Hot Wheels has officially launched silver-label premium for 2024. The various lines — whether new, or converted basics series — have been appearing at retail and through hobby dealers. You get premium paint, full-graphics (including front & rear detail), new silver-label premium wheels, and even some metal/metal vehicles. All of it seems like a win for collectors — especially those who have been saying, “I’d pay a couple extra bucks for all licensed castings and front/rear detail on basics”. Well, here you go!
From a straight-up car enthusiast perspective, the silver-label branding is an all-around win/win for collectors. Though, some skepticism remains around the uneven case counts, and the introduction of what seems like unnecessary #Chase pieces in the eyes of some collectors.
The uneven case counts are a departure from how we’ve bought premium cases for the last several years. I am super fortunate to be able to partner Jcar Diecast and 1 Stop Diecast as I have been buying from them for years since family time has eclipsed most of my Hot Wheels hunting time. It’s a choice I’ve made and that I am perfectly fine with. Like most collectors, I buy what I like, and really enjoy completing sets and casting collections. My friend and I have previously went in on cases together and split them since most have contained at least two full sets. With uneven case counts you can’t do that. You’ll see what I am talking about in the video below thanks to Jcar. And, with the introduction of #Chase pieces into just about every line, you sometimes aren’t even able to complete a set by buying a case.
I have questions for you, my fellow collectors. Are these uneven case counts and chase pieces HURTING or HELPING collectors? It seems like they hurt collectors like me who are trying to complete sets without any secondary market help. On the other hand, it feels like it is helping those who enjoy the thrill of the hunt, and those who make a secondary income and/or support their collection from reselling the latest high demand releases.
Much to my own chagrin, I did not pull the #Vintage Racing Club 6/6 #’67 Camaro chase piece from my case. Above were the thoughts that came to mind after coming up empty-handed. Hopefully your luck is better! That should not take away from how great this new line is — even if I only have 5 of the 6 to show you.
#Vintage Racing Club is not a new take on the 2011 #Vintage Racing line, despite the similar names. Instead, we are greeted with an array of 1950s to 1970s cars complete with simple racing decos — not replicating vintage liveries.
I’m really digging these new basic premium wheels. Sure, they are plastic, BUT the sculpting on these are by far an upgrade, giving these a very realistic look. The Modern Muscle Wheels (MM), 5-Star Wheels (5STAR), and Cast-5 Wheels (CAST5) all make appearances here.
’54 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL
Since Hot Wheels started putting out the #Mercedes-Benz 300 SL in 2019, I have become a fan of this car. The racing pedigree dating back to the days of Mille Miglia and the car’s overall aesthetics are very pleasing. This one comes in a very iced-out, white with the aforementioned #5STAR wheels. There are three versions of the 300 SL that Hot Wheels puts out (basic/premium, Elite 64, and RLC) and two of them are based on the racing version of this car. This is the basic/premium version. It’s metal/metal and the casting is based on the IWC race car which continues to race to this day.
The deco on this 300 SL is unlicensed, and simple. Yet, it’s very clean and it really makes you take notice of the detailed front end complete with a front grille that has not 1, not 2, but 3 colors on it! The X’d out lights are an added bonus, really completing the racing look! This one comes one to a case.
’55 Corvette
The #’55 Corvette will probably be the least popular in this first mix, but at one to a case, that may prevent it from being left behind — reaffirming any decision to unevenly load this case. It is metal/metal as well so maybe that is the true reason as to why it only comes one to a case — just like the 300 SL.
I have never been a huge fan of this generation of #Corvette, but it does continue to grow on me. Again, the deco on this one is very simple. The racing stripes with roundel are a nice touch. With this car, I have already come to realize that I prefer the new #CAST5 wheels in all-chrome versus just the chrome lip. Such a cool wheel and it is nice being able to see the negative space in-between spokes.
BMW 2002
There is a soft-spot in my heart of the Hot Wheels #BMW 2002. It was a huge pegwarmer when it debuted in the #2012 New Models. Slowly, collector demand for this casting has grown, however, it is no where near as popular as the #Datsun Bluebird 510 which I could consider a similar racing sedan from this era.
The deco on this #Vintage Racing Club #BMW 2002 says “BMW” without screaming it. We have seen the casting already appear several times in those patented BMW M racing liveries. This time, the nod is more subtle. Fans of this one should be happy that — most likely because of it’s plastic chassis — it comes three to a case.
’71 Lamborghini Miura SV
The Hot Wheels #’71 Lamborghini Miura SV got its start in the now-defunct, #Hot Wheels iD line. I, for one, am glad to see the casting repurposed for basics use. The Super Treasure Hunt — which I still need to splurge on — was outrageously awesome. This #Vintage Racing Club version comes to us in a metalflake Vegas gold, riding on some chrome #MM wheels.
