The 2023 Baja 1000 is currently underway, tracking through harsh desert terrain from La Paz, B.C. Sur to Ensenada, Baja California in Mexico. In the unforgiving hunting ground of your local retail store, Hot Wheels #Car Culture / Hyper Haulers came and went back in 2021. In that series was a replica of a 2019 contestant from the grueling desert race: the #Ford Bronco R.

The 1:1 vehicle was a one-off prototype that served as a testbed for Ford engineers giving a glimpse of what the new Bronco would look like before the consumer vehicle was unveiled in 2020. Participating in the event served another purpose — beyond testing the new platform. It also marked the return of the Bronco to this unforgiving Mexican race, as 2019 was the 50th anniversary of the Rod Hall-driven Bronco that won the race outright. The #2069 livery on the 2019 truck served as a nod to that championship as the “20” was the truck’s race class, and the “69” was for the year (1969).

As far as the Hot Wheels vehicle is concerned, the #2069 #Bronco livery is authentically replicated with a nice body wrap. The casting even features the trophy truck’s wide-stance, grille lights, and blue roll bars that extend throughout the vehicle’s cabin, out the rear, and holding the large spare wheels. This truck is just one of those fun replica vehicles to look at — comparing to the real truck — and notice all the detail that went into the casting designed by Hot Wheels designer, Phil Riehlman.

Hyper Haulers hit the pegs intermittently back in 2021, and was sandwiched between the Slide Street and Modern Classics III mixes for Hot Wheels #Car Culture. Locally, the #Ford Bronco R was not been hard to find — for whatever reason — as collectors were eager to scoop up the ’99 Ford F-150 Lightning and the ’75 Datsun Sunny Pickup from the mix.

I’m not sure how many knew they were passing up the #First Edition and a replica at-that, but something tells me that this will be an edition collectors regret on passing on down the line. As far as the #Hot Wheels iD release, well, that one commands a hefty price tag since it was in the last mix — EVER — of the now defunct line. Check eBay and see if you can ever find one for sale.

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The #Ford Bronco R is the second casting (of 3) of the new Ford Bronco we’ve seen from Hot Wheels. The standard, 2-door version of the 1:1 production vehicle debuted in the “Then and Now” mini collection in the 2021 mainline. Below is the #Hot Wheels iD Ford Bronco R with that casting — this time, from the upcoming 2024 56th Anniversary Themed Assortment.

The third version of the new Bronco debuted in the #RLC in December 2022. The ’17 Ford Bronco Wildtrak is something else as the doors and top are fully removable — certainly a long-overdue feature there. Something tells me that we could even see another Hot Wheels version of the new Bronco as there are so many trim levels of the real car to replicate, including the Raptor. Plus, Ford offers 2- & 4-door options, AND Sport and non-sport options to a vehicle that has removable exterior pieces in the roof and doors. The popularity of the 1:1 redesign may also have something to do with it as many car enthusiasts think Ford did a great job recapturing the essence of the Bronco name.

As for the #Ford Bronco R, I’m not sure we will see it in another replica livery since there aren’t any. I’m not sure of what became of the 1:1 but it appears this will be the only livery to ever appear on the truck — even LEGO did a version of it! Lack of real liveries hasn’t stopped Hot Wheels though. The casting continues to be produced with new liveries including a great #Borla one this year in both black and #ZAMAC. If you’re interested in collecting all the versions of this truck, make sure to check out the Hot Wheels Wiki to see which ones you’re missing. Chances are, the SUPER73 release and the #Hot Wheels iD release may elude you as they have become grail pieces to many Hot Wheels collectors out there, not just Bronco collectors. Good luck!