What more can be said about the Hot Wheels #Datsun Bluebird 510 and its meteoric rise to collector favorite? The casting has achieved so much in seemingly a short amount of time considering it was introduced less than 10 years ago. For the first 4 years or so, its mainline models were pegwarmers and even the 2011 Vintage Racing release — which sells in the $300 to $350 range now (when carded) — was rumored to have sat on the pegs for extended periods of time, in the stores that actually received that mix.

Once the values of that ill-fated Vintage Racing release started to climb, the popularity of the #Datsun Bluebird 510 took off, and its showing no signs of slowing down. Even the #BRE Datsun 510 released as a RLC Exclusive in 2013 (not pictured) is selling for north of $600 now. I mean, whats the ceiling on a release like that? They are approaching real car prices.

With that said, the hype around the #2017 Car Culture Premium Boxed Set was definitely amped up considering the sale on HWC had been delayed numerous times and profiteers saw a new #BRE Datsun to be the next cash cow.

Hot Wheels Datsun Bluebird 510 featuring a BRE Datsun Racing Livery (top side-by-side view). 2011 Vintage Racing (left) and RLC Exclusive, 2017 Car Culture Box Set (right).

Whether you are buying the #Datsun Bluebird 510 because you truly love #Datsuns, or you are strictly buying it to flip for a profit, OR you are somewhere in between; there is no discounting the appeal it has in the modern era of Hot Wheels collecting. Mattel knows it too. That’s why we have seen several premium releases of it in just the first five months of 2018. It goes beyond selling itself… it sells other Hot Wheels too!

Case in point: This blue #35 #BRE Datsun was included in the #2017 Car Culture Premium Boxed Set to sell it. Had it not, the hype around the set — which was priced at $26.99 & S&H on HWC — may have run the chance of not selling out. While it would have eventually, it certainly wouldn’t have sold out as quickly as it did, we can say that for sure. What it also did was sell memberships. The 2018 RLC Memberships were set at 17,500 — a number that seemed like it would take a long time to get to given that the most memberships sold in any given year was around 10K. Well surprise, surprise (not really), between the membership car — which was also a #Datsun Bluebird 510 — and this boxed set containing this new BRE Datsun 510, the membership sold out in just over a month.

Hot Wheels Datsun Bluebird 510 from the RLC Exclusive, 2017 Car Culture Box Set (top-right view) … as part of the Race Day Series, featuring a BRE Datsun Racing Livery

Hot Wheels Datsun Bluebird 510 from the RLC Exclusive, 2017 Car Culture Box Set (side view) … as part of the Race Day Series, featuring a BRE Datsun Racing Livery

Hot Wheels Datsun Bluebird 510 from the RLC Exclusive, 2017 Car Culture Box Set (rear view) … as part of the Race Day Series, featuring a BRE Datsun Racing Livery

Thats not to say that there are 17,500 collectors out there buying up all these memberships, but as long as there was a profit to be made off these releases, profiteers were buying up extra memberships while unknowing and/or international collectors paid double or triple for the membership car which could be had for far less. NOTE: International buyers can now buy direct from HWC, but pay a hefty $60 in shipping. This may have been a membership deterrent. 

Either way you spin it, the #Datsun Bluebird 510 sells. So much so that its being used to sell other items to collectors and you can’t fault Mattel for that. They produce these beautiful cars and we pay with our hard-earned money just to place them in our collections.

Hot Wheels Datsun Bluebird 510 featuring a BRE Datsun Racing Livery (side-by-side view). 2011 Vintage Racing (left) and RLC Exclusive, 2017 Car Culture Box Set (right).

Hot Wheels Datsun Bluebird 510 featuring a BRE Datsun Racing Livery (head-to-head view). 2011 Vintage Racing (left) and RLC Exclusive, 2017 Car Culture Box Set (right).

The cool thing about the #2017 Car Culture Premium Boxed Set that this #Datsun Bluebird 510 was included in, was that the five cars in it served as a “bonus car” for the five #Car Culture series of 2017. This blue #35 #BRE Datsun was chosen to be the bonus car for the #Car Culture / Race Day series. Had it been released at retail as part of the retail mix, you can bet profiteers would have done anything short of hijacking delivery trucks to get their hands on multiples.

So where do we go from here?

You would have to imagine this isn’t the last of the #BRE Datsun livery. Now that we finally have the blue #35 one, will we see it in the #RLC in a similar fashion to how the red one was done? I’d say its likely … at some point. For now, lets just enjoy this marvelous release. Happy 510 Day!

RELEASE DETAILS: Metalflake Blue Body (metal). Clear Windows. Dark Gray Interior. Chrome-Rim, Gray Real Riders 4-Spoke Wheels. Unpainted Metal Base. Made in Thailand. Toy# FPW89. Released in 2018 as part of the RLC Exclusive, 2017 Car Culture Premium Boxed Set (#0/5 in Car Culture / Race Day Series).