casting update!?)
i hope to see the return of the infamous Koenigsegg Agera
I think license problem causes the extinction
They also should include the Lykan Hypersport from Fast and Furious 8
Also license problem, Jada was the only one got it, and did a horrible job with that 1:55
I’ll be looking forward to seeing the Jetta.
would love to see an offbeat model make it like the Jensen Interceptor
hell yeah! because the R32 GTR GETS HEADLIGHTS!!!! AND LOOKS how it should have in the mainline release. also the s15 is great too, still looking for any of the forza s15 though. distribution of the popculture sets is alwasy slim pickings at targets, especially when most targets still have the super flop of HALO cars hanging on the shelves. I wish mattel would buy back dead stock and donate it to childrens hospitals.
So this F&F line is something separate from Car Culture? I must have missed that the first time I read this article. I was thinking it was just going to be a recurring themed wave ever so often in Car Culture.