Hot Wheels has selected the five cars that will represent the United States and Canada in the grand finale of the 2021 Legends Tour. One of these five wild, one-of-a-kind custom builds could get the honor of being immortalized as a 1/64 scale model that will be sold worldwide.
In close collaboration with well-known designers and other prominent figures in the automotive world, Hot Wheels has traveled the world in recent months in search of the most unique cars. We’ve all seen it: a 1965 Ford Econoline nicknamed Grass Hopper and powered by a mid-mount V8, a 1929 chopped-up Ford Model A with the roof panel taken from a Nissan Quest minibus, and a one-of-a-kind 2007 Chevrolet Corvette. are just some of the highlights. Selecting five cars from such an illustrious group was easier said than done.
One of the finalists is a 1991 Porsche 911 built into a Baja 1000-legal rally car. Owned by TJ Russel of Sun Valley, California, it has custom suspension, four-wheel drive and composite body panels. Next up is Lulu, a one-off roadster built in just seven months by Paul Kalenian of Santa Fe. It is built with aluminum and uses a 325 horsepower four-cylinder turbocharged engine.
Muscle car fans won’t be disappointed: Hot Wheels also chose Scraptona, a 1969 Dodge Charger fitted with extra-wide tires and powered by a Richard Petty Racing NASCAR V8 engine tuned for 740 horsepower. It is owned by Christopher Palmer of Macomb, Michigan. If you’re more into Japanese cars, one of the contenders is a 2003 Nissan 350Z whose rear body panels have been replaced with an assortment of tubes. Owned by Ashley Robinson of San Mateo, California, it is powered by a twin-turbo engine that sounds immensely powerful.
Last but not least is a 1968 Mercedes-Benz 250S called High Class, owned by Kevin Clarke of Penticton, Canada. It has a supercharged V8 engine, a rear axle from a Ford Explorer and rides on a 1994 Chevrolet S-10 frame. It is much higher than Stuttgart ever expected.
These five cars will advance to the grand finale on November 13. They will compete against the winners of the international semifinal, which is scheduled for November 4. While the United States is often hailed as the mecca of the custom car world, thanks in part to our relatively casual approach to registering a one-off car, we shouldn’t underestimate what people can build abroad. One of the cars going to the international semifinals is a Volvo P1800-based gasser powered by a 600 horsepower V8.
The winner will be added to the Hot Wheels catalog of scale models and sold around the world. For 2020, the team opted for a 1970 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am, heavily modified with a front center V8 engine and punched-out wheel arches.