With this release, it doesn’t seem like the Hot Wheels graphics team can do any wrong when it comes to the Miura. Well, that is, short of putting crazy clowns or an abundance of flames on it, like they did in the early 2000’s. That is the past though, and this one has me looking up Miura race cars on Google — dreaming of what actual vintage liveries we could see it in. This one, like the BMW, has a plastic chassis and comes three to a case.
’71 Porsche 911
Alas, we have come to the #’71 Porsche 911 — my personal favorite in this mix. Between the dark green paint, X’d out racing headlights, “PORSCHE” banner across the windshield, and all-chrome #CAST5 wheels, this one is flat-out awesome! I am glad this one came two to a case and I think collectors will be happy with it too. Hot Wheels #Porsches have become increasingly popular over the last several years and this is one of the models that is helping that cause.
’67 Camaro
Yeah, I didn’t get it. Call the waaaaambulance for all I care — hahahaha. Temper-tantrum aside, I am actually very disappointed I don’t have this one in hand yet. I am including it here with a stock image so we can both dream. I will have it one day so I am in a sense reserving it here. The metalflake candy apple red paint with Edelbrock logos make this look like a car you’d see on the dragstrip back in the ’70s.
This release of the almighty #’67 Camaro strikes a lot of chords with me. Also, the fact that this is the #Opening Hood version of this casting means all is not lost when it comes to that tool. It seems as though the positives may outweigh the negatives after all.
What do you think of this first mix of Hot Wheels #Vintage Racing Club? So far, you can order it from Hot Wheels distributors like Jcar Diecast and 1 Stop Diecast. In addition to that, 7-Eleven and Big Lots stores in the United States have surprisingly been the first to carry it.
Categories: Collection Reflection
ORANGE TRACK DIECAST 
If there’s no rubber tires, it ain’t premium!
dont be a hater, there have been a lot of premiums done with non real rider wheels. and no hot wheels have rubber tires. they are all plastic.. other wise they would rot off the rims.
The point is: Hot Wheels Premium now has two levels. The older “Premium” is now Gold-Label, and those do. Silver-Label Premium has premium details, and it’s own wheel set that are definitely a step above basics.
personally, chase items and un even case counts are a major turn off for me,
as a collector. they are just an open door to those who prey on us, in the after market, to artificially inflate values, and make them harder for us to get.
but there re those that think it is great, because it gives them a better chance for an investment value.
so I suppose that it depends on why you collect, and what your priorities are.
as to the race club series, I like that it is using Vintage cars, the fact that the porsche has the “porsche” 5 spokes, ( I mentioned their looks in the first ( mid premium series release) is a perfect fit for the car.
though, some would balk on their use on the BMW. 😉 LOL
the 67 camaro, may be the old RLC tooling of the first (the magenta release)custom camaro from 2009 (I think) that was retooled to resemble the USA model more. it has since been replaced with the Hong Kong model.
if so, I’m glad to see that it is still servicable. and I’ll probably be putting neo’s on it. if ever given the chance.
thanks for the tip about where they might be found. there are 2 big lots with in 20 miles of me. 7-11’s here dont carry toys.
thanks TAZ
First off, love that you’re delving into what will no doubt split the collecting crowd even farther. This will surely be a sensitive subject for many.
I LOVE the new direction of the premium basic line. The new wheels and metal/metal definitely takes the sting out of the $3 retail.
I am OK with the “chase” idea as it does bring more thrill to the hunt, especially since I’ve recently started taking a big step back from being a “completion-ist” with my sets.
However, I HATE the idea that cases aren’t an even split of cars, with the obvious exception of chase cases for the exact reason you’ve stated. I can no longer split a case order with a buddy with the worst case scenario being that one of is short a car because there was a chase.
I get the idea of making a “chase” but I don’t understand the necessity to make integrated chases just by low production of other cars in the set. Especially since the new premium basic lines are sometimes metal/metal gives fair chance that the single in the case might have broken out of its blister.
Hopefully, Mattel will take this under consideration in the future and provide even splits in non-chase cases and quality packaging to help reduce the chances of in-transit damage.
Thanks, Travis. I think you collect very similar to me. I am not a completion-ist either, but do love to collect the full line if I like it. I LOVE this line and aim to get it all. The chase aspect doesn’t bother me. I barely collect supers. I do find satisfaction though, through splitting cases with friends. These uneven cases do not allow us to do so. I wonder if distributors will see a dip in sales, or if it will be propelled by the almighty chance of unboxing a chase.
