| Matchbox cars were first created in England in 1952. | | | | and children, and some even consider the Matchbox |
| While working for Lesney Products, owned by Leslie | | | | cars to be of lesser quality and design. In fact, go into |
| Smith and Rodney Smith (no relation), die-caster Jack | | | | any store that sells the cars and compare the |
| Odell created the first ever Matchbox car. It was a | | | | selection of Hot Wheels to Matchbox. In the way of |
| brass Road Roller made small enough to fit into a | | | | individual cars, Hot Wheels displays almost always out |
| match box, at the request of his daughter. She wanted | | | | number Matchbox ten to one easily. However, one |
| to take something to school for show and tell but | | | | observation that I have made in buying cars for my |
| school rules mandated that all items had to fit into a | | | | sons is the drastic difference in style between the two |
| match box. The first line of Matchbox cars was sold | | | | lines. The vast majority of Hot Wheels cars are not |
| by the Lesney company in 1953 with the #1 Road | | | | modeled after or painted like actual cars. Many of |
| Roller, #2 Dumper and #3 Cement Mixer. New cars | | | | them are variations of actual cars or new creations all |
| were added to the existing line each year until the line | | | | together. In fact, I personally have a few Hot Wheels in |
| reached 75. (The line was increased to 100 in 2008 but | | | | my collection that are shopping carts or toilets with |
| let’s stick to history for now.) | | | | wheels. Other cars by Hot Wheels are often painted |
| In 1967 Mattel, well known | | | | with much graphic and text details. Matchbox on the |
| for its most popular toy, Barbie, began to develop their | | | | other hand is entirely ‘normal’ cars. The majority |
| own line of die-cast toy cars. This line, called Hot | | | | of cars in their line are ones you are likely to see on |
| Wheels, came out with its first series in 1968 with 16 | | | | the street. The models are one or two tone painted, |
| cars. When sales were ten times more than expected, | | | | rarely with added graphics or text. One of the benefits |
| they added 24 more cars for the 1969 line. Continued | | | | of this is that you are more likely to find police cars, fire |
| sales caused the line to grow to 73 cars in 1970 and | | | | trucks, tow trucks, utility vehicles etc, with Matchbox |
| then 108 in 1971. With all of this growth, the Matchbox | | | | than with the Hot Wheels line. |
| cars by the Lesney company struggled to keep up. In | | | | Matchbox cars were the |
| 1982 the Matchbox car line was sold to Universal | | | | beginning. Hot Wheels brought in high quality and |
| Toys, who later sold it in 1991 to the well know Tyco | | | | enormous sales. Now, between the two lines of cars, |
| company. Over the years Matchbox and Hot Wheels | | | | you can find just about any custom or actual car |
| were the only two significant competitors in the | | | | imaginable. Die-cast cars have been a huge part in the |
| die-cast toy car saga and therefore even viewed as | | | | lives and many children and are becoming huge in the |
| rivals. Ironically, in 1996, Mattel bought the Matchbox | | | | realm of collectors. (One might wonder if these two |
| product line from Tyco. Hot Wheels and Matchbox | | | | groups are the same people!) I have heard some |
| were now owed by the same company but continue | | | | argue that die-cast cars are now primarily for |
| to live on as two lines of toy cars. | | | | collectors and are a thing of the past as children’s |
| Having grown up with | | | | toys. I can only respond by stating that my two sons |
| dozens of toy cars as a child, and having two young | | | | have much more fun playing with their 100+ cars than |
| sons with cars themselves now, I have done much | | | | they do buying and looking at them. I also must admit |
| research (playing) with both the Hot Wheels and | | | | that I’m glad that I have two sons so that I can still |
| Matchbox brands. In recent years, the Hot Wheels line | | | | play with die-cast toy cars at age thirty! |
| has obviously become the favorite of many collectors | | | | |