Quattroporte!

Quite literally, 4 doors.

This is the Maserati Quattroporte, of the previous generation, done by Hot Wheels in 1/18 scale. Man, I just love putting on a fake Italian accent and pronouncing that. The Quattroporte is widely considered the most beautiful sedan ever, so you know why it's so deserving of its name. It's a luxury sedan that isn't so much about its interior appointments as it is its exterior design. Coming from the oft-hailed Pininfarina design studio, you would expect no less.

This low-end model by Hot Wheels is anything but cheap. It's fantastic. They captured the essence of the car without skimping on the details, which are not overwhelming but more than enough. I was left thoroughly impressed that they got the wheels right on this one, an area that Hot Wheels has mightily struggled with in the past. The signature fish gills on the front fenders are wonderfully done without looking fake. All this for a model that has been around for quite a while yet refuses to show its age. A perfect reflection of the car that it's based on.

Models like this show that Hot Wheels is very much capable of dominating the 1/18 market as it currently is in the 1/64 scale. Since losing the Ferrari license, it's like they have completely forgotten about making the big cars. Perhaps they need a friendly reminder...

It's A Black (Series) Friday!

Stay safe out there today, everybody. You wouldn't fight over a generic Hot Wheels casting, so don't trample other people to get those generic-branded electronics.

Though there aren't a whole lot of smoking deals for diecast collectors, at least we can be happy with the fact that holiday season means stores are getting in new stock early and often. If there's any better time to start hunting for that elusive Hot Wheels or Matchbox release, it's now.

I've had a busy week hunting and hauling myself, online and offline. I knocked some major toys off my wish list. The Hot Wheels Car Culture series has started popping up in my area. I've even found new models from brands such as Greenlight, Racing Champions, and Auto World. Most of all, I've been able to score some smoking hot deals on the big cars. Take, for example, this Minichamps 1/18 Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Black Series.

Minichamps is like that free agent who is merely a role player for the team but wants a max contract. The detail is only slightly better than some of the better low-end brands but they're priced in the premium range where they are easily outperformed by the competition. However, in this game, all you need to be successful is to make the cars that nobody else does, at which point you can essentially get away with straight robbery. Just a little heads up for the new collectors...

For the record, I found this one for about a third of what it normally goes for, and I couldn't be happier, missing right-side mirror sticker, sawdust, and all. The SL65 Black Series is nuts, and it's already one of my favorite models in the collection.

TLV Model Of The Year? Enter The Lancia Delta Integrale

2016 is the first year in which I started to seriously collect TLVs. I bought my first TLV, the Mercedes 190E 2.3, a few years back. It not only put a dent in my wallet but also was an epic disappointment for something I expected to be as spectacular as the sticker price. I could never get over how awful the wheels looked. As a matter of fact, I no longer have it in my collection anymore, having dealt it away in a trade months ago. It was a rather easy decision to make at the time, and I still have zero regret about it.

Then there was the TLV Toyota Supra, third generation. Copy and paste the same story here as well. I've kept a couple along the way: the Toyota Century and the Nissan IDx. Those will stay with me forever.

This year when I opened up to getting diecast off the interwebs, I saw my options suddenly expand not only past my limits but far beyond what I ever imagined. I could now reach out and grab any model, any brand, any scale. The first thing I did was to make sure I got up to date with my favorite maker. I went and nabbed GT-R after GT-R. Those are still, to me, TLV's best efforts, personal bias notwithstanding.

However, there's one that took me by surprise, and it's this little red Lancia.