What is the Mount Rushmore of current Hot Wheels castings? It is a nerdalicious debate for sure, and all depends on what factors each nerd was considering. Not talking individual faves, just those castings that get the most attention.
I think it would be very hard to argue against the ’55 Bel Air Gasser and ’71 Datsun 510 Wagon taking the first two spots. Both have cemented their place for now, even though they won’t always hold it. But they are as concrete as can be right now.
After that? Do you add the 510 Coupe, or mesh it in with the Wagon? Do you go old school and keep the ’67 Camaro on the list? It has had the longest run of any casting, but has taken a back seat lately. How about a newcomer like the RWB Porsche? Or maybe another JDM like the R34 Skyline which seems to be skyrocketing in secondary-market sales? Or the Kook Kombi? Everyone loves the Kool Kombi. (And wait until you see its Boulevard release.)
There are a lot of models to debate for those last two spots, but I would argue the final spot only. The third spot should go to the ’83 Silverado. It isn’t totally on par with the Gasser and Wagon, but it matches a lot of what made those first two what they are. It has a fair amount of high-dollar releases, like the antifreeze RLC, some rare legendary releases like the three “Rod” models, and always seems to be the first model swiped from any set it is a part of.
The Silverado was designed by Jun Imai for the Modern Classics series in 2008, and has gained a lot of collector momentum ever since. It wasn’t the pegwermer-to-must-have story that is the Datsun 510, as it was a hit from the start. But it continues to grow in popularity. And it means there are many collectors trying to find the harder-to-find models from years ago.
That is me too. I have been able to build the collection one-by-one over the years, to the point that I only had one expensive model to go. I finally filled that gap when I acquired the Fire Rods model last year. That is a story itself, and I told it as I opened it live on YouTube. So here is that video.
Opening, adding to, and finishing the ’83 Silverado collection:
Oh, and what about that Antifreeze Modern Classics Silverado Jun showed a couple of weeks ago? Since any in existence are only prepros, I can’t count it. Doesn’t mean I don’t want it though.
The ‘Retro’ one you speak of.. in blue with yellow/orange stripes is from The Hot Ones series from around 2012.
I found one in my local Kmart, so because I didn’t take it home ‘cause my wife would know of my progressive ‘hoarding’ problem, I had to hide it in the car battery rack of the Auto section!
Was there about a year or so.. went back & it was still there, so I bought it & took it home.. stored in one of many boxes!
LOVE the ’83 Silverado. Congratulations!!!