Okay diecast collectors, more vehicles have been checked off of my want list. So welcome to another edition of My Want List. I can't believe how this year's mainline has gone so far. There have been plenty of good releases already. And with this case, the number of good release continues to grow. Now like the title mentions, this is part one of a multi-part review. With that being said, let's get things started.
There is one car from this case that I absolutely love, and it's the blue Honda Civic Si that's apart of this year's Factory Fresh mainline set. This casting is basically a retooled version of a casting that they already had. What made the first casting special for me, was how it's body was designed with the Wings West kit. Now yes, body kits like that are something that was done in the early 2000's, and the world has moved on from that. But as you might know from a past review, I still very much like the style. As such, I love how the designers kept this car looking modified.
This casting has a few new aspects that might make it a better casting for some. One of the upgrades to this model, are side rear view mirrors. That is one plus over the last casting. Another difference is seen with the window piece. Unlike the old casting, this one's windows are rolled down. Now sadly, this model no longer features a roll cage. This is the one aspects that the original has over this one. Some of you might not care, but I feel the roll cage fit the theme of the model perfectly.
Another one of the things that I like about this one, is how it was once again given what appears to be a modified exhaust pipe. All over the internet, I've seen comments where people have made fun of exhaust like this calling them "fart cans" and what not, but having a loud tuner car is another one of the things that I liked about the early 2000's car scene.
This first release is plain, which is okay, but I'm sad because this casting might not ever get a flashy design like the old one. In fact, that's why my Wings West release of the original casting is still my favorite. Of course that could change going forward, but as it stands, I don't see it happening. Especially with today's standards. Now aside from not having a design, this model was at least given front and rear tampo details.
Chrome 10SP wheels are what was chosen for this release. Nowadays when a Civic is modified, folks opt for a smaller wheel. That wasn't the case back in the day. So I like how Hot Wheels gave this release these wheels. Now all we need is a premium one with the new five spoke real rider wheels, because you know... Racing Hart.
The next vehicle that got checked off of my want list is the '17 Nissan GT-R (R35) that's featured in this year's Then and Now mainline set. I'm so glad this GT-R model year is getting more mainline releases than the 2009 model year. The 2009 one was only released two times in the mainline, whereas this '17 GT-R is the fourth one.
I really like how the decision was made to paint this release yellow. The first release of this casting is still very cool since it's exterior color was based on an actual color for this car. But I won't lie when I say this release is right up there with it. Yellow is actually one of the colors that I was hoping to see used for this car. If you look at all of the 2009 GT-R releases, then you'll notice how most of them were either black, silver, or white. So I like how more colors are being used for this GT-R model year.
Similar to last year's release, this too features a single stripe on it's top half. And black was obviously the best color for it. No designs were applied to the sides of this release, which is totally fine by me. In fact, I think the release looks better this way. A diecast model doesn't always have to have a matching design along it's sides to be cool. And I'm really liking how the GT-R looks with a single stripe on it's top.
The wheels given to this release are the Hot Wheels J5s. These are one of my favorite mainline wheels. I have have always liked how the spokes were shaped, and I feel this casting looks really good with them. I suspect that most will agree with me on that. Aside from the choice to use them, I also like how the decision was made to make them black with a chrome red rim. Even though I wouldn't have chose this wheel color, I can honestly say that it's not a bad wheel color for this yellow GT-R.
Up next, is the brand new Porsche 935. I'm sure Porsche fans are going to drool over this release. A few years ago we got the 934.5, which was basically a mix between the 934 and the 935. So it's nice to finally see the 935 as a Hot Wheels casting. And it's also nice to see more of the classic Porsches being made.
I feel they did a good job designing this one. What I like, is how the front light section isn't apart of the body. Instead, they designed it so this section is filled in by a plastic piece that's most likely apart of the window piece. This for me is a much better design choice as it gives the model realistic looking light features, and avoids the possibility of tampo alignment issues.
The Hot Wheels designers decided to give this debuting release a design. And to no surprise, the Urban Outlaw theme was used. If you read my 2021 case B review, then you'd know that I was growing a little tired of this theme. What I can't understand, is why the designers chose this as the go-to theme for a Porsche release. Each one of the designers is fully capable of making a realistic looking fantasy livery, and they're also good at making liveries that are based on actual ones. Just take a look at the 917 LH release that was based on the psychedelic #3 917.
I sure many of you will absolutely love this release just because it features this them. And you will also probably like how it matches the 2018 release of the '71 Porsche 911. I hope the next release gets some kind of cool livery. It doesn't even have to be based on anything, I just want one with a different theme.
The next car is one that I was very excited to see when it was showed over on Instagram by Hot Wheels. The car in question, is the brand new Lancia Delta Integrale that's apart of this year's Baja Blazers mainline set. For the longest time, all we collectors had was the Stratos, and I always felt that we needed more of this company's cars. So It's nice to finally see a third Lancia as a Hot Wheels casting.
For this first release, the Hot Wheels designers chose to paint it white. This exterior color basically makes it so more colors can be incorporated into a design. That is why I think white is one of the better colors for a rally car like this. And even if this release didn't have a design, I'd still very much like how this model looked finished in the color.
Now unlike the previous car, I really like the design that's featured on this release. It features a Michelin Tires theme. It's sides have a very nice looking blue and yellow design. A nicely sized Michelin decal was placed on the back door, and I like that it's the decal with the Michelin Man. From what I can tell, this livery appears to be a fantasy one that isn't based on an actual livery. This livery is a prime example of the designers being able to make a realistic looking fantasy livery.
This release was also give some additional real-life aftermarket decals. Sparco, Bilstein, and the Hot Wheels logo were placed on the front door. Completing this release's livery is a Rally El Segundo number box with the number 5. This detail was also placed on the front door.
White 10SPs are the wheels that were chosen for this release. If you pull up pictures of the real Delta Integrale rally car, you'll notice how the wheels have a similar spoke shape to these. As such, I feel these were one of the best wheels for this first release.
The last car for this first part, is the Rodger Dodger that's apart of this year's Mattel Games mainline set. This release is representing the Magic 8 Ball, which is another toy that is currently made by Mattel. Though simple, the theme turned this into one sick looking Rodger Dodger. Only two design aspects were needed to complete this release. An 8 ball was applied to it's door, and the Magic 8 Ball logo was applied to it's quarter panel.
There is actually another decision that was made for this release that I really like. Hot Wheels decided to place a blue triangle sticker with words on the underside of this release. This basically gives it a true Magic 8 Ball look. What makes this decision great, is that there are different versions of the sticker. So that makes it so there are multiple unique Rodger Dodgers besides the Super. Neat little variations like this are a step in the right direction, and I think they should look into doing similar things like this for future mainline releases.
Okay everyone, that's all of the cars that I decided to include in part one. Like always, the next part will be up in the coming days. So be sure to stay tuned. Until then, thanks for reading and happy collecting.
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