Colin's Toybox: Hot Wheels Ford Frontrunnin' Fairmont

This is an oldie; one of the few cars that's miraculously survived my childhood. Like most of the cars in this era, this Hot Wheels represents a contemporary Ford product--the much-loathed Fairmont Futura two-door. While this casting was available an a plethora of variations, I only managed to save this Color-Changer variation. Shockingly, it still has all its paint; moreover, it still changes color--barely.
As older Hot Wheels go, this one is far more detailed than its newer cousins. It has a molded front fascia, the taillights are recognizable, and the profile is distinctly Fairmont. Unfortunately, this casting, too, suffers from Hot Wheels "big wheel syndrome". This would no doubt look better with same size wheels, but I guess since it's modelled after a rear-wheel-drive car, Mattel's gotta accentuate the wheel arches somehow.
I like this casting, and I would like more in my collection. Sadly, these are creeping up in value, so the odds of finding one cheap are pretty much shot at this point. Oh well. I suppose its good I have one replica in my collection. If I come across any more I will snap them up. Can't hurt, can it?

Colin's Toybox: Hot Wheels Chevrolet Corvette

As a child, I loved the contemporary Corvette, for the same reason I did so the Firebird--it looked cool. As a youngster, I associated the Corvette with all things awesome, even if the car itself was no more cooler than a Camaro. When I was in first grade, a kids' mom had a tan C4 Corvette that I used to get rides home in sometimes. I remember it because it smelled like a combination of burnt cigarettes and stale perfume--not quite a good combination, no? Anyway.. that's not the point. I had a bunch of these cars when I was little-- well, not this exact casting. I had the original Hot Wheels C4 Corvette that was simply titled "1980s Corvette". In 1984, the C4 was introduced, so it could've represented any Corvette from 1984 to 1989. I often called them a vast array of names "85 Corvette", "new Corvette" among many others. Sadly, almost none (except this one) survived my destructive childhood.
This one, I've had for about the same time (I think) as the Peugeot 405 I posted earlier; like it, I baby this one incredibly. I make sure that if there's dust on it, I clean it off. While I don't like the real car very much, I have a strong bond with this lone example of its Hot Wheels brethren. And I hope that does not change.

Colin's Toybox: Hot Wheels 1980s Pontiac Firebird

Like thousands of little boys who grew up in the 1990s, Hot Wheels were a big part of my life; for me, though, the ones I cared about most were replicas of the cars of my youth. Ironically, now I dismiss the third-gen Pontiac Firebird almost entirely, but when I was little kid, I still considered it cool. So much, in fact, that I had version of this "iconic" "muscle-car" by Hot Wheels, Matchbox, Majorette, among a host of other makers.
The Hot Wheels represents my favorite rendition of this car by far; although it suffers somewhat from the typical "skinny" problem most Hot Wheels tend to have, it's worlds better than the fat, stubby Matchbox version, and I won't even harp on the Majorette. Finished in this color combo, this model is an exact replica of one of my favorite childhood toys. For whatever reason, I--rather my parents--bought multiple copies after I would lose one for whatever reason.
Now, nearly fifteen years after my last "new" copy got lost, I managed to secure another one. Even though this newly-acquired replica is still not quite "mint", it's fared a ton better than the examples I beat the mercy out of; and I plan not to do so with this one. I plan to keep this in its current state, not only has a reminder of my childhood, but as a reminder that Hot Wheels actually did realistic cars with realistic, non-far-fetched tampos and wheel sizes. To me, that's what Hot Wheels always has been, and because I am recapturing the lost cars of my youth, it's what Hot Wheels will always be.

