Hot Wheels cars are the gateway for car fans. How many people played with 1:64-scale diecasts as kids and dreamed of getting behind the wheel of the real thing? One adult enthusiast did things the other way around, taking a rare opportunity to immortalize his full-size 1967.5 Datsun 2000 Roadster in miniature form.
Matt Gabay, owner of the diecast-inspired Datsun, works for Hot Wheels’ parent company Mattel. he told drive He bought the car in 2013 because he wanted a “fun, old convertible” that “would also park in a metal parking lot.” mission accomplished. This second generation Datsun Roadster was introduced in 1963 and produced until 1970, but did not become as popular as later Z-cars. The 1967.5 2000 model is also unusual because it combined a new 2.0-liter engine (making 135 horsepower) with the outgoing low-profile windshield and flat dashboard. This specification was only made from March to November of 1967.
As for how this Hot Wheels car came to be, it’s because Gabe was invited to be the guest of honor at the 2024 Hot Wheels Collector’s Convention. The guest of honor gets to choose a car to be prepared for the event, and Hot Wheels already had a Datsun Roadster in their Standard Series to use as a starting point. It was upgraded to a higher quality “Collector’s” edition with rubber tires and an all-metal chassis and body, and was produced in a limited run of 4,000.
Gabe said, “I was able to convince the team to make parts that would keep it at a high standard.” “I designed the toy car using my car as general inspiration (same paint color, wheel style and badging), but also added racing numbers to make it feel a little more Hot Wheels.”
The full-size Datsun got its own vinyl graphics along with a hardtop to match the Hot Wheels car. Gabe still has the original soft top, but it is not currently installed. The car also has front lowering springs and 14-inch PanaSport wheels that are faithfully replicated on the Hot Wheels version.
If you like what you see, you can make offers on both the 1:64 and 1:1-scale versions right now cars and bids. When we last checked in, the high bid was a reasonable $5,000.
