Just as American collectors will be waking from their “Turkey-induced food comas,” Pope Designs will be launching this year’s Christmas Bus sale. Pope’s 2011 Santa Express VW Drag Bus will officially go on-sale this Friday, November 25th with a limited edition quantity of just 16 pieces.

Of those 16, 12 will be “Standard Editions” featuring Metallic Evergreen paint with Pro-Circuit rimmed front tires. The remaining 4 will be the coveted “Diamond Edition” featuring Metallic Gold paint job along with Redline Real Rider tires. Both editions come mounted in an acrylic case with original Pope Designs artwork on the backdrop card.

Each bus will be available for $90 (plus $6 shipping) on a first-come, first served basis via the Pope Designs eBay page. Diamond Editions will be randomly inserted into orders in place of the Standard Edition. Be sure to visit the Pope Designs Sales Page for more information and to see additional photos of the bus!

Johnny Lightning collectors interested in getting their hands on Release 18 of their Forever64 line should head over to TomsDiecastCars.com to take advantage of their new pre-order deal. For a limited time get a factory sealed case of (12) JL Forever64 Release 18 cars for just $37.95 with FREE shipping in the USA. Canadian Collectors can take advantage of the pre-order offer as well with cases shipping to Canada for $52.95 USD!

Click here to jump over to TomsDiecastCars.com to take advantage of this special offer.

The popular “Drivers” series from M2 Machines returns to retail this fall with a great line-up of classic castings that are sure to put a smile on collector’s faces. Release 12’s castings will include:

• - 1971 Plymouth Cuda HEMI -  Black w/White to Candy Turquoise Flame
• - 1969 Dodge Charger Daytona HEMI -  Black w/White to Candy Orange Flame
• - 1949 Mercury -  Black w/Gold & Green Flame
• - 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air – Black w/Candy Red Flame
• - 1970 Ford Mustang Mach 1 428 -  Black w/Black & Medium Pink Pearl Flame
• - 1969 Pontiac GTO -  Black w/Cyanide Blue Pearl Flame

The Chase piece for this release will a 1949 Mercury in Green with white flames and black pin stripes. Collectors can expect to see these hitting retail in September and October. Some online vendors have this series available for pre-order now.

Catch a glimpse of the Drivers Series Release 12 via these pre-production images. Click either image to see a larger version.

The Classic Cord was one Redline that eluded me for over 10 years of collecting. Up until recently, the Cord and the Olds 442 were the only 2 cars I didn’t have in my collection. Fortunately, that changed this past March when fellow collector Scott Jones offered me a fine Magenta piece from his personal collection (pictured below). The true stars of this article however, belong to Anita Smith (aka Chickluu). Anita is a top-notch collector, and I’m honored to have her allow me to showcase some of her fine examples of the Classic Cord. Anita has been collecting for over 8 years. She’s very knowledgeable with Redlines, and has some very pristine examples in her collection.

At one point in history, E. L. Cord controlled Auburn, Duesenberg, Cord, Lycoming, Stinson Aircraft and American Airways. In 1929, Cord introduced the L-29 – the first front-wheel drive automobile. When the stock market crashed, the luxury car market virtually slowed down to a standstill. E. L. Cord then commissioned Gordon Buehrig to create a baby Duesenberg. The result was a medium priced, front-drive car that became the 810 and 812 models introduced in 1936. The cars brought style and performance to the marketplace. Features included a coffin-nose, retractable headlights and V-8 power. The 812 was available in standard and supercharged version, and only 200 of the supercharged “Phaetons” were created. This supercharged 812 was the automobile Mattel modeled their Classic Cord after.

Mattel’s Classic Cord was designed by Larry Wood. This USA only casting featured a metal base and body and a metal engine with a supercharger sticking thru a lift-up hood. It’s plastic interior only came in black. Other features included a clear windshield, a lift off black plastic roof and of course, Redline tires.

Finishes were available in twelve spectraflame colors with the hardest to find currently being Hot Pink. This casting is very desirable among collectors. C8 examples sell in the range of $75-275 loose. The most valuable Cords are Hot Pink models with pristine loose pieces selling in the $1,900-2,500 range!

Credits: Anita Smith balance of the images. Magenta Cord from the RK Stickels collection. Cord Collectors of America text and images, Tomarts guide #6, Spectraflame-the essential guide.

Additional Redlines from Anita’s collection of cars can be seen in the following book, Hot Wheels Classic Redline Era: Hot Wheels – Birth of the Redline by Angelo Von Bogart (Hardcover – Sep 28, 2009).

The 4th Annual Summer Smash is rolling into Warwick, Rhode Island next week and as usual, there’ll be a ton of great limited edition Code 3 customs on hand at the show for collectors to choose from. Liberty Promotions will be returning this year with another great convention car design in addition to this year’s Rhode Island Hot Wheels Club car. Additional souvenir cars have also been made by the likes of Chris Walker, Bryan Pope, Vince Mosely, Jimmy “The Boxman” Chavez, Bone Shaker and M&S Customs.

Get a sneak peek of some of the great creations via the gallery below. Click on any of the thumbnails to see a large version of the images.

Collectors interested in attending Summer Smash should make the jump over to the official Summer Smash website for more information on tickets and accommodations. I hope to see you there!

Join me in wishing Pro Diecast Customizer and Diecast Hall of Fame Inductee Bryan Pope a very Happy Birthday! Stay in touch with everything going on at Pope Designs by joining the mailing list, “friending” Bryan on Facebook and “liking” the Pope Designs Facebook page.

Bryan’s next convention appearance will be at the Summer Smash coming up on August 25th thru the 28th. Be sure to visit the official Summer Smash website for more info on tickets and accommodations.

It will be the ONLY way for collectors to get the remaining Pope Designs 5th Anniversary Camaros now that the online sale is over!

The 2nd Annual KustomKon wrapped up this past weekend in Dallas, and a small selection of the remaining event and souvenir cars from the convention are now available in the DiecastSpace online store. Collectors will find a variety of castings to choose from that were customized by the likes of Chris “Nightstalker” Walker, Albert “Kool51” Avila and Tony “SDChopShop” Monzon. However, you’ll need to act fast since only a small quantity of each are left after the convention.

Here is a sampling of some of the cars currently available. Click any image to see a larger version.

Click here to jump over to the DiecastSpace store to view the remaining KustomKon cars.

