My Top 5 Hot Wheels Mainline Models of 2025

The Hot Wheels mainline has struggled to maintain my interest in recent years, so much so that I decided to entirely skip it for my yearly top 5 posts last year.  There were just too many generic models and too few exciting or interesting new castings based on enthusiast cars.  While there were still plenty of generics on the pegs this year, we also had a number of new licenses as well as a secret collaboration that yielded several very cool new mainlines! 

Number 5: Maserati Shamal

The Shamal certainly isn’t the Maserati I would have picked to debut the new Maserati license, but I can’t fault the execution here.  The proportions look nice, and this casting features some cool construction techniques, including the use of the window piece to form the rear lightbar.  The bright red paint is a great fit, and I appreciate the sharpness and good alignment of the front end detailing. 

Number 4: ‘96 Dodge Viper GTS

Between Hot Wheels and Matchbox’s previous takes on the Viper, I would have never thought I needed a new Viper casting.  It turns out I did, though, because this new Viper is without a doubt the best second gen Viper we’ve seen from either brand. 

The proportions are great, with just the right amount of Viper cartoonishness.  The level of printed detailing is impressive for a mainline model, with the Viper’s trademark racing stripes on full display across the hood, roof, and trunk.  Unusually for a Mattel Viper, those stripes don’t come at the expense of rear detailing.  This new Viper has brake lights and a realistic California-style license plate.  The exhaust tips, while not printed silver, use the black base to provide a contrasting color against the painted bodywork, and the result looks great!  I wish the newer 5th-gen Viper casting could get this level of printed detailing! 

Number 3: GMA T.33

Just a few years ago, I would have been shocked to see a small supercar manufacturer like Gordon Murray Automotive represented in the Hot Wheels lineup, but we now have two GMA models in the mainline!  While I didn’t really like the T.50S casting, I’ve been much more impressed by this new T.33!  Hot Wheels has done an excellent job of replicating the T.33’s exotic but clean bodylines, and I’m glad that they haven’t fallen into the trap of adding unnecessary side graphics to make the model appeal to people who might not know what GMA is. 

One of the T.33’s coolest design features is the LED brake light rings, and the Hot Wheels ones look great, provided you can find one with good printing alignment.  I’ve found myself having to search through multiple examples on the shelf to find the one with the best printing accuracy, so buyer beware.  

Number 2: Ferrari SF90

Let’s be honest, it would be hard to look back at the Hot Wheels lineup of 2025 and argue that it was anything other than Ferrari’s year.  This SF90 was the first new Ferrari casting to debut, and as Ferrari’s “classic” mid-engined supercar, I believe it was also the most significant.  I wrote a whole feature on the new SF90, so I won’t rehash too much of that here, beyond saying that this feels like a Hot Wheels Ferrari in both good and bad ways.  

The casting looks exotic and exciting, and always grabs my attention on the pegs, but it also lacks much of the detailing I would expect from a modern Hot Wheels model.  Apart from the headlights and Ferrari badges, there is no printed detailing.  I suspect this is due to Ferrari’s insistence on the fender shields being included, which means there isn’t the budget to detail the brake lights.  It results in a worse looking model, but I suppose Ferrari has to get their branding in…

Number 1: McLaren W1

The launch of the McLaren W1 is the first time I can remember Hot Wheels launching a new casting to coincide with the debut of a new car model.  That means designer Ron Wong had to get early access to the design of the W1 in order to create this casting, and it’s incredibly cool to see Hot Wheels taking part in collaborations like that.  After going through all that effort, I’m happy to report that Hot Wheels absolutely nailed this casting. 

Ron Wong wrote a whole Instagram post about the difficulties in capturing the W1’s crazy design, including the limited budget for printed detailing.  Considering the clever way the base is used to form the two-tone color of the W1, and the necessary black printing around the rear window, I can forgive the lack of any printed detailing for the brake lights.  This is exactly the execution I want for Hot Wheels supercars, and I think Hot Wheels did a far better job on this new W1 than the older P1 casting.  

Sadly, I can’t help but wonder how much of a future McLaren will have with Hot Wheels now that Ferrari is back in the lineup.  I believe the explosion of new McLaren castings over the last 10 years owes itself largely to the exotic car vacuum left by loss of the Ferrari license.  I hope they don’t disappear completely, because I really like castings like this W1, the Senna, and the 720S.  You can read more of my thoughts on this model here. Overall, I think 2025 was a pretty good year for the Hot Wheels mainline, even if it was overshadowed by the premium line that had so many great castings this year.  You won’t want to miss my upcoming top 5 list for Hot Wheels premium, so get subscribed (and check out my previous top 5 lists while you wait).