Hot Wheels vs. TOMICA

"d00mZ" (d00mz)
03/02/2014 at 23:35 • Filed to: Tomica, Hot Wheels, Diecast, Figures, Review, Oppo

With all the Hot Wheels and Tomica posts, I'd like to share one of my collections to bring you guys a brief, "straight-to-the-point" review of a Toyota 2000GT from both worlds.
My first review :)

TOMICA 1:59 vs. Hot Wheels 1:64

Overall, both look great. Paint: Both have a metallic finish which gives that "sparkle" when shined upon. The door handles on Hot Wheels 2000GT are painted silver while on TOMICA they're not painted.

Fender mirrors are also added on the Hot Wheels, but it looks as if its welded or "melted" on and it might confuse the buyer if they don't know what it is.

TOMICA has the advantage with "articulation". Doors open and most, if not ALL, have all wheel suspension while Hot Wheels do not.

A really great feature from Tomica, but their wheels are much more smaller and thinner than Hot Wheels.

As you can see, TOMICA is detailed in both front and rear styles. The turn signals are also enlarged to fit the actual 2000GT. Although Hot Wheels lost these features, its detailed roll cage could be seen from the rear. The front end on Hot Wheels is covered in clear plastic while TOMICA slaps a metal bar (which doesn't look like its fog lights) Both share a steering wheel as its RHD, but the winner with detailed interior goes to TOMICA.

TOMICA comes with 2 seats and a full "shifter" while Hot Wheels comes with only one seat and a nub in the center.

Holding these two, you immediately feel the difference. TOMICA is much more heavier than Hot Wheels. Hot Wheels feels much more "plastic" (even though its diecast) and much lighter.

So if you plan on starting a collection, there's no real winner here as its purely by reference.
Tomica mainly releases JDM, but also focuses on Euro. If you like the features of all wheel suspension and "highly" detailed front and rear ends, Tomica is what you want. Tomica also has a weirdly wide range of mini diecast cars (1:64, 1:59, 1:52, etc...).
If you like crazy wild designs and on a budget, get Hot Wheels. Hot Wheels also share different scales other than 1:64, but both vary in styles.

I hope you guys know the gist of what the difference is so go out there and hunt and be safe guys!

DISCUSSION (22)

Frosted > d00mZ
03/02/2014 at 23:40

I really like Tomica but can't find their small models for a buck like Hot Wheels. I am watching a few model Subarus on eBay though.

thedevilinside > d00mZ
03/02/2014 at 23:42

I'll take both please.

d00mZ > Frosted
03/02/2014 at 23:43

Really impossible to find imo. Tomicas are really good with detail and it sucks that they're 3$-5$. My wallet has lost more weight than I have because of Tomica. I got about 50 I believe.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > d00mZ
03/02/2014 at 23:45

Hot Wheels are also meant to be tracked.

Frosted > d00mZ
03/02/2014 at 23:46

That's why I kinda like HW more. I can get 5 of them for the price of 1 Tomica. Also Hot Wheels seems to have gotten better from back in the day, I see a lot more realistic styled vehicles in their lineup now.

But you get what you pay for and if detail is what you're after, nothing beats Tomica.

d00mZ > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
03/02/2014 at 23:51

That I didn't know. I wonder how it'll be if I put one of my Tomicas on the track

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > d00mZ
03/02/2014 at 23:59

Poorly, it's the reason why Hot Wheels don't have suspension and accurately scaled wheels.

mycarneverruns87 > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
03/03/2014 at 00:14

Exactly sir, this is the reason they out sold Matchbox in the beginning because they were actually faster!

mycarneverruns87 > d00mZ
03/03/2014 at 00:17

Very very cool post and great pics! I have been curious of the differences for a while now. Each definitely have their benefits as well as flaws. In the end you can not go wrong. Thanks for doing the comparison!

d00mZ > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
03/03/2014 at 00:25

Ah that makes sense. The wheels itself gave me an idea why, but thanks for clearing that up! Learned something new :)

d00mZ > mycarneverruns87
03/03/2014 at 00:28

Thanks!! Arch Duke Maxyenko, The Great! just told me that Hot Wheels were also meant to be for tracks as well. That goes to show why Hot Wheels are so enclosed and have thicker wheels.

Roundbadge > d00mZ
03/03/2014 at 09:03

I like this review. I also have a few Tomicas from the early 80's....an FJ land cruiser, a Caddy, a fastback 2nd gen Celica, and a Benz (not sure which off the top of my head). I'll hope to post them soon.

Aya, Almost Has A Cosmo With Toyota Engine Owned by a BMW. > d00mZ
03/05/2014 at 18:13

Well, i miss the old tomica :(

I have tons of brand new tomica that i bought from my friend, and it's not that good.

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
03/09/2014 at 18:24

Right, though they did feature a type of suspension in the redline era, based on torsion bar design. Smooth is fast and the TBS made Hot Wheels much smoother than other brands, there was even a tool to align the wheels. They dropped due to costs though, but the 67 Camaro and other vintage castings still have the axle tabs in the chassis

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > Frosted
03/09/2014 at 18:28

Auto World could probably rival them though. Their entry line is about the same price as a Tomica (3 to 5 bucks) and the quality is about the same as well, plus all Auto World models are scaled exactly at 1:64. On the down side, they have no suspension or opening features, though their wheels are better

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > d00mZ
03/09/2014 at 18:29

Just a heads up, the Hot Wheels version is probably 1:55 scale, as it's actually bigger than Tomica

d00mZ > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion
03/09/2014 at 20:10

Yeah did you read it? I put the scales up. Are you sure its 1:55? The backing says its 1:64. Hmm you might be right though. Good looking out. Thanks

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > d00mZ
03/09/2014 at 20:33

I did and those are absolutely correct, but I was actually referring to one of the phrases right at the top, where it says Tomica 1:58 vs Hot Wheels 1:64. The Hot Wheels casting is slightly larger than the Tomica, so it should follow that the scale also is.

In general, the same scale variance used in Matchbox cars can be expected for Hot Wheels cars, since they're scaled to similarly sized packaging, but, while Mattel classifies Matchbox cars according to scale, they'll note every Hot Wheels model as 1:64, even when they're not... :/

d00mZ > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion
03/09/2014 at 20:37

Man I learned something new. Thanks! It sucks how Hot Wheels doesn't do that. Makes me wonder what the other models' scales are now.

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > d00mZ
03/09/2014 at 21:37

Agreed, when I figured out the different scales, I became really obsessed over it and started measuring all my cars against internet databases. It's probably the main reason why I downsized my HW collection so much over the years, miscaled cars. :p

d00mZ > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion
03/10/2014 at 01:14

Mind if I ask what do you collect more? I'm guessing Tomica?

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > d00mZ
03/10/2014 at 07:36

I wish, but I only have about 11 Tomicas... they're pretty expensive to import to Brazil. Most of my collection still is HW, but I've practically stopped picking them up this year to focus on Auto World, a brand new line that was released just last year. Their entry segment is about the same quality as Tomica, while their premium segments are about on par with Kyosho (which I've been picking upfor their Formula One releases as well) and Tomica's Limited Vintage line, plus they're all painstakingly measured to be 1:64. I highly recommend picking them up, they're my favorite brand right now.