Just over a year ago, the DiecastSpace Magical Weekend of Cars rolled into the Swan and Dolphin Hotel at DisneyWorld in Orlando, Florida, and we were fortunate to have Jake and the crew from Tail Fins and Chrome at the event to capture some of the atmosphere and personalities at the convention.

The episode aired on RTV and TUFF TV on May 1st, but the Tail Fins crew has made the full episode available for those who missed it! Segments from the convention include interviews with me, die-cast author Mike Zarnock, die-cast designer Eric Tscherne, DCS Staffer Jason Bennett and female collector, Katerina. As an added bonus, the episode includes a great segment from the Hot Wheels room at the Peterson Automotive Museum.

The convention segments are sprinkled between some cool footage of a pretty impressive police car (1:1 scale!) collection, so make sure you watch the whole episode to see everything from the Magical Weekend!

Be sure to check out the Tail Fins and Chrome website to catch more full length episodes or to see if the show is available on cable TV in your area.

The next Magical Weekend of Cars will be rolling into Anaheim, CA in the Summer of 2012, but there are plenty of great events to attend in the meantime. Check out ToyCarConventions.com for a complete listing of all the DiecastSpace events nationwide.

The Diecast Hall of Fame Class of 2012 was officially announced at the 2011 DiecastSpace Collector Experience in Nashville, Tennessee earlier this month. An incredible number of nominees were on the ballot in each category this year and it certainly created some difficult decision making for the committee.

As in the past, each inductee will be contacted to confirm that they will be accepting their induction into the Hall of Fame. The ability for each inductee to be present at the 2012 Diecast Hall of Fame ceremony will also be confirmed and publicly listed as that information becomes available.

The inductees for each category in the Class of 2012 include:

In addition, the following DCS Staff members will be inducted under the “Intriguing Collectors” category as announced during the 2011 Diecast Hall of Fame ceremony:

Bob Ratliff, Tony Monzon, Jason Bennett, John Kennedy, Tom Brust, Frank Kelly, Paul Wooten and Cullen Lee

The 2012 Diecast Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will take place during the 2012 DiecastSpace Super Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada at the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino from February 22nd thru the 26th. Information on tickets and accommodations to the convention can be found at Diecastspace.com. Admission to the ceremony itself is free and open to the public.

The official Maisto “Daily Doses” blog has announced plans for the creation of a new online fan club geared towards the hardcore Maisto collector. The club will focus on bringing more information and die-cast goodies to fans of the brand via a membership-based club. Both free and low-cost premium membership levels are being created to allow all levels of collectors to become part of the Maisto community.

Los Angeles-based marketing agency, RAINDEO | BEAUTIFUL has been selected to spearhead the fan club project after their success the brought Maisto with last holiday’s Rock Crawler Giveaway. The first order of business in creating the new club will be to select its official name, and collectors will be invited to help make that selection via a voting process that should be opened to collector input within the next week or so.

Its good to see a larger manufacturer like Maisto deciding to put some money behind building a community platform for their collector base. If done properly, this could really give Maisto a boost in attracting the more hardcore collectors to the brand, and I’m looking forward to seeing how this new endeavor changes their brand perception.

Stay tuned for more information as things progress towards the anticipated Fall 2011 launch. Until then, be sure to check out (and “Like”) the Maisto page on Facebook.

Collectors on Facebook saw a glimpse of the location that was selected for the second Magical Weekend of Cars convention being planned for 2012. East coast diecast fans enjoyed the first Magical Weekend when it came to Disneyworld in Orlando, Florida in 2010, and now it appears that west coast collectors will be closer to next year’s event when it rolls into Anaheim, California.

Stay tuned for more information on this exciting new announcement. We’ll be sure to share the details as soon as it becomes available!

Collectors interested in attending any of the other DiecastSpace conventions coming up this year can find more information on ToyCarConventions.com.

As I mentioned back in April, Mattel has been promoting their Fearless at the 500 World Record jump attempt, and the main event which happened last weekend just before the start of the Indianapolis 500 went off without a hitch. Not only did they break the record by jumping an off-road truck more than 302 feet, but the true identity of the Team Hot Wheels Yellow Driver was finally revealed as professional race and stunt driver Tanner Foust.

Foust is an accomplished rally and drift car champion and has worked as a stunt driver/double for movies such as Iron Man 2, The Fast and the Furious and The Dukes of Hazzard. More recently he starred as one of the hosts of the American version of Top Gear on the History Channel.

Here’s the video footage of the record breaking jump as well as some behind the scenes footage with Tanner if you haven’t seen the great footage yet.

There’s just a few weeks left until the Collector Experience rolls into Nashville from June 16th thru the 19th, and from the looks of things its going to be one heck of a convention! Collectors who have never attended a DiecastSpace convention before will see first-hand why these events are truly an “experience” and not just cookie cutter show. There’ll be something for everyone in Nashville no matter if you collect Hot Wheels, Matchbox, Johnny Lightning, Greenlight or M2 Machines. All brands of diecast are featured at the Collector Experience!

The three main days of the convention are packed full of great activities like Diecast Bingo, Diecast UNO, Downhill Racing, in-room trading, autograph sessions and vending machine pull sessions featuring the debut of the DiecastSpace Vending Machine that will be packed full of all sorts of goodies and special surprises. Add in the RAOK Party, Legends Dinner and Charity Auction and you have the recipe for a fun filled couple of days.

A variety of special guests are scheduled to attend the Collector Experience as well! Diecast personalities include Hot Wheels Designers Larry Wood, Eric Tscherne and Wayne Scott as well as Diecast Authors Mike Zarnock and Bob Parker. Ben “Cooter” Jones from The Dukes of Hazard is also set to make an appearance, so be sure to bring your General Lee castings for the autograph sessions! You’ll also find several of your favorite Pro Diecast Customizers like Bryan Pope and Chris Walker in attendance with some special limited edition diecast pieces for sale.

Of course, the main reason to attend a convention is for the cars, right? A wide selection of custom convention cars have been created for the weekend. Collectors attending the premium events such as Bingo and UNO will receive their special cars for those activities during the events themselves. Those attending the convention under a general admission ticket will still have the ability to browse and purchase any of the Collector Experience branded souvenir cars. Here’s a sneak peek of come of the various cars that have been created. Click on any image to see a larger version.

If all this weren’t enough, Liberty Promotions will be giving away a FREE VW Drag Bus to anyone who books three or more nights at the convention hotel on the trading floors! Information about tickets and accommodations can be found on ToyCarConventions.com, or you can book your hotel directly by calling (615) 259-2000 and using the group code “DIECAST.”