Colin's Toybox : Matchbox Nissan Prairie

Today, I present something a bit different in my collection; a minivan. Growing up in the 1990s, the minivan played a vital role in school-children transportation. Sure, the SUV was quickly gaining ground, but minivans were still quite prevalent. Vehicles like the Dodge Caravan, Chevy Lumina APV, Toyota van, and Ford Aerostar were all made by toy companies shortly after their introduction.
Matchbox decided to do one different; since their lineup relied extensively on vehicles available in Europe, the Nissan Prairie was born in diecast form.
Like all of Matchbox's 1980s to mid-1990s offering, this one strays far away from the rampant tampoing and hideous graphics that plagued the later years. Instead of flashy--and quite unrealistic-- paint, this MPV bares the same factory-esque color scheme that makes this generation of toy cars so lovable to me. Obscure (nowadays, anyway) cars in realistic paint jobs; what's not to like?
Apparently, a lot. This model was never popular, be it in toy form on in real life. The Prairie (called the Axxess in the US) was pulled from our market in 1991, roughly at the same time that Matchbox discontinued sales of their replica on our shores.
As a toy car goes, this is one rather unique one; not only is it a decent piece of Nissan history (okay, that's debatable), but it's a vehicle that has more interest in the toy spectrum than the real thing. As a car nut, I am glad I have this thing in my collection; it's one of the oddball vehicles I remember from my youth, and I almost forgot what it looked like until I re-found this little guy.

Colin's Toybox: Hot Wheels Z Cars

For years, Nissan's Z-Cars have been some of my favorite cars--ever. When I was younger, I had a variety of Hot Wheels' replica of these things. Blue with purple graphics, maroon with yellow trim, this purple one (in horrible condition), and I had no shortage of the Z30 and S30 cars either. Sadly, the only Z31 I can remember having as a child was a craptacular purple one with kanji on the side. Did Hot Wheels predict the coming "ricer" fad?
Either way, the Z-car was not quite a Hot Wheels favorite-- the S30 has since been retired, only to be replaced with a new casting, and both the Z31 and Z32 cars died quietly with no funeral. I know these aren't the best diecast Zs out there, but they remind me greatly of my childhood. I have since collected a bit more, and hope to one day to a full family photoshoot of all my Hot Wheels Zs. Someday..

Colin's Toybox: Introductory Post

Many car enthusiasts know that getting a foot into this amazing hobby is started at an early age. For me, that "early age" came very young. Before I could actually pronounce words in their entirety, I was mumbling words like "Corsica", and "Tempo", and I think "Fiero". Like most children growing up in the early-to-mid-1990s, I was drawn to the various Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars that lined the shelves of the local Wal Marts and Targets; unlike a majority of kids my age, I did not really care for the fantasy cars. I greatly preferred the models based on real cars, with realistic paint schemes and non-goofy window and tampo colors.

As I got older, I began to develop a taste for diecasts other than basic Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars; I started buying 1:24, and then a bit later I acquired my first 1:18. But, this where I differed. Some diecast collectors only focus on a specific brand of diecast, while some limit themselves to a particular brand of car, and yet still some only buy for the sake of investment. I am all over the board; I tend to gravitate to cars that I have an interest in. But herein lies the problem. Since my automotive tastes jump all over the board, so does my diecast collection; I have Hot Wheels muscle cars, Matchbox trucks, Johnny Lightning classic cars, and offbrand contemporary cars. Basically, if it has caught my eye in any way, shape or form, it came home with me. And this trend continues today.
With the demise of retail stores stocking diecasts, I have turned to the internet to supplant my collection. On the internet, the selection of cars is far greater than one could hope to ever find in stores; and that's not including ebay. I rarely shop on ebay since it is a hassle for me as I'm a bit iffy on online spending and buying from stranger/non businesses. I have recently developed a favorite site called Milezone. Fast shipping, great selection, and a cool rewards system that lets you return rewards for money and essentially buy cars free once you have enough reward funds.

I used to keep my cars in the original package, and did so for quite a while; then I got to thinking. What good does it do to buy cars and never actually see them? Over the weekend, I plan to open the vast majority of my carded collection, and showcase them here on Sunday nights. I will showcase the first batch of cars next weekend, starting off with a smattering of Hot Wheels cars from my childhood.