Only the designers at Hot Wheels can successfully take an ice cream truck and turn it into a hot rod! As one of #Mark Jones Designs, the Cool-One first caught the eye of collectors and kids alike when it appeared on the 2004 Hot Wheels “Hot 100” Poster as Ice Blox (name was subject to change). By the time it first started appearing in September 2004, the name was changed to Cool-One — the name of a previous Hot Wheels dragster casting that was used from 1976 to 1978.

As a #2004 First Edition, the #Cool-One was number 100 of the “Hot 100” first editions for that year. The fact that Hot Wheels made a hot rod ice cream truck really represents what the brand is all about — speed, power and a coolness factor of 10. Being a fan, of the Twisted Metal video game, one can’t help but notice there is a tiny resemblance to the ice cream truck driven by one of the mainstay characters in the series, Sweet Tooth.

Since the Cool-One was one of the last releases of 2004 — in fact, I recall there being some 2005 cars in the case it came in — there were no colorways (planned color variations) of the 2004 First Edition. However, there was a wheel #Variation. The PR5 wheel variation (shown below on the right) was plentiful as the 5-Spoke (5SP) wheel variation (shown below on the left) was a lot harder to come by.

Hot Wheels COOL-ONE from the 2004 First Editions (both wheel variations)

Wheel variations like this usually happen because the original wheel, PR5 in this case, will run out at the factory. A replacement wheel, 5SP in this case, will be assigned since there are still more quantities of the release needed. Sometimes, what we call a transition error, will occur when the new wheels are mixed in with the old wheels therefore, not all the wheels will match. Since that would be an error, it doesn’t happen too often as most are caught at the factory but a few do slip out and are often found in the same case — just like other types of errors.

The Hot Wheels Cool-One continues to be released to this day and has even had several premium releases in the Slick Rides and #Pop Culture lines. In those premium releases, the casting was retooled (starting in 2010 for the Slick Rides release) to receive a metal base to compliment the already metal body. In 2013, the Cool-One casting used for the mainline was retooled as well. The interior was molded with the engine, front grill and windows which now feature the driver’s side window closed.

RELEASE DETAILS: White Body (metal). Orange Windows. White Interior. Chrome Engine & Intake. Chrome PR5 Wheels. Chrome Base (plastic). Made in Malaysia. Toy# C2761. Released in 2004 as #100 of 100 in the 2004 First Editions.

RELEASE DETAILS: White Body (metal). Orange Windows. White Interior. Chrome Engine & Intake. Chrome 5SP Wheels. Chrome Base (plastic). Made in Malaysia. Toy# C2761. Released in 2004 as #100 of 100 in the 2004 First Editions.