We hope to see you there!

After a short pre-order period, the Custom Crew’s new Mooneyes Sledster is now shipping. This release mark several changes for the company including their first corporate licensing partnership, as well as the ability to purchase chase pieces as part of a four pack.

Similar to previous Custom Crew releases, both the standard and chase editions of the Mooneyes Sledster come in two different colors. The standard edition is available in Satin Black or Yellow and is limited to just 864 pieces of each color. The chase edition comes in metallic grey or metallic gold and is limited to just 384 pieces.

Collectors who purchase individual pieces will have a random chance of getting a chase piece inserted into their order in place of a standard edition Sledster. “Gotta have’m all” collectors will be pleased to see that The Custom Crew now offers a complete set of all four Sledsters for $239.96.

Click here to jump over to The Custom Crew website to place your order.

- Click any image to see a larger version -

A copy of this Summer Smash 4 poster surfaced towards the end of last week and features renders of the many of the custom cars being produced for this year’s convention. The gas pump packaging is clearly a Jimmy “The Boxman” Chavez creation which is a good indication that at least a few (if not all) of these pieces will be coming from the package master.

Quantity and pricing on these pieces is still to be determined, but attendees of Summer Smash 4 will certainly be the first to have a chance to add these to their collection. Be sure to visit the Official Summer Smash 4 website for details on tickets and accommodations to this convention.

VW Drag Bus Fans will be happy to see that the Regular and Rebel Run Editions of Liberty Promotion’s Diecast Hall of Fame Bus are now available to all Liberty Legion membership levels. Both versions of the bus were originally scheduled to be on sale last February during the 2011 DiecastSpace Super Convention along with the “Ceremonial Edition” which was only available to attendees of the Hall of Fame Ceremony.

The regular version is limited to 1250 pieces and the Rebel Run version is limited to 250. Each bus is available for $26.99 (USD) plus shipping. Rebel Run versions are randomly inserted into orders and are only available by chance.

Click here to jump over to the Liberty Promotions sale page

Note: At the time of publishing this article, a small quantity of the “Ceremonial Edition” bus has been made available at the DiecastSpace online store. Like the Rebel Run, this version of the Hall of Fame bus is also only limited to 250 pieces and is selling for more than the $59.99 asking price on the secondary markets.

Click here to jump over to the DiecastSpace store to check availability on the Ceremonial Edition bus.

Dips in the economy aside, its a really good time to be a diecast collector. There have never been more options to attend a live event and connect with fellow collectors for some fun in this hobby that we all know and love. This year features large events that will definitely peak your interest no matter what brand or scale you collect. Here’s a quick rundown of each in order of occurrence including links out to their respective sites to get more information:

The Nashville Collector Experience – June 16-19, 2011 – Nashville, TN

Diecastspace returns to their “Collector Experience” style convention that will include special presentations from sponsoring manufacturers as well as your favorite standard events like the Legends Dinner, Camaro Bingo, the RAOK Party, Diecast UNO, In-Room Trading,  Charity Auction, the Customs Contest, Downhill Racing, in-room trading and much more. This convention also marks the debut of the Diecastspace Vending machine which will be packed full of amazing diecast surprises.

Special Guests for Nashville include Hot Wheels Designers Larry Wood, Wayne Scott and Eric Tscherne, Hot Wheels Author Mike Zarnock, Tom Zahorsky from Johnny Lightning and Ben “Cooter” Jones from the Dukes of Hazzard TV Show.

The Canada Convention – July 13-17, 2011 – Toronto, Canada

The Canadian Diecast Convention returns for its second year at an all new location in Toronto. Mattel will be in attendance with the Hot Wheels Live Tour Trailer featuring awesome Hot Wheels displays and exclusive Hot Wheel merchandise that will only be available on the tour. The Official Hot Wheels Vending Machine will also be on hand which is always a blast. Other events will include the Legends dinner, RAOK party, downhill racing, Diecast UNO, Diecast Bingo, the customs contest, a Redlines seminar, in-room trading and much more. Sears will also be sponsoring a special event thats not to be missed!

The Special Guests for this event are still to be announced.

Lightning Fest - July 15-16, 2011 – Dyersville, IA

Lightning Fest is the main event to attend for the die-hard Johnny Lightning collector. Held each year at the RC@ Outlet store in Dyersville, Iowa, this FREE two day event is packed full of great family-friendly activities. Such activites include Gravity Racing, a customs contest, daily raffles, a Design forum, Diecast Bingo, charity auctions, a full-scale car show and in-room trading. The Diecastspace vending machine will laso be on hnad and stocked with lot s of great JL products and surprises.

A yet to be announced special celebrity guest from the Dukes of Hazzard TV show is also planned for the event.

KustomKon – August 4-7, 2011 – Dallas, TX

The Diecastspace KustomKon returns to Dallas this summer and features activities for diecast customizers and regular collectors alike. The focus of the conference will be a series of seminars for those who have never customized before all the way up through the advanced customizer. Regular collectors will enjoy in-room trading, the Legends Dinner, the RAOK Swap, limited edition convention cars and the Sunday toy show. All of your favorite professional diecast customizers are set to attend.

Special celebrity guests George Barris and Little Daddy Dennis Roth will be in attendance as well.

Hot Wheels Summer Smash – August 25-28, Warwick, RI

The Summer Smash returns for its fourth year and is New England’s ONLY diecast convention for 2011. All of your favorite activities are scheduled including a Customs Show for kids & adults, the Sunday Toy Show, Sizzler Racing, the Bob Parker trivia contest, the Liberty Promotions Treasure Quest, a Charity Auction and Dinner, Room to Room Trading, a Saturday Car Cruise, Down Hill Racing for kids & adults, an Interactive Customs Seminar by East Coast Real Riders and more. The Diecastspace vending machine is also scheduled to be on hand.

Special guests schedule to attend include Hot Wheels Designer Larry Wood,  Jimmy “The Box Man” Chavez, Tom Zahorsky from Johnny Lightning, Hot Wheels Author  Mike Zarnock, Hot Wheels and Matchbox Author Bob Parker,  Lee Pearlman from Liberty Promotions,  Chris Walker “Night Stalker”, Vince  V-Man Mosely, and Dave Chang

Pope Designs continues their 5th Anniversary celebrations with the release of this limited edition “Atlantic City” VW Drag Bus. Limited to just 30 pieces, this bus was created as an offering to the attendees of the upcoming Diecastspace Dragbus Getaway at the Trump Taj Mahal Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, NJ.

