The latest batch of collector series Matchbox models has hit stores, and this Ram Rebel 1500 is the highlight for me. It’s very well proportioned, highly detailed, and is perhaps the first model where I find these wheels actually fit the car they were put on. Since Hot Wheels also produced a model of the same truck in the same color, it seems only natural to frame this showcase as a comparison between the two models.
Immediately apparent is the size difference between these two castings. As is typical of Hot Wheels trucks, their version rides on massive wheels that make the model look almost like a monster truck. In contrast, the Matchbox model sits on wheels that seem much more realistically sized, making the proportions more accurate to the real vehicle. While the Matchbox Ram looks small in comparison to the Hot Wheels, it’s a similar size to other recent Matchbox truck releases like the Chevy Silverado 1500. I’ve always liked the way Matchbox renders everyday trucks in stock form, and I’m glad to see another truck casting join the collection.
Comparing the detailing of the Matchbox and Hot Wheels versions is inherently unfair, since the Matchbox is a premium issue and the Hot Wheels is a mainline, but I don’t let little things like fairness or impartiality get in the way of my blog! The front facia is where the biggest difference in detailing lies. Even though the Hot Wheels version does an admirable job for a one dollar model – giving us headlights, grill and logo detailing, and black trim along the hood – the Matchbox is in a league of its own. The Matchbox gets headlights as well, but the grill is far more detailed, as we can see the mesh of the grill as well as a lighter gray trim piece that adds to the realism. The bumper features the same black mesh detailing, as well as a silver trim piece that surrounds the front tow points. A closer examination of the front bumper reveals that they even included fog lights!
Both models feature the Rebel’s signature black hood vents, but each accomplishes them in a different way. On the Hot Wheels model, the hood vents are part of the black interior piece that sticks up through the red diecast body, whereas the Matchbox has the vents printed on the hood, which results in slightly less texture.
What’s under the Matchbox’s hood is perhaps the most interesting part of this model. There’s a reasonable amount of detailing in the engine bay, with the valve covers featuring the “Rebel” logo on each side. Bizarrely, the real Rebel’s engine does not feature those logos on the valve cover. Even weirder: the engine in this model is not the standard Ram Rebel engine. At the top of the engine is quite clearly Stellantis’s trademark supercharger from the Hellcat engine, which made me originally identify this model as a Ram TRX when the first sneaks appeared on the Matchbox Instagram. I can only speculate as to what happened here, but I can’t help but wonder if the Matchbox team originally set out to design a TRX but ran into a licensing issue. Or, perhaps the designer just wanted to include the Hellcat engine as an Easter egg for collectors to find.
The backs of each truck feature almost identical detailing, with the only addition on the Matchbox being the handle to drop the tailgate. I do appreciate the slightly more defined body lines of the tailgate on the Matchbox model.
Overall, the Matchbox is the clear winner of the two. I love how accurately proportioned Matchbox trucks tend to be, as that’s how these trucks appear out in the world. Sure, some people lift their trucks, but I much prefer a model to represent a vehicle as it looked when it left the factory, which has always been Matchbox’s specialty. This Collector series Ram Rebel truly is Matchbox at its best.
diecastleno.com 
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