When simply EVERYONE is in TEAM TRANSPORT MOOD – FEATURETTE
Truck Mania:
Hot Wheels has just launched the Hot Wheels Elite 64 Freightliner Cascadia Truck on their Mattel Creations platform, the first truck from Hot Wheels in the Elite 64 series. This series is only available online until they're sold out. And yes, it took less than 45 minutes for the double decker trailer with working ramp, moulded grille and 16 edges to sell out. There is space for up to 6 vehicles on the trailer. This Truck Mania though gave us the opportunity to take a closer look at the Team Transport phenomenon. Hot Wheels has been selling Team Transporters from its Premium Car Culture range very successfully for several years now, with well over 73 different sets. More on this a bit further down below. In any case, so many other manufacturers have now jumped on the bandwagon, or rather the lorry, and taken up the idea of either offering trucks alone for the collector or together with a matching model car In this article, we go into this in more detail.
Hot Wheels Team Transport:
Car Culture Team Transport is a premium series of 2-car sets from 2018, consisting of a premium car and a transporter, both in a similar livery. It's all about transporting cars to their destination. Hot Wheels has invented a real goldmine with this. It's hard to believe that it's now more than 6 years since Hot Wheels released the first Team Transporter, the Porsche 356 Speedster with Urban Outlaw Magnus Walker livery and matching VW T1 Transporter pickup. These were always supplied in a mix, i.e. 3 different Team Transporter sets per mix. The dealers had received a box from Mattel, which always contained four transporters, so one transporter from the mix was always delivered twice and was therefore somewhat less rare than the other two versions. Then things went from strength to strength, Mattel really milked the Team Transporter cow: in 2018 there were a total of 6 different transporters from Mix 1 and 2. In 2019, there were already 4 different mixes, but 2 or 3 different transporters per mix!
In 2020, there were even four different models per mix, as well as exclusive versions such as Supreme, Walmart Legends and Fast and Furious and different variants, for example different wheels on the vans depending on the set. At the end of 2024, we have reached no less than number 73 with the Nissan 300ZX GTS Team Transporter, and it's not over yet! More models have been announced for 2025. Despite the money-making: Mattel does it very skilfully, because the transporters have absolutely nothing to complain about: Usual good premium quality, metal base with rubber wheels. Plus a wide variety of different vehicles and transporters (some of the transporter types are repeated from set to set, albeit with a different design), exclusive paint finishes that were only available in these sets and a card design that perfectly matches the theme of the transporter. It's simply so hard to complain here and we aactually have to accept that Hot Wheels has done everything right with their series, also in terms of pricing.
Schuco Team Transport:
The Schuco Transporter, which was offered from 2019 to 2020, went almost under the radar. In contrast to Hot Wheels, only the Transporter is included here and was around twice to three times as expensive as a Hot Wheels model back then. On the other hand, it was immediately apparent that Schuco's quality is yet on another level compared to other manufacturers. The lettering, the quality of the paintwork, the free-rolling wheels and the smallest details make this transporter that much more special. The tailgate can be opened, albeit without a ramp, to transport the cars directly into the transporter. Glass panels are integrated on the roof so that the cars can be seen from above. The 3 truck variants were created in collaboration with Porsche and are modelled on the original transporters from back then. These include the typical red Porsche Transporter with white lettering, the Martini version in silver and our absolute highlight: the Porsche Gulf version. There are no Gulf sponsors on it, just the typical Porsche Gulf lettering. Together with the Porsche 917K Gulf models from Sparky, this pairing makes an incredibly beautiful impression!
Tarmacworks Team Transport:
No sooner had Hot Wheels really hit the market with their Team Transport models Tarmacworks jumped around the corner and released their own interpretation of the Team Transport. However, the idea behind this was more to use the truck as a packaging idea for the model. As far as we know, Tarmacworks had only used this type of packaging three times before and stopped doing so. Perhaps it was also due to the environmental regulations, as the truck is practically made entirely of plastic and does not look high quality. The base as well as the wheels and body are made of plastic, the cabin is only painted and has no interior. This transporter variant only provided a cool surprise effect when you fold down the side panels and see the bolted model inside. Alongside the RWB Porsche and R35 racing car with GReddy Livery, our absolute favourite was, and still is, the legendary Castrol Toms Supra from the Japanese JGTC series. We have also written our own articles about it, which you can find on our website if you search for JGTC and / or Tarmacworks.
"Das blaue Wunder" by Norev:
Also somewhat cheap but all the more legendary is Norev: Hot Wheels had only recently released ‘das blaue Wunder’ as Team Transport together with a 300SL Gullwing on the trailer. But Norev had already brought this legendary model to the public before that! It was not only the legendary Silver Arrows that made a name for themselves in the early sixties. With the ‘fastest racing transporter in the world’, the Mercedes-Benz racing department also made headlines away from the racetracks. Parallel to the return to racing in 1954, it was of course necessary to set up a workshop van for servicing and repairs at the racetrack and to build appropriate lorries for transporting the racing cars. Norev did not release the transporter with the 300SL but with the W 196 R Streamline. In general, the combination looks more like a $10 product with lots of plastic and metal where necessary. But for the price, there was nothing wrong with it. Compared to the Hot Wheels model, however, the Norev clearly takes second place here.
Fast and Furious Custom Truck:
Those were the days: 2001 and stealing DVD players. The scene that started Fast and Furious. Three black Honda Civics with green neon underbodies stealing goods from a lorry. And luckily there are many talented customisers out there who can put together something suitable in 1:64 scale. This piece was organised for us by a good friend of ours from Germany, a custom model from Italy. There's nothing to open, it's a pure show and shine model, but it's a real eye-catcher, especially next to the famous Toretto house, and for us there is no way to sell these gems to other collectors. There is simply too much history behind!
Micro Turbo Transporter:
The surprise of the century: Micro Turbo was previously known from the numerous Japanese vehicles that they had equipped with a folding headlight function. The headlights can be opened and closed with a switch underneath the model. So the people at Micro Turbo have proven that they surely got some technical skills! And this enthusiasm for technology also extends to their transporters. Thanks to an order we were able to organise two of many transporters for a customer and take a few photos and videos...and oh boy we were absolutely thrilled! In a separate video on YouTube (which we will link below as soon as it is online) we will go more deeply into detail about the mechanism of the Micro Turbo Truck models, because it really caught us! In short: The models can be lowered from the loading area to the ground in a realistic scenario and driven directly off the ramp with a fluid movement, without any tilting, as is the case with the usual transporters such as Hot Wheels. When unloading, the area can first be pushed backwards using the load arm and then lowered to the ground in a constant horizontal position.
The closed version like this HKS model (there are numerous other versions with different sponsors) can also be opened at the rear and on both sides so that the model can be recognised. The other version of the customer is a so-called Dekotora truck, which you can see first in the cover picture of this article. Dekotora trucks are extremely detailed trucks from Japan with lots of chrome, lights, ornaments and bright colours. Here you can decide for yourself how you want to decorate the truck, as a large set of stickers is included in the packaging!
What do you think of the Team Transporter principle, car and matching lorry? What is your favourite manufacturer for such combinations? Let us know in the comments!
You May Also Like
In Memory of MARCELLO GANDINI – FEATURETTE
The RISE AND FALL of the DTM – MiniGT, Tarmacworks, Hot Wheels FEATURETTE