The Pope Designs 5th Anniversary VW Drag Bus features Real Rider front tires, Anniversary artwork, an acrylic case, a custom backdrop insert and the all new custom acrylic case sleeve packaging that was designed exclusively for the Anniversary series. As an added bonus, each bus will include a Pope Designs 5th Anniversary Pin mounted inside the case.

Fortunately for collectors, Pope Designs has decided to make a quantity of these buses available to their online fans first and will be holding a special sale this weekend. Here are the details:

Date: Sunday, May 8 2011
Time: 9:00pm EST
Where: eBay.com
Seller ID: pope-designs
Quantity: 15
Sale Price: $100 + $7 S&H (USD)

Click either image to see the larger version

There are still a number of Pope Designs casting in the works that will be coming out during the remainder of the year. Be sure to head over to PopeDesigns.com and sign up for their e-mail list to be alerted when new offerings become available!

Last week the latest installment of Mattel’s “Ask a Designer” video series was released on the Official Hot Wheels YouTube channel, and this time around collectors got to have their questions answered by the legendary Larry Wood.

Larry provided some great answers to many of the common questions I’ve heard collectors ask over the years about the Hot Wheels design process and how cars get selected to be made. We also get an update on the 1:1 scale COE that Larry’s been building over the years. I can’t wait until he’s able to bring it around to the conventions!

Collectors who would like the opportunity to meet Larry in person should check out on of the conventions he’ll be attending this summer. He’s currently scheduled to be the guest of honor at the 2011 Collector Experience in Nashville, TN on June 16-19 and at the 4th Annual Hot Wheels Summer Smash in Warwick, Rhode Island on August 25-28.

Collectors who regularly attend conventions are most likely familiar with Mattel’s popular Hot Wheels Vending Machine that has become a feature attraction over the years. Standing in a massive line of fellow diecast enthusiasts while waiting for a chance to see what mysterious Hot Wheels goodness will fall from the innards of the giant metal box is one activity that many collectors look forward to at each event.

If you haven’t had a chance to attend one of the many conventions that the vending machine makes a stop at then, picture if you will, a snack style vending machine – the type with spiral bars that moves your selection towards you after making your desired “letter/number” selection. However, the snacks have been replaced with premium limited edition Hot Wheels products that are normally available for members of the HotWheelsCollectors.com Redline Club, and the identity of the item you’ve selected remains hidden behind frosted glass until its pulled from the spring-hinged door at the bottom of the machine. Add in the antics of Mattel’s Chris Parker, who runs the vending machine events and you have a recipe for fun turned up to “11!”

Mattel’s Hot Wheels vending machine has appeared at many conventions over the years including numerous DiecastSpace conventions, the annual Summer Smash in Rhode Island, the Wild Weekend of Hot Wheels and of course, the official Hot Wheels Conventions that occur each spring and fall. Unfortunately, the vending machine is not always available for every event. The team over at DiecastSpace recognized the value that the vending machine has brought to their events and has come up with a solution to ensure that the fun continues on.

This June, the brand new “Diecastspace Vending Machine” will make its debut at the Nashville Collector Experience in Nashville, Tennessee. As you can see from the rendering, it will be decked out in flames and will proudly display the Diecastspace logo – but, while the outside looks great, collectors know that its whats on the inside that counts! Convention attendees can expect to find all sorts of products from the major diecast manufacturers being stocked in the machine. This means collectors could find Hot Wheels products, convention pieces, White Lightnings, Green Machines, Liberty Promotions products, M2 Machines Chase Pieces and much more coming with their pulls. Rumor has it that even the customizers will be getting in on the fun and will be producing limited edition pieces that will be part of the mix!

The new vending machine is certainly an exciting new development for the DiecastSpace family of conventions and I’ll be sure to share photos of it when the vinyl-wrapping process is complete. Be sure to visit ToyCarConventions.com for information on tickets and accommodations for the Nashville Collector Experience so you can be part of the fun!

This year marks the 100th-anniversary of the Indianapolis 500 and Mattel will be making its mark on the day with a spectacular stunt being coined as “Fearless at the 500". Approximately 1 hour before the start of the race, a custom built 1:1 scale vehicle will be released from a nine story, live size Hot Wheels track.

The track itself is being placed in the infield area of the speedway’s fourth turn and will take approximately 3 weeks to construct. An artist’s rendering of the track and tower can been seen to the right. The identity of the truck’s driver will remain unknown until the completion of the stunt at which point it will be revealed. The stunt itself has been designed to be a record breaking jump of 302 feet with a landing area somewhere near the speedway’s short chute near turns three and four.

Promotional tickets with prime seating for the stunt in the grandstand facing the landing are being offered up for $80 and $90. The ticket package includes a Hot Wheel replica, discounts and a $5 coupon for IMS merchandise.

Check out the teaser video below.

Those who have to deal with a daily commute to and from work probably notice new billboards every now and then, but tend to ignore them as time goes on. However, citizens of Bogata, Columbia certainly won’t be able to ignore this amazing new life-sized loop-de-loop that was constructed on an overpass.

The idea was for the billboard was conceived by ad giant Ogilvy and Mather’s Columbia branch. Its curious that South America was chosen for the debut location, but certainly doesn’t make it any less cool!

Last week Tomy Co., the Japanese maker of Transformers and Pokemon toys announced that they will be purchasing RC2 Corp for $640 million. News sources have been focusing on Tomy’s interest in RC2’s Thomas the Train brand as the primary reason for the acquisition. However, here in the diecast car collecting world, fans of RC2’s Johnny Lightning brand are anxiously waiting for some type of news regarding the future and/or fate of the cars they love.

Tomy has been involved with diecast cars for a long time via their Tomica brand that, for the most part, caters towards kids through lower end cars and playsets. Tomy recently announced availability of Tomica products in the US as well. It should be interesting to see how the merger affects both Tomica and Johnny Lightning, if at all. There might not be any change at all if Tomy decides to keep the brands separate and lets them run as they are. Alternatively, collectors could start seeing higher end Tomica lines and Johnny Lightning playsets if the two are blended together.

Of course, this is all speculation – so I reached out to Tom Zahorsky, Senior Design Manager at Johnny Lightning to see if he could shed any light on situation. Seeing how the ink is barely dry on the contracts, Tom was not able to comment much other than to say “its business as usual and we hope to grow all our current brands.”