Well good luck to you Brad. Currently that might prove a difficult task. I myself have been lucky to stumble upon the 6/6 914 Porsche “chase” but I doubt I’ll be trying to get all of them. Another issue that comes up is whether or not there will be a way to differentiate between the chase cases and non-chase cases. Currently, there is a differentiation between the cases for the premium car culture line and I know of at least 1 hobby dealer that knows the difference and will not mail out a chase case to a buyer.
side note about this mid class premium. we must remember that we had them before, starting with cal customs, that utilized a 2 piece plastic wheel that had a rim insert as well as real riders, and the nascar pro racing series of the 90’s in the #1 cards that came out with the pro-circuit series that had the real rider racing wheels.. the for fathers to the modern Neo Classics and the Neo classic deep dish.
I mentioned before , this mid grade premium idea, is not new. it has along history with hot wheels.
LOL Taz. The ’90s are so long ago that I don’t feel as there is any comparison from a historical sense. I am referencing recent history (2018-present) when I saw premium here.
sorry, brad, but I’m speaking strictly to historical comparisons 😉 ,
metal-metal, custom packaging, exclusive non real rider wheels and high end detail (for their time).
they were the same classification of being a mid grade premium. add to that, they were also just a step below in price as their higher end counterparts.
and they are not alone.
you can easily trace the lineage forward, through out the 2000’s, with several other lines that fallowed this same formula, to the present.
each one evolving with technology and market pressures. to get to this most recent one.
I have such a hard time knowing how to feel about the ever-increasing number of chase pieces in the Hot Wheels (and now Matchbox!) lineups. It’s easy to take the simplistic “screw the scalpers” mindset, but I also recognize that there’s no other way we would get those cool spectraflame versions of great castings. Ultimately, I think I prefer the way chases are done in the Car Culture line, where they’re just a black recolor of another casting in the set. Having the chase model be an exclusive casting (especially when it’s the coolest in the set) feels less fun and more like a tax on collectors.
As for the uneven case counts, I would understand them trying to match expected collector demand, but it looks like they’re instead using it to control costs. The silver-label line JUST launched – why didn’t they set the price high enough to include the castings they wanted?
You bring up some good points. Chase/TH pieces serve a purpose in that they get collectors out to retail. Once you’re there — even if you come up empty-handed in scoring one — you are more likely to make another diecast purchase. Having one in just about every line? It can be very cumbersome to those who are simply trying to complete sets. I have seen a lot of collector fatigue lately and it could be simple exhaustion.
what gets me to retail is realizably finding cars I actually want. constantly going and finding little to nothing of interest, is what driving me away .I still hit the pegs, but not like I once did, when things I wanted to buy, were a lot easier to find
Brad, not a big of the car count. I hope Hot Wheels doesn’t care about resellers, but they care about collectors. Yup splitting cases was always a plus to help cut down on what can be an expensive “hobby!” Thx for the vide3o.
Thanks, Tony!
The uneven count is bad.
IMO the chase in RR sets (those black 0/5 Whatevers) should be EXTRA – there IS space to fit 11 RR cars into the crate for 10.
Generally I DO NOT LIKE the idea of chase cars.
Chase = scalpers target, wrong for collectors. F.ex. Pearl & Chrome series 2023 – 5 cars à 7 pieces and ONE chase car. Unfortunately for me, the only castings I collect from these series are the chase ones.
If you’re talking about Car Culture cases, there isn’t room to fit another one (ie. 11 cars) into a case without crushing the blister card.
I don’t like the whole idea of Chase/Treasure Hunt cars in general. At least with the Super Treasure Hunts and the Car Culture Chase cars, they are different versions of the common cars, so I don’t feel so much like I’m missing out when I don’t find them. With these Themed Assortment Chase cars, there is no non-Chase version of the Chase cars, so unless I get lucky, I’m missing out on the Chase cars completely, especially in a mix like this where the entire set is just awesome.
The lopsided cases are no good either. That makes for some of the non-Chase cars in the mix to be harder to find and the others just start clogging the pegs.
Thanks, Jason!
Nearly six months later and you are absolutely correct.
It’s just another way for them and the “cherry pickers” to screw not just us collectors but also the kids that would become future collectors. They make their money, the cherry pickers scam the rest of us and the kids on eBay.
dont fool your self about kids and collecting,
I’m sure there are plenty of them out there right now with collections, just because they have played with theirs
, dont mean they are any less serious about it, than we are.(I still enjoy setting up a track and running mine)
just wondering? does any one disagree, that kids are disappointed, when they see a picture of a hot wheel , from a serries, picture.
that they really want.but, can not find. then an adult does?
or any less excited when they do find it?
my personal feeling are,
alot of these series cars are hard enough to find, with out messing with counts,
There is no need to make some even harder to get. or making them impossible to complete, because a case was added.
maybe thats just because I remember the old days, befor hot wheels collecting was a thing, and they were just a toy car,not an investment.
ive allways been a hotwheels collector, I never out grew them.
