We’re less than a week into 2013 and already it’s turning in to a great year for Hot Wheels collectors. First we had news of the Treasure Hunt Toyota 2000GT that’s coming out March-ish, but before that even hits the pegs Mattel has unleashed the Nissan Skyline H/T 2000GT-X and Datsun 510 wagon.
We’ve already previewed the Datto goon for you back in September, and profiled its real-life inspiration, Mattel designer Jun Imai‘s Datsun 510 wagon, last month, so the real news here is the hakosuka. This will be only the first recoloring of the Skyline since the original version with the JNC logo, which debuted in 2011 and arguably kicked off the current wave of old school J-tin.
Both the wagon and the hako are part of the 2013 Boulevard series, which is a premium line that costs about $5 per car. What do you get for that extra dough? Well for starters, more detail such as the black-painted flares which were too costly to do on a $1 car. The chassis is also fully metal and, for the hako, the tires are real rubber wrapped around Watanabe-style rims.
In addition to the gunmetal metallic beast, other cars slated to appear in the Japanese classic laden 2013 Boulevard lineup are new colors for the Honda CR-X and Subaru BRAT.
Images courtesy of The Lamley Group. Visit their website to see more.
How is painting the flares more costly than the entire paint scheme on the white car?
The tires are rubber not plastic that’s mainly the real reason why they are pricier
I wouldn’t be surprised if they require a bit more precise alignment than anything on the white car requires, and that likely costs.
I’m in the US. Where do you find the Boulevard series?
I’ve seen them at Target, Walmart and Kmart.
The white cars graphics are all tampo (printed), where as the black flares are masked off and painted. More time involved. Looks like the hood may be black as well. We will see.
Yes, the hood is black!
It’s subtle, but you’ll notice the door handles are painted as well
Good Morning, Friends.
I like cars, always follow the news related about cars, and collecting miniatures.
appreciate vintage and classic vehicles, and I discovered the site JNC, in which I became a fan.
Here in Brazil, it is very hard to see ancient Japanese cars because imports here, started from 1991 with Subaru, Honda and Toyota among other brands.
despite the distance, it is good to know that there is this site to learn more of the classic Japanese cars.
Love this! Can’t wait to find one in New Zealand.