In the meantime, collectors should get out there and continue to support Johnny Lightning buy continuing to purchase and build your collections. I’ll be sure to share any updates as they become available.

Additional details about the acquisition itself can be found on Bloomberg Businessweek.

On Thursday March 10, Hot Wheels lit up Circular Quay, showcasing groundbreaking 3D projection technology at Customs House in Sydney, Australia. In a spine tingling show, the notorious Hot Wheels™ Skull Racers shattered the facade of Customs House as they competed in the ultimate speed racing battle.

Brought to life by international digital advertising agency Muse Amsterdam, in collaboration with PostPanic and BeamSystems, the projection featured footage of the world’s fastest vehicles in a stunt ridden challenge, travelling through the Customs House facade and into a fantasy world. Hot Wheels fans, young and old, were kept on the edge of their seats as the racers smashed their way through one of Sydney’s most historic buildings.

As cool as this looks on YouTube, I can only image how amazing it must have been in person!

Jada Collectors rejoiced when two new lines began popping up on the pegs as we rolled into the 2011 collecting year. The first of those is the new 1:64 scale Bigtime 4Wheelin’ series thats a strong offering and rapidly becoming a hit with collectors of both off-road vehicles and monster trucks alike.

If you haven’t been able to catch a look at these first hand in the stores, then this overdue multi-part pictorial should wet your appetite for Wave 1 of these dirt loving beauties. Be sure to hunt these down at your favorite online or brick and mortar retailer if you like’em. We need to let Jada know that the collectors are still craving all things with that distinctive “Jada style!”

Part 1 of this 3 part series features the 2006 Hummer H1 and the 1957 Chevy Suburban.

Click on any image to see the larger version

The 2011 DCX Expo rolls into the Fairplex in Pomona, CA as part of the RCX Expo on March 19th and 20th, and in celebration of the event Diehard-Diecast.com is offering up a limited run of custom VW Drag Buses. In years past these buses had only been made available to collectors who were physically attending the expo. This year two different versions of the bus have been created to accommodate both those who can make it and those who can only order online.

The first “INTERNET ONLY” version features black paint with this year’s DCX logo with flames design. The basic piece comes with plastic wheels and the chase piece features redline real rider tires. This bus comes on a custom DCX/Diehard Diecast card and is limited to just 150 pieces. Orders for this bus can be placed online for $70 each (USD) and you can choose whether you’d like to have it shipped or if you’d like to pick it up in person at the show.

Click any image to see the larger version

The second “ATTENDEE” version of the bus features bright green paint with the same logo and flame design. The basic piece comes with plastic wheels and the chase piece features redline real rider tires. It also comes on a custom DCX/Diehard Diecast card (with matching bright green color) and is limited to just 150 pieces. This version of the bus can also be ordered online for $65 each (USD) but MUST BE PICKED UP IN PERSON AT THE EVENT. The Attendee version will not be available for shipping.

Click here to jump over to Diehard-Diecast and place your order.

Of course, attending the expo in person is the best option and the line up of vendors is looking great. This year’s confirmed exhibitors include Lionel NASCAR Collectibles, M2 Machines, Ertl Collectibles, The Custom Crew and GreenLight Collectibles. The popular “Customs Alley” returns as well and will feature Jimmy “The Box Man” Chavez, Jay Holt of Execution Customs, Sheri Abbey of Sheri’s Wheels and Alvaro Gonzalez of Pipe Customs. FREE passes to the 2011 DCX Expo are available by contacting Diehard-Diecast via the Contact page on their website.

Hot Wheels Redlines collector Scott Jones recently put together this great photo montage to share with the collecting community. If you’re into Redlines then you’ll surely enjoy feasting your eyes on these great shots.

Some of Scott’s photos can also be seen in the occasional Stick’s Redline Garage post here on DiecastAudio.

DiecastAudio is proud to welcome TomsDiecastCars.com as the newest advertiser here on the site. Tom’s offers a wide variety of Hot Wheels products as well as various lines from Johnny Lightning, GreenLight and Racing Champions.

For a limited time, DiecastAudio readers can take advantage of a 5% discount off of all purchases by using the promo-code “DIECASTAUDIO.” Give’em a try next time you’re looking to make a purchase for your collection and let use know what you think!

Collectors in the Ohio area should take not of this great Spring event hosted by the Northeast Ohio Hot Wheels Club. There will be room to room trading, 90+ vendor/dealer tables, an event car, a customs contest, downhill racing, and much more.

Here are the details:

When: May 15, 2011 from 9:30am to 1:30pm
Where: Holiday Inn, 15471 Royalton Rd, Strongsville, OH 44136
Website or Map: http://www.neohwc.com
Event Type: Hot Wheels, &, diecast, show
Organized By: Northeast Ohio Hot Wheels Club

Earlier this week Mattel debuted their upcoming “Wall Tracks” product line at the 2011 New York Toy Fair. This unique twist on traditional Hot Wheels track sets takes familiar looking stunt track segments and moves them off the floor and onto the walls with the help of 3M adhesive Command strips. Known for being able to hold tremendous amounts of weight, the use of 3M strips ensures that removing or reconfiguring the track will keep your walls in perfect condition.

Kids and collectors alike can expect to see Hot Wheels Wall Tracks sets to hit retailers this coming fall in plenty of time for the 2011 holiday season. The starter set should retail for around $30 (USD) and are compatible with existing Hot Wheels track sets which will allow the action to continue on from the wall to the floor for even more fun!

Check out this video from Mattel’s booth at the Toy Fair for a demonstration of a Wall Tracks setup in action.

Hot off the heels of the recently sold-out DragBus.com membership package comes the announcement of an all new DiecastSpace.com site geared specifically for fans of the Hot Wheels Dairy Delivery casting. The website itself will have its debut and official launch on February 26th at the Super Convention in Las Vegas Nevada. At that time you’ll be able to join the site for free and start interacting with fellow Dairy-D collectors.

DiecastSpace has also announced the availability of a limited edition premium membership package that includes the following items:

• (6) Dairy Deliveries (1 every other month starting in May)
• (1) 1/24 DivCruizer (Ships June 1)
• (1) 25% Off coupon to use for one year
• (1) DairyCollector.Com Sweatshirt
• (1) 2011 Dallas KustomKon Dairy Alternate Color Chase Piece Member Only
• (1) Christmas Chase Dairy with Real Rubber Tires Exclusive to Members Only

There are only 50 premium membership packages available and are currently on sale now for $250 (USD) each in the DiecastSpace Store. The DragBus.com premium membership package sold out in less than 12 hours, so be sure to act fast if you’d like to take advantage of this great offer.

