So, Mattel seems to have found another way to milk money — err — provide collectors with another series to complete. Granted, prices of Hot Wheels cars, even in this Premium series are still modest and reasonable when compared to, say, Ignition Model cars of the same scale. And yes, I know that they are not of the same caliber, but collectors collect and there’s really no point arguing what one prefers to collect.
So now we have the Fast and Furious Premium Series. And it’s rubbish. Or maybe it’s just rubbish to me. Let me explain.
The cars themselves are superb.
I mean, you have Brian’s R34 Nissan Skyline GT-R from 2 Fast 2 Furious in all it’s glory with that instantly recognizable blue striping, that GT wing and the silver paint job. It even has a 2F2F number plate and detailed head and tail lamps. And then you have the Real Rider wheels in chrome. It’s not close to the car’s original wheels, but a Real Rider is a premium upgrade however you look at it. However, Hot Wheels did not use a new casting for the R34, so you get the vented hood and the standard V-spec body kit. It’s not bad by any means, it’s just not an actual representation of Brian’s GT-R.
You also have Han’s Nissan Sylvia S15 from Tokyo Drift. The Mona Lisa of the drift world according to Twinkie. Again, you have detailed head and tail lamps, a fantastic replica paint job of the Mona Lisa car and even Sylvia badges, and it has wing mirrors! It has the same RR6SPM Real Rider wheels as the R34 and a ground-hugging body kit with a rear spoiler. Yes, they don’t represent the real car’s wheels and wing as well but if you squint your eyes, it will probably do.
Brian’s ’70 Ford Escort RS1600 from Fast & Furious 6 also makes an appearance on this set. The Escort was the most accurate representation of the franchise movie car on this lot. It may have only had the simple blue and white paint job but the premium quality really came in the details. Rally lights, head and tail lamp details, and those gold RR8SP wheels. It’s the wheels that did it, really. Hot Wheels nailed this one with this awesome wheelset.
And then there are the two oddball cars from the set. A yellow Lamborghini Gallardo LP 570-4 Superleggera with RR10SP wheels and a black Nissan Skyline GT-R (BNR32) with RR6SPM. The Lamborghini Gallardo is seen on the ending of Fast & Furious 6 parked outside of Dom’s house with the Bensopra GT-R. The Nissan R32 Nissan GT-R, on the other hand, is seen in Han’s funeral scene from Furious 7. Both cars have neither been confirmed nor denied to belong to any member of the “family” and are assumed that the cars were only there as part of the scene and nothing more. Even though they may not have been used as “hero” cars in the movie, they are still cool cars to have.
So why are they rubbish?
It is exactly because of what I wrote earlier. You have two cars that are not necessarily Fast and Furious movie cars. There were several Fast and Furious sets that came out and they could easily have plucked a few cars from there to add to the Fast Imports set (DK’s 350Z from Tokyo Drift and Suki’s S2000 from 2Fast 2Furious come to mind). The selection could have been better, but I’m not really complaining about the black R32.
Toy Box Garage 