Models like this make me question the hype around super treasure hunts. For 10% of the market rate of most super treasure hunts, this Lamborghini is intricately detailed with printing on five sides. It even has a spectraflame style green paint!
That paint is the most striking part of this model, with the bright green and dark black offsetting each other nicely. This is an incredibly detailed casting, complete with all the angular styling you’d expect from a Lamborghini. A huge wing is included too, this time in metal rather than plastic, so it should avoid the bending problems seen in the plastic wings of models like the Pandem BRZ.
The Essenza’s hood curves down at somewhat too steep of an angle, making the front of the car look rather droopy. I believe this is caused by the front wheels, as they are both big and very close to the front of the casting. That tall wheel arch makes the angle of the hood and fender overly steep. This is especially apparent when comparing it to another V12 Lamborghini casting like the Aventador, which has smaller front wheels and looks much more realistic. The Hot Wheels team certainly deserves points for the detailing on the Essenza though, with its canards and air vents. I especially appreciate the number 63 in the correct font on the hood. The only detail I would have liked to see added is the LED running lights that are on the 1:1 car.
On the side of the model there are massive air intakes for that big V12, including a Lamborghini logo for good measure. We also have the same 63, along with black hexagonal door handles befitting a Lamborghini. The passenger side even has a silver fuel door!
The Hot Wheels team pulled off a rather clever trick on the side mirrors. The real car has slim mirrors that mount to the door on very thin pieces of what I presume to be carbon fiber. Obviously, a toy made by Mattel must be able to stand up to a bit of abuse from children, so it would have been impossible for Hot Wheels to make mirrors that mounted so precariously. Instead, they made the mirrors black and printed thin black lines extending from the mirrors to give them the appearance of being mounted on the doors. Not perfect, but a very clever solution.
When it comes to standing up to play, this massive wing should have no problems. Unlike many Car Culture models, the wing is all metal and feels very robust. I’m happy to report that unlike many of the mainline models with metal wings, this one does not feel too chunky or lacking in detail. The mounting hardware looks rad as well!
The rear end is the sole part of this casting that feels low on detail. While we do get rear lights and that awesome rear wing, the back feels otherwise plain. The casting’s rear rivet makes the diffuser look a little weird, and there’s not much detail around the exhaust either.
An overhead view shows another place where this Essenza deviates from typical Hot Wheels Lamborghinis. While most Lamborghinis have a wide, almost arrowhead shape, this Essenza appears more narrow, without the pronounced bulging around the air intakes. I’m not sure if this is accurate to the real car (I wanted to source a real Essenza to compare, but alas, I could not find one) but it definitely gives the model a “racecar” look.
Adding to that racecar look is the roof mounted air intake, accented in bright green. I’m also struck by just how flat the back of the car is – clearly designed with airflow in mind. Similar to the new Porsche 911 GT3, the Essenza features a small lip spoiler underneath its massive wing.
Despite its minor shortcomings, I really like this casting, especially with all the printed details the Hot Wheels team added to it. With the new $6.49 price (ouch), I hope we get more heavily detailed castings like this, rather than the comparatively plain Bugatti EB110 from the same series.
diecastleno.com 