Click here to jump over to the DCS Store to check availability and purchase.

Johnny Lightning and Diecastspace have announced a first ever Super Convention chase
contest that will happen at the 2011 Super Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada next week. During the convention, 50 Johnny Lightning cars will be randomly handed out and on Saturday, February 26, one lucky winner will be awarded a prize pack valued at $1000!

Each of the 50 Johnny Lightning cars are Tim Flock’s Fabulous Hudson Hornet and includes a QR-code on the bottom of each box. Each entrant can bring their car to the convention hall to have the QR Code on the car’s packaging scanned by the Diecastspace Girls to see if it’s a winner. The cars can also be scanned by convention goers if they have a QR Reader application on their phones.

The lucky winner will win the $1000 prize pack that includes a preproduction sample of the Tim Flock Fabulous Hudson Hornet, authentic Johnny Lightning artwork, JL gear, White Lightning’s and a variety of Johnny Lightning releases. The winner must be present with the winning car to be awarded the prize.

This contest is just one of the many great events happening at the 2011 Super Convention. Be sure to visit ToyCarConventions.com for more information on tickets and accommodations. This is certainly turning out to be a “must-attend” convention with over 1000 collectors set to descend on sin-city next week!

The crew over at DiecastSpace just posted a screen shot showing that ticket sales for the 2011 Super Convention just passed the 1000 ticket mark. Attendance at each Super Convention has consistently grown over the last 3 years and this one is shaping up to be the biggest event yet.

DiecastSpace conventions have found success by catering to collectors of all types of diecast cars regardless of brand or scale. This unique aspect combined with family-friendly activities and budget-minded prices make for a lot of value for the collectors dollar. Add in this year’s Diecast Hall of Fame induction ceremony that will feature the likes of racing legends Richard Petty, Ernie Irvan and Shirley Muldowney and you have an experience that just can’t be beat!

Information on tickets and accommodations for the Super Convention or any other DiecastSpace event coming up this year can be found at ToyCarConventions.com.

Actor Jeremy Piven has teamed up with Mattel to star in this hilarious video entitled “The Fifth Racer” that launched on FunnyOrDie.com today. Piven plays the role of a coffee guy who desperately wants to be the fifth member of Team Hot Wheels and shows off his best stunts to see if he’s got what it takes to make the team.

The video seems to be produced in support of promoting Mattel’s Hot Wheels fan page on Facebook. Hopefully this will be the first of many viral video efforts coming from the Hot Wheels brand!

What do you think of the video? Leave your thoughts via the comments section below.

Collectors and fans of the ultra-popular Hot Wheels VW Dragbus casting might be interested in taking advantage of a new special membership offer from DragBus.com. Each membership package will include the following benefits:

• (4) VW Drag Buses – 1 Every 3 Month’s
• 25% Off Coupon Code to use on any store purchases
• (1) 1/18 VW Drag Bus
• (1) DragBus.Com MousePad
• (2) HotCases VW Drag Bus Inserts
• (1) Hot Cases Bag

First 1:64 scale bus ships with the 1:18 scale Bus, the Hot Cases Bag, Inserts and Mouse pad on June 1st. Be sure to act fast as this special offer is LIMITED TO ONLY 30 MEMBERSHIPS and will likely sell out fast!

UPDATE: As anticipated, all 30 memberships are officially sold out. Be sure to sign up for the free account on DragBus.com to stay informed of any additional offerings that might come up in the future.

Click here to jump over to ToyCarConventions.com and take advantage of this special offer.

The Midnight Racing has become one of the more popular events at the various Diecastspace conventions and attendees of the 2011 Diecastspace Super Convention will have the opportunity to participate in a extra special version of the race. What will make the event special is the limited edition set of Hot Wheels Muscle Tone castings designed by Eric Tscherne.

Not only did Eric create the actual First Edition Muscle Tone casting for Mattel back in 2000, but he’s also selected the colors and come up with an all new graphic design for the cars that will be available for the race.

Eric has been releasing the e-sheets for the car on Facebook over the last few weeks. Collectors who are able to snag one of these beauties will truly have a great souvenir commemorating both the Super Convention and Eric’s induction into the Diecast Hall of Fame.

Be sure to visit the ToyCarConventions.com for information on tickets and accommodations to the 2011 Super Convention being held in Las Vegas, Nevada on February 24th through the 27th.

Sure, I’m I diecast collector – but I also have an extreme love for all things related to tech and gadgets. I still have yet to make it out to Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show (someday, someday!!), but if I had this year I would have witnessed what could quite possibly be a nice combination of both my interests. That combination comes in the form of what will be called the “Hot Wheels Video Racer.”

Each 1:64 scale car features a built in miniature POV (point-of-view) camera in the front AND a tiny LCD screen on the bottom that can be used to instantly view your recorded footage without needing to connect the car to another display device. A simple button push on top of the car starts and stops the record at will. Mattel has also created an easy to use software editing program geared towards kids that will allow you to transfer the video footage off the car onto a computer where it can be edited and customized with music. An additional feature that makes this product even cooler is the included protective case for the car. The case allows the car to be used outside (attached to a bike or skateboard, etc) for an even better video capture experience.

Each Hot Wheel’s Video Racer will retail for $59.99 USD and will be hitting store shelves this fall. Check out the video below from the Mattel booth at CES 2011.

There’s just over a month left until the 2011 Diecastspace Super Convention rolls into the Tropicana Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the final stages of planning are starting to fall into place. One of the more notable tidbits (Did I just say tidbits..?!) of news to come out recently was the announcement that Dennis Gage, car aficionado and host of TV’s “My Classic Car” will be the emcee for this year’s Diecast Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.

Dennis’s engaging personality and wealth of automotive knowledge is sure to bring a unique twist to the festivities on induction night. Coincidentally, the new season of My Classic Car is set to premiere the day after the ceremony. How cool is that!

Be sure to visit the official 2011 Super Convention page on ToyCarConventions.com for information on tickets and accommodations to the event. Its going to be one heck of weekend thats not to be missed.