PS been checking my big lots, so far neither hot wagons nor race has arrived. but I’m hoping
back to this series, news update: – it just got even better.
toyota 3000GT ,custom datsun 240Z, 63 VEtte,69 boss 302, and custom maverick have been added,
thanks again brad for putting this series on my radar. I hope I can find them. these look like they might be a good series for the track . finally a new racing series that can actually be raced(not happened since the pro circuit days, I mentioned earlier)
All of it from rlc to supers to chase to gold premium to silver premium to mainlines, it’s all over produced. The days of finding something truly rare are long gone, unless it’s an accident like pro stock Pictionary Camaro from a few years back and sure I get the collect what you love, but all collectors want rare with the dream of escalating value and what’s happening now is the same pattern from 1995 to mid 2000 with treasure hunts, look at the value of one of those from 1996-2006. Then the out roar over how hard it was to get an rlc, they went from 3k to 10k to 15k to 20k to 30k to unnumbered. So silver premium, they’ll ruin the hobby like everything else
the HWC/Rlc started with 10,000 back in 2002, it climbed to 12,500. before the recession collapsed the market,
as people started selling their collections, and stopped buying
so, the numbers started dropping with lower demand, until they hit a bottom production,
with some ,not all being as low as 3,000, hot wheels is a profit base supply and demand production line.
so the reason there is so many made, is because there is so much demand for it.
if people truely feel the numbers are too high,and they want smaller numbers, all they have to do, is stop buying. when the demand gets low enough that the product starts stalk piling, the numbers will start coming down again.
Taz
PS, I just baught 6 86 thunderbirds from target yesterday, with a production run of just north of 8000. with a 2022 production date. just for a apples to apples comparison when was the last time you found any hot whhels still on the store peg, 2 years past it’s release date?
sorry brad, . still hoping to find some of these newly termed silver series cars soon,just noticed the J-dom’ series from this line . it looks like they are finally chasing the adult racer market, with the popularity of the live stream racing becoming more and more popular. thanks again . I hope they keep expanding it.
Taz
PS, would be great to see them partner with the robot racing league, to design track lay outs for these also. , I think
tracks designed for open lane racing would be something kids and adults could really enjoy.
as you know I have been using sizzler fat track that way for years,
More chase cars has just made it more profitable for store employees turned scalpers. Haven’t found a super or Chase in the wild for a seriously long time to the point,we just don’t look anymore.They all do it now,pick the gold out and scalp it on Ebay or have a buyer/buyers lined up before case is opened. They rarely make it to the pegs.
For me, I’m more bothered by Mattel’s lack of commitment to justifying the price-point. With the Hot Wagons, they were all Metal/Metal but now, they’re shortpacking the full metal cars. I understand not being able to make an entire set all metal but at the very least balance the car assortment so there’s 2-3 of each.
I believe the short packing is a marketing ploy, the same as using Silver and gold, to install implied value.
releasing them in smaller cases, in uneven mixed lots, signifies some will be harder to get ,and in lower quantity releases, and calling them silver and gold, adds the implication of a monetary as well of added quality.
all of which are tools to subliminally encourage a mind set if increased value to the customer.
it is kinda like adding 25% more or new and improved. to items that actually have smaller volume and no significant change. to regenerate sales and confidence in a given product.
there is also the points that the online purchasers have made, they wont get even counts, to they will have to make more purchases to get the cars they want, leaving them with extra cars. they then have to trade or sell.
I’m at a point in life where I have disposable income and can afford a case . As many have mentioned , I don’t even bother hunting any more because store employees in my area take everything good . My local walmart will never see the Granturismo case or neon speeders . The boxes always go to the employees friends.
So seeing all these new sets come out with cars I like made me really excited.. And then I find out boxes are heavy loaded with a specific car.
I cant even resell the darn car because it’s valueless and might not even get the whole set . This scheme is a dream for scalpers and resellers though. Shame .
high brad, and every one, I still have not found this release, but I did find some of the gran turismo, and porsche releases with these wheels. and they are not all metal, metal. many have plastic bases.
to me this confirms even stronger what I said earlier, calling them silver level promos is just a marketing gimmic. because we had several mid level promo lines in the past , that had higher paint details, with upgraded or exclusive hard plastic wheels. on regular blister cards, large cards and even in sealed plastic cards, with mixed metal and plastic bases.
these are just standard mid level fair.
their still cool not bad for 3.00/3.50. so I have no complaints, I just dont see the need to try to build hype by calling them silver level..
to bring this back around to this release, my friend showed me his 71 muria from this vintage racing set, and it also has a plastic base.
sorry brad, I just read the full article, and you had previously mentioned they had mixed bases.
I only read part of it before where you mentioned metal bases. I would be more impressed if these were all metal/ metal release.
as I had thought they were, and by which I made my earlier comparisons.
and as the more recent mid levels have been with non real rider wheels have been.