“What are the rarest colors for the original Hot Wheels?”

A couple questions that I hear frequently in the hobby: “What color is the rarest for this particular casting?” and “What colors were produced least for the entire line of Hot Wheels from 1968 – 1972?”  There are lots of experts in the field with their opinions, and collectors guides that have been produced that actually rank each casting by color, which certainly impacts a car’s value.

Over the many years of searching out original one-owner childhood collections of the original Hot Wheels, I certainly have a developed a strong opinion on what colors I feel are the rarest, due to the amount that have shown their beautiful faces in the thousands of cars I’ve uncovered.

Let’s keep in mind the fact that even common colors, like blue, can be very rare in certain castings as well.  Examples of rare blue cars are the Power Pad and AMX II.

The one myth that I can certainly debunk is the color Hot Pink.  Yes, I totally agree that it’s a rare color in certain castings, but there are other castings for which that it was truly a common color.  Some cars were never produced in this color, as well as other colors.  Mattel never seemed to have a consistent pattern when deciding on which colors a certain casting was to be mass produced.  Some examples of castings where Hot Pink was considered a more common color were: The Whip Creamer, Nomad, and Custom AMX.  I can certainly attest to this as these cars in Hot Pink show up fairly consistently in collections that I purchase.  I am going to leave Hot Pink out of the TOP 5 for argument’s sake.  Don’t get me wrong, it is a rare color in lots of castings, but it has a certain desirability about it which makes it even more rare in a lot of collectors’ minds.  Just not mine.

Let’s move on to what, in my opinion, and my opinion only, I feel are the scarcest and least produced colors by Mattel in both California and Hong Kong during the first five years of production.

TOP FIVE COLORS

In no particular order, here are the Top 5 rarest and least produced colors for the original SPECTRFLAME Hot Wheels:

ANTI-FREEZE

ORANGE

SALMON PINK (Nuclear)

LITE BLUE (Windex/Ice)

BROWN (Chocolate)

These colors have only shown themselves a handful of times throughout the last three decades of collecting for me.  When they do, and if they are in beautiful condition, they are immediately placed in my personal collection.  I have realized just how rare and scarce nice examples of these colors are in ANY casting.

I have included some pictures of these incredible cars from my personal collection.  I think that you will all agree to their beauty and the fact that this may be the first time that you’ve seen these castings in one of these particular and very rare colors.

I would love to hear your comments below.  Please take the time to comment, and let’s keep this hobby fun and exciting.  The Redline Hot Wheels certainly deserve it!

NEXT

In an upcoming blog, I will discuss my personal collection and why I have kept the cars I have from so many that have passed through my hands over the last thirty years.  Thanks for stopping by and Happy Hunting!

Remember, it’s all about the “Hunt” and “Capture!”

 

If you have the old REDLINE Hot Wheels and are thinking of selling them, Look No Further!

You now ask yourself the age old question:  “How do I sell my old Hot Wheels?”

Here at REDLINE ARCHEOLOGY, we will appraise your collection, at NO COST and NO OBLIGATION, and make the highest offer in the hobby for your cars, if they are from the years we are looking for 1967 – 1977.

With almost 30 years of diggin’ up original one owner childhood Hot Wheels collections from the sixties and seventies, REDLINE ARCHEOLOGY is the only place to have your old Hot Wheels appraised by one of the most successful collectors in the hobby, Bob Young.  Bob has recently authored a book titled “REDLINE ARCHEOLOGY” “A History of Diggin’ Up Original Hot Wheels Collections” now available on AMAZON + Barnes & Noble. 

Call us anytime @ 856.912.2463 or visit us @ www.RedlineArcheology.com