Diehard-Diecast.com’s exclusive Fire Series has launched with this fantastic limited edition Volkswagen Fire Bus. The piece is available in both Basic and Chase versions, both of which were designed by Lou Tanahara. The Basic version comes with plastic wheels and a white top. The Chase version features rubber Real Rider tires and a Pearl White top. Each drag bus comes packaged in a custom Diehard-Diecast blister card and will sell for $80 (USD).

Chase pieces will be randomly inserted into orders. Collectors can expect a 1-in-10 chance of receiving a chase piece.

Click any image to see the larger version

Click here to jump over to the Fire Series page on Diehard-Diecast.com

An assortment of current Johnny Lightning product happened to land on the DiecastAudio doorstep, so I thought it might be a good opportunity to try out my new lighting setup and see how they come out. Let me know what you think of them via the comments section below!

The shipments consisted of the 1977 Ford Van and 1963 Ford Galaxie 500 from JL 2.0 Release 4, the 1964 Dodge 330 Superstock and 1970 Chevy Camaro Funny Car from JL 2.0 Release 3 and the all new 1979 International Scout II casting from JL Release 10.

Features that caught me eye this time around include the cool flip up body on the Camaro Funny car, the reverse opening hood on the Scout and the great “Dirty Donny” graphics of the Ford Van. Each of these great pieces are available now from your favorite brick and mortar or online retailer.

Click any image to see the larger version!

Artist Chris Burden has created what could quite possibly be the coolest Hot Wheels track I have ever seen. Dubbed Metropolis II, this art sculpture represents the insanely huge volume of traffic in Los Angeles by featuring 1,200 custom-designed cars and 18 lanes. The piece is accented with other items to make it a true “Metropolis” – which include 13 toy trains and tracks as well as buildings made of wood block, tiles, Legos and Lincoln Logs that dot the landscape.

Burden estimates that 100,000 cars circulate through the city every hour – wow!! Check out the video below for a look at this amazing creation.

Collectors who have eagerly been waiting to see what type of holiday creation Chris “NightStalker” Walker comes up with this year will be pleasantly surprised to see that this year’s sale will include three different castings to choose from! Each casting will be sold individually and will not be offered as a set.

A run-down of each piece is shown below. Click on any image to see the larger version.

Rudolph’s Rod Shop Panel:

Painted in pearl red with real rider tires. Rudolph’s Custom Rod Shop graphics adorn the sides and top of this little gem. These are limited to only 10 and come numbered in an acrylic case.

Price is $55.

Alien Projects Custom Convoy:

Dressed in pearl white and green paint with red real-riders. “Happy Holidays from Alien Projects” graphics on the side as a little homage to Alien Projects.  Limited to only 10 and numbered in an acrylic case.

Price is $65.

NightStalker’s Holiday VW Bus:

Painted with candy spectraflame red over chrome with Pro Circuit wheels.  Custom Holiday graphics adorn this wonderful piece. Comes limited to 20 and numbered in an acrylic case.

Price is $75.

Two notable aspects of this sale are the prices and the “added bonus.” Chris will be offering up each piece at a price point that ranges between $55 and $75 depending on the casting. Your wallet will certainly like that! He has also hinted that each person who makes a purchase will get a special “die-cast treat” as well. Now that’s some holiday spirit!

The sale starts on Thursday, December 2nd at 6PM PST (9PM EST) on the Night Stalker Customs website. A purchasing button will become active when the sale begins. Chris advises that if the sale button doesn’t show up, your computer may be "cached."  Dump your cookies and reset your browser to see the updated page.

Pope Designs is preparing for an extra special holiday season this year as Christmas 2010 will mark their 5th anniversary. To celebrate the occasion, a new version of the Kringle Delivery Service VW Drag Bus has been created. The original graphics from the first version sold four Christmas seasons ago have been updated and applied to a great selection of two-tone colors.

Collectors of Pope Designs work are well aware of the highly sought after “Diamond Editions” which typically feature real rubber front tires and are produced in a lower quantity. This time around, the Diamond Edition has been eliminated as all the buses in the run will feature real rubber tires and an even number of each color have been produced.

Here are details for the sale:

Where: eBay
Date for Both Auctions: Friday November 26, 20 (Black Friday)
Time for Both Auctions: 9pm EST, 8pm CST, 7pm MST, 6pm PST
Auction #1 Name: Kringle Delivery Frosty Blue Holiday VW Bus 2.0
Auction #2 Name: Kringle Delivery Holiday Gold Holiday VW Bus 2.0
Auction #1 Quantity Available: 15 Combo #1: Frosty Blue
Auction #1 Quantity Available: 15 Combo #2: Holiday Gold
Price: $115 Each
Shipping: $8 (PD ships both domestically and internationally)

Collectors who are lucky enough to purchase both color combinations will get matching production numbers for the set. Please visit the official Pope Designs website for more information on this great sale.

Collectors have been raving about GreenLight’s Hot Pursuit line and have certainly been letting them know about it. The result is another all new line-up of great police cruisers for your collecting enjoyment that should be appearing at retail in December.

Here’s the official announcement from GreenLight:

GreenLight puts the “Hot” in Series 5 release of Hot Pursuit

It has been one hot year for GreenLight’s Police themed product line appropriately named “Hot Pursuit”

Indianapolis, IN (November 2, 2010) The collectors were the ones that breathed life into this series with their requests of GreenLight to manufacture a entire police themed product line.  The first release debuted in August 2009 and since then Hot Pursuit has developed into quite the staple item at mass market stores, hobby shops and the shelves of all GreenLight Fans.  This will make a total of three releases for Hot Pursuit in 2010 and collectors can expect many more to come.

Series 5 has incorporated major metropolitan area departments such as Kansas and Houston.  As well as the first time that the classic sheriff brown / tan exterior paint scheme has been utilized.

1:64 Hot Pursuit Series 5:

1965 Ford Galaxie Westwood, Massachusetts Police

2008 Dodge Charger Kansas City, KS Police

2008 Dodge Charger Houston, TX Police

2008 Ford Crown Victoria New York State Police

2008 Ford Crown Victoria Vanderburgh County (Evansville, IN) Sherriff

2009 Ford Mustang Edmonton, Alberta Canada Police

These die-cast replicas feature opening hoods, detailed engines, real rubber tires, metal body and chassis, detailed graphics, custom license plates and are officially licensed by the respective automobile companies.  Quantities are limited to 8000 units of each car and will be available at GreenLight Hobby Retailers, Distributors, Target, TRU, and Meijer stores beginning in December 2010.

