Jun Imai studied at Art Center College of Design before joining Hot Wheels in 2004. From 2004, until he left Mattel in 2018, he has designed hundreds of cars for the diecast lines.
In 2012, he left diecast to lead HW Innovation and RC Design, and returned in summer 2014 as Manager of HW Diecast Design.
A few of his favorite designs include: Mad Manga, Nissan Skyline GT-X “Hakosuka”, Nissan Skyline 2000GTR “Kenmeri”, Datsun 510, ’71 Datsun Bluebird Wagon, Mazda RX-7, Toyota 2000GT, Datsun 620, BMW 2002, ’66 Dodge A100, ’69 Mustang Boss 302, ’77 Pontiac Firebird T/A, ’83 Chevy Silverado, Porsche 935/78, Porsche 911 (993) GT2, Driftsta, Datsun Fairlady 2000, Custom Datsun 240Z “Fugu Z”.
Aside from HW’s, he enjoys spending time with his family, running 5K’s, skateboarding, and tearing up L.A. streets with his modified Datsun 510 Wagon, 260ZG, and Porsche 911 Carrera 3.2.
As if you couldn’t already tell, its been all Hot Wheels #Fast & Furious / Original Fast series this week here on OTD. Why? Well, simply put: because I love this mix (as if you couldn’t tell). These five cars have been so long overdue that I decided […]
My must-have Super #Treasure Hunt of 2019 is here thanks to my friend, Tim (@tandphwguide on IG). Tim has been my “super savior” as of late, as I have been coming up short. Recently I’ve dedicated more time into this site, so Tim’s efforts (and kindness) are much […]
The other day I was filling my 108-count Acrylic Display Case with my Hot Wheels Custom ’77 Dodge Van collection and noticed I had still yet to open two releases: the “Mummy Marauders” Color Shifters Creatures release and the 2015 Super #Treasure Hunt. I had planned to do […]
2019 marks the 10th anniversary of the #Datsun Bluebird 510 casting. Back in 2009, I don’t think even the savviest of #JDM enthusiasts could have predicted the meteoric rise of the #510 in the Hot Wheels collecting world. Now, its seemingly an event every time one is released, […]
Hot Wheels #Halloween cars have always been fun to collect. It seems just about every year we have at least one series designated for them. This year, we got The Nightmare Before Christmas series since it was the 25th anniversary of that movie. To tell you the truth, […]
The Hot Wheels 50th Anniversary celebration is coming to a close as the #2019 Hot Wheels have just started showing up at retail. Among those 2019 releases is the brand-new, #Super Chromes #Custom ’77 Dodge Van. As of the last few years, any time a vehicle is “chromed” […]
From a collector’s standpoint, the focus of the 2018 #Walmart Exclusive, #MOPAR Series is on the all-metal, ’70 Dodge Power Wagon. Its a great truck casting that I admit buying my fair share of when I saw a couple sets on the pegs one night. The other casting […]
The folks over at Borla must be grinning from ear to ear over their licensing deal with Mattel and Hot Wheels. Their brand was placed on the one of the hottest castings in the #’83 Silverado, in the hottest adult collector line: #Car Culture. And, just before that […]
It may very well be the best trio released this year in the #2018 Hot Wheels mainline. The #HW Hot Trucks Series release of the #Datsun 620 started out with a bang, and momentum never really slowed down. Months before the first 2018 mainline cars were first seen, […]
With the first ever Target Kids & Collectors Event this Saturday, collectors have been finding four-sided displays loaded with 2018 “C” and “H” case cars, complete with the #Target Exclusive #Red Edition series vehicles. Among those #2018 Hot Wheels Red Edition vehicles from the “H” case assortment was […]
ORANGE TRACK DIECAST 