Auto Body Shop Trends: From Hot Wheels to Hot-Rods

As children, many of us grew up playing with toy cars. Hot wheels and Matchbox were perhaps the most popular brands. Having fleets of little cars at our disposal, we would drive them across our living rooms and kitchens showing off their amazing designs. While this kind of playing never necessitated a trip to any auto body shops, we would later realize in our adulthood that it does not compare to driving a hot-rod around. Entertainingly enough, many of our tastes in automobile designs are actually retained from our childhoods from playing with toy cars. It’s no surprise that those of us that owned sleek toy cars wound up purchasing sleek cars in the future. To celebrate that notion, we’ve gone ahead and found four amazing toy cars with real car equivalents.

The Twin Mill – This toy car has been the most iconic Hot Wheel since the company first start building toy cars. The car has become so recognizable that a full-size replica was built for auto-shows in 2001. While the car may look ridiculous to some, its appeal largely derives from the nostaglia it creates in many of its beholders. With its duel-engine design which allow the car to produce up to 1400 horsepower, this car is just as cool as its 3-inch counter-part.

Deora – Also part of the original Hot Wheel collection, the Deora was one of the odder looking models. Despite its strange appearance, Hot Wheels has gone on to build several iterations of the car to this day. Amusingly, the car was actually designed as a hybrid car from Dodge and Ford. It was built for the 1967 Detroit Autorama as a cross between a Dodge D-100 and a 1960 Ford stationwagon. While the model didn’t really take off on major streets, it did find its way into popularity at 1/64^th the size.

1966 Pontiac GTO – Many of us may remember the ’66 Pontiac GTO as it captured the hearts and minds of America. This design became entrenched in the minds of Americans as the quintessential muscle car. While it doesn’t have the strangest appearance, it certainly was unorthodox for the time. The Hot Wheels version of this car has gained just as much fame and has seen at least fifty iterations since it was first miniaturized in 1967.

2013 Chevrolet Camaro – Here’s a car that has become recognizable on many roads in America. The Chevy Camaro has always been Chevy’s entryway into the sports car industry. The car’s ambitious design has brought many to compare it to a Hot Wheel car. Part of that is because the Chevy Camaro has been both a sports car and a Hot Wheel since the 1960’s. The Chevy Camaro line of Hot Wheel model cars has remained among its most popular toys. In honor of that tradition, a 2013 Chevrolet Camaro was designed with Hot Wheels carbon fiber body kit, Hot Wheels paint, Hot Wheels suede door inserts, and a V-8 engine for good measure. This car has traveled from auto-show to auto-show reminding Americans of just how eccentric Hot Wheels cars would look in real life.

How To Use This Information

Model cars are typically copies of life-size cars, but its fun to see situations where model cars have influenced the designs of life-size cars. As the holiday season grows near, toy cars will begin to be swiped from every toy store’s shelf for this generation of children. Those toy cars may very well influence their taste in real cars when they grow old enough to drive one. Whether you are driving a hot-rod now, or expect your children to do so when they are older, it’s nice to know there’s an auto body shop that will always take care of your vehicle when you need it. We can fix just about any car you throw our way. For more information, visit our website here, or give us a call at 303-344-2122.