5 Most Iconic Hot Wheels Liveries

But there is another way to go about this. You can look for a particular livery inside your collection and revolve around that. But that might be challenging to achieve if you've never focused on buying items with a specific theme.

Over the years, Mattel has recreated over 70 special real-life liveries for its Hot Wheels lineup of cars. Some are more successful than others. Choosing the top 5 iconic liveries meant leaving out some cool ones like the HKS, RTR, and Formula Drift models. But rest assured, the best is yet to come.

1. Falken Tire

Falken Tyres has long been a supporter of drifting in the United States, and many pros have built their careers with the help of this brand. When the company announced its involvement with Formula Drift starting in 2023, it sent a giant shockwave throughout the series paddock and beyond. Alas, there's a long list of Hot Wheels items to pay tribute to that collaboration and help you reminisce about those days.

You must buy 22 cars for a complete Falken Tyres collection, which won't be a drift-exclusive one. It started with the '70 Plymouth AAR Cuda in 2013 and then moved on to the Toyota Supra in 2014. The first and only Falken Super Treasure Hunt appeared in 2017; it was the Toyota Baja Truck. This is one of the most expensive items in this collection, with prices going as high up as $85.

In 2019, the Falken theme made its way to the Car Culture: Team Transport series with the Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.5-16 EVO II. The Custom '18 Ford Mustang GT that came with the iD series in 2020 looked spectacular in Spectraflame Blue, and I'm sure drift fans will love the Premium Pandem Subaru BRZ- which is a replica of Dai Yoshihara's FD competition machine.

2. Gulf Oil

Starting a Hot Wheels Gulf collection can be an exciting but challenging journey. Some of these items are very expensive and rare, but I'll get to that in a minute. The first casting to wear the Gulf-inspired livery was the '57 T-Bird back in 1993! That same year, Mattel released three more similar items in the Gas Station Promotionals series: the Blimp, the Tank Truck, and an F1-esque Turbo Streak.

But many years went by before the diecast manufacturer revisited the idea. In 2013, the fantasy Fast Fish casting featured the light blue and orange livery while also being a part of the Treasure Hunt series. But that was a warm-up for what was next: a Hot Wheels Collectors exclusive series of six rare Gulf Racing collectibles. The Porsche 917K was first in line, and I've seen some of these listed for $1,000. Mattel only made 4,000 units for the first four items, but 4,500 units of the Rocket Oil and the '67 Camaro, the last to arrive.

The Gulf Porsche 993 GT2 of 2016 had a limited run of 6,000 pieces, costing about $1,000 today. The first Gulf Super Treasure Hunt appeared in 2018: the 2011 IndyCar Oval Course Race Car. Two years later, the GT-40 became a part of the Gulf STH collection. Even though these collectibles come at only a fraction of the cost of a RLC, it will still set you back between $100 to $200. The Porsche 356A Outlaw is the latest appearance in the Super series, back in 2021. But if you want an exciting Gulf vehicle for a reasonable price, look up the Car Culture: British Horsepower McLaren F1 for a change. This topic is so extensive that it will need a story of its own someday soon.

3. Urban Outlaw

Magnus Walker is a big name in the Porsche community, and it's no wonder that most of the Hot Wheels Urban Outlaw collectibles are replicas of Stuttgart-built machines. A complete collection of this iconic livery will require 32 items, and it all started with the Porsche 356A Outlaw in 2016. That same year, collectors were ecstatic to see three Premium releases: the Euro Style 911 GT3 RS plus the Track Day 964 and 935/78.

In 2018, the Urban Outlaw theme appeared in the Car Culture: Team Transport series with the Porsche 356 Speedster and the Volkswagen Transporter T1 Pickup. The 964 RLC is one of the most expensive items in this collection, with either one of the 2019 variations costing as much as $500. But it's nice to know that one of them includes a Magnus Walker figure to have on display. 2020 saw the release of the only Urban Outlaw Super Treasure Hunt: the '64 Chevy Chevelle SS. With prices between $30 to $80, this is one of the more affordable options in today's story.

4. Mooneyes

If you thought the Gulf Oil collection was a tough one to crack, wait until you get a lot of the Mooneyes series. You have to buy 63 pieces to get all of them in one place. Let's see which ones will pose the biggest challenge. The 500C kickstarted the Hot Rod nostalgia in 1999, with 15,000 units leaving the factory that year. Mattel released several more Mooneyes items until 2004, including a futuristic Streamliner racer.

But then there was a long hiatus until 2008. Mattel only sometimes relied on licensed vehicles for this series, but that's not necessarily a problem. 2015 was a big year for Mooneyes collectors as it was their first chance at getting a themed Super Treasure Hunt: the Custom '77 Dodge Van. In 2020, the yellow livery entered the Monster Truck series with a specially designed Bone Shaker. You can find one for less than $20, which would spice up your display case.

5. Yokohama ADVAN

Yokohama is the second tire manufacturer on my list today, and it's just as iconic as Falken. A complete collection of this theme consists of 24 Hot Wheels cars. Some only have small Yokohama logos, so let's focus on the vehicles with the iconic black and red livery for now. The first exciting pick is the '71 Datsun Bluebird 510 Wagon in the 2016 Car Culture: Japan Historics set.

You can pay up to $100 for this item alone, which is still affordable compared to the RLC exclusives mentioned earlier. The ADVAN design became part of the Mainline series in 2017 with the Nissan Fairlady Z, and Mattel celebrated this new venture with a Super Treasure Hunt release. The market value for these ranges between $55 to $130.

I used to own the 2017 Race Day Acura NSX, and that's a nice piece to add to your collection for a small price of $15. More basic items followed, and that's good news if you can't afford to spend a lot of cash on Hot Wheels cars. But if you want the most exciting items in your collection, I suggest you look for the 2018 Circuit Legends Porsche 962, the 2019 Replica Entertainment Acura NSX GT3, and last but not least, the 2021 Team Transport Nissan Skyline GT-R (BNR32).