Hot Wheels Toys

Hot Wheels toys refer to a line of small car toys that were introduced to the world in 1968 by the giant American Toy company called Mattel. The Hot Wheel line of cars was inspired by the British brand Matchbox which consisted tiny die cast toy cars which were extremely popular in the 1970's. Currently Mattel owns the Matchbox brand in addition to its own Hot Wheels Brand.

The Hot Wheel toy cars were less true to form than the Matchbox cars that inspired them. They also featured many fantasy vehicles and most of these vehicles were brightly colored and had a distinct American twist. These brightly painted metallic cars were also fitted with revolutionary low friction racing style 'mag' wheels and slick tires. All these features helped the Hot Wheels toys steal a march over the more conservative models of cars which were produced by Matchbox.

Moreover these Hot Wheel toys were marketed very aggressively and soon expanded to include several other products in their range like race track sets etc. Over the years the company has introduced many new lines and products like its 'Racing section' that features many different die cast collectibles. It has also introduced a line of cars devoted entirely to the much coveted Italian sports car, the 'Ferrari' as well. This line features both contemporary and vintage Ferrari die-cast cars and is an ode to this flashy sports car which oozes Italian oomph and style.

Some of its lines like the 'Mystery Car' Segment evoked much excitement among the many Hot Wheels collectors when it was introduced. As the line featured twenty-four cars different cars which were sold in a specially designed ''blind'' packaging as a result of which fans didn't know which car they had bought unless and until they opened their boxes. This gimmick was meant to encourage trading among the collectors of these cars as well as fuel further purchases. The Mystery Car line continues to be popular until today.

Other cars in the Hot Wheels line of cars include the ever popular Treasure Hunt cars. These cars were first produced in limited numbers in 1995 in twelve different styles. As a result of their scarceness, these Treasure Hunt cars were highly coveted and commanded high prices among the many enthusiastic Hot Wheels toy collectors. This line continues to be produced in small numbers and in 2007; the company also released an additional line of cars which were known as the Super Treasure Hunt Cars. These Super Treasure Hunt cars have different paint job compared to the original Treasure Hunt cars.

Mattel also set up a highly interactive hot wheels toy website which features many games, downloads, exclusive web content and even a tool with which you can keep a track of your Hot Wheels collection online.