Johnny Lightning collectors will love this sneak peak of the upcoming Sprint Car casting that will be hitting retail in 2011 as part of the Forever 64 line.

Click the image to see a larger version of this early e-sheet. Upon close inspection you’ll see a cool nod to DiecastSpace adorning the top wing courtesy of JL Senior Design Manager, Tom Zahorsky. Cool!!

There are plenty of surprises in store for the 2011 DiecastSpace Super Convention coming to Las Vegas this coming February. The latest fun tidbit to be released is that “Woodie” will be the very first diecast car to be inducted into the Diecast Hall of Fame!

Owned by John Rhodes (aka Oggie Doggie), Woodie has been on the move since 2002 and has traveled from British Columbia to Newfoundland in Canada, visited ALL 50 United States including Puerto Rico and has been to 6 of the 7 Continents (missing only Antarctica).

Find out more about Woodie and his adventures at www.woodiesadventure.com. Information on tickets and accommodations for the 2011 Super Convention can be found on ToyCarConventions.com.

This past week GreenLight Collectibles introduced the upcoming release of a special Route 66 themed 15 car, 1:64th scale collector set that features some of their most popular castings. The set is due to hit Toys ‘R Us shelves exclusively this November. Here is the official press release from GreenLight:

Travel the GreenLight way, Get your kicks on 1:64 Route 66

GreenLight introduces a 15 case collector pack that features history and prestige in 1:64 scale

Indianapolis, IN (October 19, 2010) Pack your bags, GreenLight is taking collectors on a cross country road trip down the infamous Route 66 U.S.A.  The 15 car set will be packaged in a display Collector case with a road map packaging that marks out the “Mother Road” as it journeys through each of the eight states from Chicago to L.A.  The cars chosen for this highly collectible item all belong, like the route itself, to the Golden age of motoring.

Route 66 U.S.A was constructed many years before the superhighways of today, used as the primary means of travel for people motoring westward.  It is a part of American motorist evolution and is as hard to define as it is to forget.  The Route pulls its nostalgia from those travelers of yester-year that took to the pavement with a sense of adventure and GreenLight translates this period of history through a mix of retro and modern-day cars.  Many of the cars also are first uses, the 1964 Chrysler Convertible, 1978 Plymouth Trail Duster, 1988 Ford Mustang GT Stock and 2011 Ford Shelby GT 500 Convertible all debut behind the first-ever 15 pack premier packaging.

  The collector packaging highlights eight of the most popular sights and scenes on the west bound journey, from the Launch Pad in Illinois to the Cadillac Ranch in Texas to the Wigwan Hotel in California.  The extraordinary and eccentric stops offered, affirm the saying that “it’s not the destination, but the journey”.  These quirky stomping grounds acted as rest areas for the hungry and tired travelers, oasis’s of entertainment on the lengthy stretch of road, marking fun and unique memories of the highway that’s the best, Route 66.

1:64 Route 66’s 15 Car Assortment:

1959 Chevy Corvette                                         1964 Chrysler 300K

1965 Ford Galaxie 500                                       1965 Ford Mustang GT

1967 Dodge D-100                                            1968 Chevy Impala SS

1969 Buick GS California                                   1969 Plymouth Road Runner 440

1970 Ford Mustang Conv.                                  1971 Dodge Challenger R/T

1971 Pontiac GTO                                             1978 Plymouth Duster

1988 Ford Mustang GT                                      2010 Chevy Camaro SS

2011 Shelby GT-500 Convertible

All materials used are authentic with real rubber tires and 100% die-cast metal body and chassis.  Detailed graphics, custom license plates, serialized and official licensing by the respective automobile companies make each of these cars correct and credible replicas. Quantities are limited to 4,260 15-car sets open to the public mid-November 2010 and will be available exclusively at Toys ‘R’ Us, Toysrus.com and Toys ‘R’ Us Australia.

Pope Designs rolls into the the 2010 fall season with this first-ever online-only Halloween offering that is sure to grab the attention of Pope and Drag Bus fans alike.

The Standard Edition features festive ember-glow burnt orange paint and basic wheels while the Diamond Edition is dressed in Toxic Green and features Real Rider White Letter tires. Both versions come packaged in an acrylic case with an original Pope Designs artwork backdrop.

Click any image to see a larger version

Only 20 “Bat-Pumpkin” VW Drag buses were produced, and the details of the sale are as follows:

• Quantity Produced: 15 Standard Edition / 5 Diamond Edition
  Quantity For Sale: 13 Standard Edition / 4 Diamond Edition
  When: Friday October 1st, 2010
• Time: 9pm EST, 8pm CST, 7pm MST, 6pm PST
  Where: eBay
  Auction Title: Pope Designs Bat-Pumpkin Drag Bus
  Price: $115.00 each (plus $8 shipping, both domestic and international)

  
As always, Pope Designs distributes the Diamond Edition in a random fashion. Be sure to visit the official Pope Designs website for the full story behind the “Bat-Pumpkin” – you’ll be glad you did!

This week DiecastSpace announced a new exciting event for 2011 that will focus on fans of the uber-popular Hot Wheels Volkswagen Drag Bus. On May 13, 14 and 15th the illustrious Trump Taj Mahal Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey will play host to the first-ever VIP Drag Bus Getaway.

This amazing collector opportunity is only open to the FIRST 25 PEOPLE to register. The ticket is $1000 per person which includes, hotel accommodations for two nights, a special VIP party on Friday night, a special dinner on Saturday night,  (5) Exclusive VW Drag Buses, a VIP Event button-down shirt and a host of other cool giveaways and functions to take part in.

The VIP Drag Bus Getaway weekend will always remain a 25 person event regardless of how many people want to attend. Collectors who are unable to register before it sells out will be able to try again the following year.

Tickets for this amazing collector weekend will be available starting on Saturday, October 9th 2010 at 10AM PST (1pm EST) and again, this is only open to the FIRST 25 PEOPLE. Purchases can be made by going to www.toycarconventions.com and clicking on conventions. You can also call in your ticket order at 1-877-832-2779 but be early, as there is already a ton of buzz about this going around!

Special thanks to Mark Kasimoff (aka RaceGrooves) for shooting this great video highlighting the Hot Wheels/Kmart Collector Day experience and for taking viewers through a nice up-close look at the cars that he purchased. Collectors need to start making more videos like this!