History of Hot Wheels

The Mattel Co. celebrated the 25th anniversary of its diecast toy cars, Hot Wheels, in 1993. Now we are going on 2006 and they are nearing 40 years in making successful diecast vehicles. They were an instant success right from their introduction in 1968 and they continue to be loved by children and collectors alike. In 1966, Elliot and Ruth Handler, the co-founders of Mattel, set out to develop a diecast car that was "HOT". Their grandkids loved to play with small foreign diecast cars, but their quality was lacking. Mattel decided it would launch its own distinctive diecast cars at its Hawthorne, California design headquarters. When Elliot first saw designer Harry Bradley's classic Southern California hot rod in the parking lot he said, "Man, those are some hot wheels." And so the Hot Wheels brand name was born in 1968, combining the hot-rod theme with the car's new suspension and wheel design. Inspired by this car craze, the Hot Wheels team decided to use the hot rod theme with its exciting paint jobs and body detailing, spectra colors and mag wheels. The first sixteen Hot Wheels cars, sold for 59 cents each, were introduced into the market in 1968, and they featured redline tires, spectraflame paint, a metal collector button, and some had roofs painted black to look like vinyl. First off the assembly line was the Chevrolet Camaro, soon followed by the release of what is currently the most popular vehicle in the line's history- the Corvette. The public saw the Hot Wheels Custom Corvette first before the actual car was introduced by GM. The year 1970 was a milestone in the history of Hot Wheels diecast with the introduction of the Snake and Mongoose cars along with Mattel's first promotional cars made for Jack in the Box and the Hot Wheels Saturday morning television show first aired. As all serious Hot Wheels collectors know, the key to becoming a Hot Wheels expert is knowing the name of the car and the year it was first introduced to the line. In the '80s, Hot Wheels began putting the name on the bottom of the cars. In 1987, the first ever Hot Wheels collectors' convention was held in Toledo, Ohio. Several of the original 16 car models are considered to be extremely rare, and have been valued by collectors well in excess of $1000 each. The scope of Hot Wheels collecting is international as collectors can be found throughout the world, and it is enjoyed by people of all ages