Believe it or not, the original Lamborghini Murcielago casting came out in 2003. To its credit, the Lambo holds up better than most castings from that era, but a lot has changed in the years since. Hot Wheels castings have become more detailed, more realistic, and less focused on track use, which meant the aging Murcielago casting was due for a replacement.
As seems to happen far too often, it was the Fast & Furious line that came to the rescue with this orange rendition being driven by Roman in the eighth F&F movie. Unfortunately, the movie car does have a bodykit on it, but it’s a mercifully tame one (especially by Fast & Furious standards). This retooled Lamborghini was amazingly hard to track down, as it seems this Walmart-exclusive mix was barely released in the US. It was rare enough to even prove difficult to find on eBay! After paying an embarrassingly large amount for this one, I now have one in my possession to compare.
Immediately upon cracking open the blister it’s clear how much this retool has improved the Murcielago. The two biggest problems with the original casting were its high ride height and poor rear wheel fitment, both of which have been fixed on the new casting. The car now looks low and wide, just as a big Lambo should. Interestingly, the roof height looks to be almost identical to the old casting, which results in the new casting looking much less squished than the old one.
The new front bumper design makes a world of difference, with a color-break for the air intakes and much lower ground clearance. This is where you can see the reduced importance of track compatibility in the Hot Wheels line, as this low front end makes this casting a way better model but would likely cause it to get hung up on a track. The A-pillars have been widened and the windshield wiper sits a bit higher on the windshield, though I was surprised to find that the headlights look almost identical!
The same cannot be said of the brake lights, which are now the LED style seen on the Murcielago SV rather than the square design of the original Murcielago. I actually think this is a positive change, as I quite like the newer brake light design, but it might irk some collectors.
The back end is where we see most of the movie-specific changes on this Fast & Furious Murcielago. The most obvious is that big wing (classic F&F), but there is also a new exhaust and a more aggressive diffuser. Like the front bumper, the rear bumper now sits lower and gives this Lamborghini a more realistic shape.
Apart from the big wing, the side profiles of the two castings are remarkably similar, with the most significant difference being the different shape of the intake in front of the rear wheel. The window piece is no longer bisected by a metal piece, which I think actually looks a bit better while no longer requiring printed detailing on the sides.
While I would have preferred this retool to be another stock Lamborghini Murcielago, I still think this modified F&F Murcielago is a massive improvement over the original casting, and I’d be happy to see it get some use outside the F&F line. Lamborghinis are meant to be a rainbow of colors…it’d be a shame if we only ever see this one in orange.
diecastleno.com 
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