Stock #85513
Collector #008

CB's Die Cast Review:  November 27, 2002

HotWheelsCollectors.com - Series One
Mutt Mobile™

The HWC chose to use a couple of the Vintage castings in the Series One.  One is Twin Mill, in a nod to the first fantasy Hot Wheels design.  The second model most likely was chosen in honor of its designer.  While Mutt Mobile is not among the top five Vintage castings of most people, this version of the Larry Wood creation is better than imagined.

The Vintage casting was utilized for this version; with the diecast body nickel-plated, polished and painted in the common Spectraflame blue of its ancestor.  The chassis and blown engine are diecast zinc-plated metal.  While those features are common to the original, the remainder of the model has been modified.

The plastic roof has been molded in black instead of the usual white, and the embossed letters on the side have been removed.  In their place, a blue, white and brown cartoon image of an angry pooch adorns either side of the roof, while the name of the car is now tamped on the flat portion of the roof in brown.  The innovative artwork was designed by MiQ Willmott, who is responsible for many of the creatively outlandish decorative schemes on Hot Wheels as of late.  This one is subdued by his standards, but nicely done nonetheless.  The interior / cage / gate component is molded in gray plastic instead of black, and the pair of dogs in the rear cage are molded in brown plastic instead of white.  To have all the components molded in colors that blend together well is a major improvement over the original 1970 model.  Yet another vanity plate is tamped on the rear, although this one does not conform to the layout for a California plate.  Surprisingly, neither the headlights nor the taillights are painted, and there is no vanity plated tamped on the nose - surprising given the level of detail achieved on the previous models in the series and in the intricate roof tampos on this model.

The car, manufactured in China, rides on the new RSW wheels with the "Torsion Bar Suspension."  Ironically, this is the first incarnation of this model to have this feature, as the original axle design was abandoned after 1969 and the 1970 version was equipped with thin straight axles.  So the HWC model actually has more play in the suspension than the original model does.

The HWC Mutt Mobile is not a favorite of mine, but it is an improvement over the original, so I guess I can't argue against it being here.  When models such as this one appear in an improved format, you wonder what highly desirable reissued cars such as S'Cool Bus and Sweet 16 would look like.  Maybe we'll see next year.