First he landed his dream job at General Motors, and then Amaury Diaz-Serrano was asked to do something he’s fantasized about since he was 8 years old - design a Hot Wheels car. His model - The Chevroletor- ended up being a big winner in a Hot Wheels competition. Find out more about the tiny toy that’s a huge hit.

[via vimeo.com]

In celebration of the 40th anniversary of Hot Wheels, the brand has teamed up with Gallery 1988 to host a unique art exhibit, which will feature more than 200 pieces created by pop surrealist artists. While this event has come and gone, you can can catch a quick glimpse at some of the cool creations feature at the show in this video!

[via vimeo.com]

Paul Biddlle from THETOYPEDDLER.COM sent out the following information in his latest email newsletter:

This weekend, April 12th - 13th, we will be running a .25 cent re-list special at The Toy Peddler. IMPORTANT! We will be doing some housecleaning, clearing out old listings. In phase 1, we will eliminate all listings older than 5 years. That will happen next week, so if you have any older inventory, now would be a good time to re-list. If you drop the price slightly, items tend to sell quicker. If you are a buyer, this will be a good opportunity for bargains. In phase 2 we will be deleting listings older than 4 years, and eventually have a 3 year time limit on items that are listed for sale. This should keep our inventory current and available for sale, while eliminating stale listings.

We will also be deleting older “sold” and “hold” listings, which should clear out approx. 50,000 items not currently available for sale. This should also speed up the page loading for the site.

This is obviously good news for both sellers and buyers as fresh listings should be popping up all weekend long. Be sure to check it out!

[via thetoypeddler.com]

There comes a time when someone has to take a stand; a time when one man has to fight for what he believes in and show that he is not afraid to shake up the establishment…that mans is POPEMAN! POPEMAN’s cause is to rid the world of the blind acceptance of mundane diecastdesigns that have shrouded the Hot Wheels community for some time.

His tools are his keen sense of originality in his designs, his innovative use of color, and a steady finger on the fast pulse of the collecting community. And now; POPEMAN wants to share one of his most secret tools he uses to accomplish his mission: the VW POPEMAN BUS!

Partnering with Pope Designs; POPEMAN has allowed the recreation of his VW POPEMAN BUS to come to life. Decked out in POPEMAN’s traditional colors and emblazoned with his battle cry: “AND JUSTICE FOR ART!”…Pope Designs’ faithful recreation of the VW POPEMAN BUS is sure to generate quite a stir in the Hot Wheels Community.

Only 15 versions of this previously unknown vehicle will be produced. However, POPEMAN also commissioned Pope Designs to create 5 additional Pope DIAMOND versions of his beloved bus. The Pope Diamond version will feature extra special Spectraflame Red paint and Real Rider Redline tires to give it an extra special touch of class. Only 13 of 15 regular versions and 3 of 5 DIAMOND versions will be made available for sale; POPEMAN wanted to hold back a few versions for his most trusted comrades. All versions will be on a colorful and original blister card and will include a Protecto-Pak.

Here are the details on the sale:

WHEN: Sunday, April 13th 2008 - 9PM EST, 6PM PST
WHERE: eBay: Seller name: pope-designs Sale name: VW POPEMAN BUS
WHAT: 16 POPEMAN Buses (includes 3 Diamond Versions)
HOW MUCH: $115.00 + $8 S&H

Please note that the blisters will not be attached. This allows for loose display and a much cleaner look. All buyers must assume they are purchasing a regular version of the POPEMAN bus. NO buyer is guaranteed a DIAMOND version. All DIAMOND versions are substituted at random.

So if you want to stand up against the trivial and uninspired designs put forth by the diecast masses and want to believe in someone who can shake the custom art world up; believe in POPEMAN, believe in his cause. He has his enemies; those who are bent on thwarting his efforts and planning his demise; POPEMAN needs your support to fight his fight against dull customs here and around the world!

[via popedesigns.net]

With the 2008 International Diecast X Collectors Expo just around the corner (April 19th & 20th!), we are beginning to see shots from some of the cool pieces that will be available at the show. Greg from WWW.DIEHARD-DIECAST.COM has posted shots of this year’s Pink Drag Bus convention piece and is inviting collectors to visit his site to leave comments about it.

Additional details about the show and pics of more great custom pieces should be available soon! Here are a few shots to get your brain stimulated!

[via diehard-diecast.com]