Toy shows are always one of the best places to find older models at reasonable prices, and I hit gold this week. Two Speed Machines castings, four Matchbox golden era castings, and a multipack exclusive Acura for $6!
The proverbial wisdom is to save the best for last, but I simply can’t help myself. This Speed Machines Ferrari 599 is an absolute stunner of a model. Much has been said about how Speed Machines were before their time, but I can’t help but think this model would fly off the shelves now (frankly, a look at the Ebay prices would tell you that much). I was lucky enough to find this one in good condition in an unsorted dump bin for $1!
Front end detailing is nice on this model, with a Ferrari logo and nicely detailed headlights. Unfortunately, I’ve always thought the front end is a little too droopy on the Hot Wheels 599.
The paint is gorgeous on this Ferrari – a black with so much metal flake it becomes almost gray under the light. While I’m not generally a fan of staggered wheels, these ones are fairly non-offensive, and the gray color fits so well with the black paint that I can’t help but approve.
The back of this model has no such problem. It’s wonderfully detailed, with tail lights, the prancing horse logo, and even the Ferrari badge on the top of the trunk! The quad exhausts are nice and sporty as well.
I appreciate Hot Wheels’ decision to use a red interior on this model. It’s bold, but Ferrari is known for having bright red leather interiors available, and it adds a nice pop to an interior that would have felt hidden if rendered in black.
The second Speed Machines model I acquired set me back only 50¢, though its condition isn’t quite as perfect as the Ferrari’s. The 2007 Shelby GT500 is by no means one of my favorite Mustangs, but this model is nicely detailed with printing on five sides, so I figured it deserved a spot in my collection. I’m disappointed by the lack of headlights, since they bothered to print the racing stripes and black grills.
I do love the tail lights though – they scream “Mustang” and are a detail the mainline versions of this casting are missing. You can also just make out the snake logo on the “gas cap”.
These two Porsche 911 GT3’s are straight out of Matchbox’s golden era. Both have the plastic spoilers that are no longer available on mainline models, and I know many collectors consider this casting to be among the best of all time. Frankly, it’s hard to argue with them, especially when both models have such nice decos! They each get orange GT3 graphics with orange wheels to match, though only the black version gets headlights and DRLs. The lack of front detailing on the blue model is unfortunate, but it still looks great from the side.
I think the white version of this casting is still my favorite though.
Another beloved model from Matchbox’s golden era is this Dodge Magnum. While this is only the second version of this casting I have in my collection, I think this is the best deco this car ever received. The classic “woody” side panels perfectly represent the early aughts fascination with throwback designs. Back in 2009 (when this model was released), Matchbox wasn’t afraid to attach plastic accessories to their vehicles, which means this car got a pair of surfboards on the roof. It looks straight out of a Dodge brochure, and I love it.
Someday, I’ll have to do a deep dive on all the Matchbox models with roof accessories…
Matchbox is known for their brilliantly executed police cars, and I’m always willing to add more to my collection. This “Hummelstown” police car is a licensed (though somewhat generic looking) livery that suits this casting well. Though I would have loved front and rear detailing, I understand their omission given the fully detailed sides.
Sadly, we don’t get any police lights or a bash bar on this model, since this casting was originally designed as a civilian Charger. This is one area where the newer Charger pursuit casting is superior, though I can’t help but wonder if we might someday see the newer 2019 Dodge Charger casting enter police duty.
The last casting I picked up was this multipack exclusive gray Hot Wheels 2017 Acura NSX. We’ve seen a number of iterations of this castings, as it seems to have been relegated to multipack exclusive duty (similar to the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4). Luckily, the decos have stayed clean and stock looking, and I was happy to add this silver version to the collection. Though I always think it’s unfortunate when a casting gets stuck in multipacks, I do appreciate the rainbow of colors it ends up yielding. Hopefully we see some more cool colors in the future!
While it’s easy to get caught up in the hype surrounding new models, it’s always nice to take a look back at some older castings and fill in some gaps in your collection. Toy shows are a great way to do that, and I recommend finding one in your area to check out!
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