Hi everyone, welcome to another additional feature. Well like the title says, today I'm participating in a couple of 1:64 Scale GT races, and I've decided to take some Mercedes-Benz race cars to the track. Now, the releases I'm talking about today come from two different premium sets. And thanks to my social media post, you already what the first one is. So those are the releases I'm going to talk about first. With that being said, let's go racing!
Now, as is the case with a lot of sets from Hot Wheels, this one isn't entirely perfect. In other words, I'm disappointed with one of the releases it has. So before I get to the other three vehicles, I need to get this first one out of the way. With that said, let's get started.
One of the releases in this set is the '16 Mercedes-AMG GT3, and it's a re-release of the Car Culture one from 2019. I don't know how you feel, but I don't necessarily like when they decide to make these sets have re-releases. But at this point, I shouldn't even care, since this isn't the first premium set with a re-release I've gotten. Anyway, this casting isn't used much, which is why I'm disappointed with the fact that it's the same. It's been two years since this casting was last used in a premium series, and the two recent ones have had the same design. At least the id one (which I never saw) is a different color. I know they prefer to make replicas, but I think it'd be cool to see one with a what-if livery. And if not that, I'd take one that was completely plain. At the end of the day though, this re-release is great for those of you that missed out on the first one.
The next release I'm going to talk about is the Mercede-Benz 300 SL. If you read
Part 1 of my 2021 case L want list, then you might remember how I was a little disappointed with the first mainline release of the 300 SL. I also said that I'd be happy with one that has a racing number and a simple stripe design. Well, it's not in the mainline, but that's exactly what they gave us in this box set.
Now from what I can gather, it's a replica like the other releases. As usual though, there are a few differences between this and the one it appears to be based on. On this release, the racing number is "9" instead of "6," and the stripes are only on the hood. I don't have an issue with the number, but I do kind of wish the stripes went across the entire top half like the real car. Other than that, this is a fantastic release.
The Sauber-Mercedes C9 is the one release that made me want to have this box set. In fact, I'm going to say that it's the star of the show! I'm truly delighted to see a new race car casting, and there's a few things I like about it's design. First and foremost, it's back half was designed to come off like the Mazda 787B. I love this feature! The second thing is the design of the headlights. As I've said in past posts, I love when they're apart of the window plastic. This give the model realistic looking headlights.
So how do I feel about what was done to the exterior? Well, I happen to like how it's a replica of the actual number 63 C9. Overall, it's pretty accurate, and I like how it features the "Sauber-Mercedes" windshield banner. There is one small issue I have with it though, and it has to do with how it's missing one of the decals that's seen on the real car. For some reason, the designers chose to not add the Michelin decal to this release. I really don't see why they couldn't. As far as I know (unless something has changed), Hot Wheels has the legal okay to use that company's decal.
Helping to add some accuracy to this replica, are it's wheels. Since the real car has 6-spoke wheels, the Hot Wheels RR6SPMs are the best possible premium wheel for it.
The hauler in this box set is the Carry On. As I've said in various past Team Transport post, I love when these haulers are left plain. Not having a vehicles manufacturer decal makes it so they can be paired with any car. Now as much as I like having another plain release of this hauler, I do think it would have been nice if they put the Mercedes-Benz logo on it. But I'm not going to complain because this is still a nice release.
Overall, I'm pleased with this box set, and I'm glad I was able to find it, since it features the debut of the Sauber-Mercedes C9. The 787B hasn't had that many releases, and it could end up being the same story for this new Mercedes. So I would have been a little disappointed if I couldn't get this one. The other two releases are welcomed additions to my collection as well. So despite my issue with the '16 Mercedes-AMG GT3. this is a great box set. I, for one, would give it an eight out of ten. Alright, now it's time to talk about the other Mercedes-Benz race car I brought to the track.
As you most likely already know, the next assortment of the Hot Wheels Boulevard series has started to show up. And as usual, I wasn't able to find all five, which is to be expected since three of them are JDMs, while the other one is a Volkswagen. Fortunately, I was able to find the new 1997 Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR, which just so happens to be the one I wanted the most.
There are many different ways one could have been introduced to this car. Some of you might have even attended a race where it participated. As for me, it was thanks to a pull back toy car I got as a kid. At the time, I didn't know the name of it, but what I did know, was that it was an awesome looking car. And to this day, I'm still in love with the overall design of it's exterior. So I think you can imagine the look on my face when I found a Hot Wheels version of it down the diecast row.
As for how I feel about this first release, well... do I need to even say? I think we can all agree that this is a near perfect replica thanks to the design choices made for it. I especially like all of the sponsor decals that were applied to it, and the additional Mobil 1 decal on the wing is a huge plus for me. All of these details are why I'm glad they decided to make this a premium casting instead of a basic one like the CLK-LM casting.
When I said thanks to the design choices made for it, I wasn't just talking about the tampo details. I was also talking about some of it's other features. One such feature is the wing. Nowadays, castings are mostly designed with wings that are apart of the body. And to be fair, that's completely fine. However, for this particular 1:64 scale replica, a black plastic wing is a much better design.
The wheels are the next feature I was talking about. The offset isn't the same as the real car's wheels, but these 10-spoke wheels are close enough for me.
At the end of the day, it's nice being able to have diecast versions of these beautiful Mercedes-Benz race cars. Now if you were to ask me which of the ones I liked the most, then I'd tell you that it's definitely the Sauber-Mercedes C9 and the CLK-GTR. In my opinion, the aforementioned two are the best ones.
So how do you feel about the race cars featured in today's post? Go ahead and let me know down in the comments section. Well, the last racer has finally crossed the finish line, and the sun is starting to set, which means it's time for everyone to make their way to the next race. So that's all for this additional feature. Until then, thanks for reading, and happy collecting. And remember, these are just toys.
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