Happy New Year!

Wishing you and yours a happy and healthy new year.  If you're in a reflective mood listen to Dan Fogelberg's Same Old Lang Syne.  Prefer to ring out the old and ring in the new?  There's George Harrison's Ding Dong, Ding Dong from Dark Horse.  For the traditional you simply can't beat The Beach Boys' Auld Lang Syne from their classic Christmas Album.

The best is yet to come.  Cheers!

Batmobile Four-1 (Bat-1)

Hot Wheels Four-1

The Hot Wheels Four-1 is a custom design along the lines of a Smart car. This pint-size vehicle sports a huge 4 cylinder engine where a passenger might otherwise sit.  The black paint and wing-like rollbar extension  immediately reminded me of the Batmobile.  The blue windshield recalls one of my favorite toys: the Corgi #267 TV Batmobile from the 60s TV series.  The blue wheels allude to the glowing hubs on the Batmobile from Batman Forever.

The "Bat-1" (No room for Robin in this 1)

I removed most of the graphics from the side and the racing number from the rollbar.  The Corgi Batmobile inspired the bat sticker on the door for a retro touch.

The Bat-1 in front of a 1966 movie poster

 

King of the Kustomizers: The Art of George Barris is a fantastic book that covers many of Barris' creations including the 1966 TV Batmobile.

If you're a fan of the 1966 Batmobile you'll want this incredibly detailed 1:18 scale  Hot wheels 1966 Batmobile Elite Version Limited.  Mattel scanned Barris' 1:1 car to generate the casting. 

I'd Like To See A Hot Wheels Chaparral 2J

The 2J had two snowmobile engines turning props that sucked the car to the ground.  The boxy back end with enclosed wheel wells kept the air in and created the suction footprint. 
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I have a cool Tyco HO racer from childhood like the one in this pic..

Jim Hall created some of the most innovative Can-Am race cars of all time.  To read more about the man and the cars there's this cool book (click on picture to buy from Amazon):




If you'd rather race than read there's this cool Scalextric slot car:

Today I Opened a Hot Wheels '49 Drag Merc

Very nice casting with see-thru hood scoop and fold-out wheelie bars.  Huge chrome wing looks great as does the dual carb engine visible through the scoop.  Now available in metallic maroon but I don't care for the translucent red windows/hood scoop or gold plating.  This metallic purple with flames paint scheme reminds me of the ever popular Purple Passion.

Hot Wheels Purple Passion

 If you enjoy building plastic model kits there is the Revell 1:25 '49 Mercury Custom Coupe

Mercury Blues is a great song. Vavoom!

Today I Opened A Custom '11 Camaro

Picked up this new release at today's K-Mart Hot WHeels event.  The Camaro is a great looking casting that belies its small scale and low price.  I like when the designer utilizes the different materials and their colors to add variety and detail.  The gray chassis yields lower body ground effects front, sides and rear as well as a fully detailed interior with roll cage; it also provides the hood louvers on either side of the cowl induction scoop.  The black plastic rear wing adds just the right touch to the back end and blends nicely with the black racing stripes. Blue tinted windows have molded in safety net in the driver's window.

The diecast body has lots of detail and dimension for 1/64 scale.  The yellow rimmed wheels might not have been my first choice but they look great.  All in all a great addition to the Hot Wheels lineup and you can't beat the bang for the buck.

Hot Wheels branded body kits are available for your 1:1 Camaro.   I wonder which came first: the toy or the body kits?  If you're a fan you might want a Camaro 2011 Wall Calendar.