5/15/2023 — Hot Wheels unveiled the newly-wrapped, #Teku liveried #Deora II at the #Hot Wheels Legends Tour in Miami over the weekend. They even flew in popular YouTuber/Cosplayer, Justin Curtis (JayCee Squared on YouTube) to greet fellow #AcceleRacers fans in front of the 1:1 Deora II.

The new #Teku livery covers the blue paint the #Deora II has worn since the 1:1 car’s unveiling in 2003. For the growing movement of #AcceleRacers fanatics, this is a huge win! The unveiling demonstrates that Mattel has heard their demand and is willing to meet (at least some of) their wants.

How did we get here though?

Back in the early 2000s, the Hot Wheels brand was trying to appeal to younger generations. One of the avenues the marketing team took was to create a series of comics. Instead, show creator Jeff Gomez pitched the idea of doing a show. He goes into the full story on the JayCee Squared YouTube channel. The show came to be known as Hot Wheels Highway 35: World Race. In the show, young Vert Wheeler gets his driver’s license the same day he is invited to this “World Race” and is gifted the Deora II by Dr. Peter Tezla so he can compete.

Fast forward two years later. AcceleRacers was released as a TV series on Cartoon Network. Vert Wheeler was back with the #Deora II — this time, swapping his Wave Rippers team livery for the spunky #Teku team.

Spoiler Alert! Vert does not finish the series with the Deora II as it gets cut in half upon him entering the Storm Realm and having the portal close on him. Bummer, huh? To World Race / AcceleRacers fans, this has to be the equivalent of Darth Maul being sliced in half in Star Wars Episode I — a badass character (or car in this case) being sliced like a stick of butter.

Suffice to say, fandom surrounding the #Deora II has grown over the last 20 years. Those kids who grew up watching the World Race DVD on repeat and the AcceleRacers on TV have created a cult following of the casting and have requested the never-been-done-before-in-diecast #Teku Deora II be made, finally!

The AcceleRacers movement has really seemed to pick up movement on the Hot Wheels Discord. This coincides with the value of the once discarded #AcceleRacers diecast skyrocketing in the secondary market. It’s funny to attend Hot Wheels events now or see collectors on WhatNot asking for AcceleRacers. Less than 5 years ago, I was still finding them in the bargain bins in the room-to-room buy/sell/trade at Hot Wheels Conventions.

The Hot Wheels team has clearly been testing the waters with #AcceleRacers and the #Deora II. The 20th Anniversary of the AcceleRacers is in 2025, but the Teku Deora II has already made an appearance in the 2021 video game, Hot Wheels Unleashed (shown above). At the Legends Tour event in Miami this past Saturday, the placard that stands in front of the Deora II stated to look out for a special AcceleRacers NFT launch coming soon. Speculation is that this Deora II will be the NFTH — an ultra-rare physical release of its digital representation.

Until the time comes that Hot Wheels finally releases this #Teku #Deora II, we are still in dream mode salivating at one of the many superb customs that are out there. I chose this 1:18 scale one by Supar Robo to show you just how cool some are, and to what lengths fans have gone! Make sure to check out Supar Robo’s site to see what went into this custom build.

It appears the days are now numbered until we see Hot Wheels FINALLY release the Teku Deora II. Then, a new movement starts for the Teku Sling Shot and the Metal Maniacs Road Runner, and this collector can hopefully track one down for his collection.