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55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s

Here's a piece of information you might have if you're a Hot Wheels collector yourself: Mattel has come up with a 70th Anniversary Corvette set with eight cars inside! And it should be hitting stores within the next few months. This is not a premium set, but judging by the pictures we've seen, that doesn't matter at all. Given the context, we'll probably see some Real Riders Corvettes coming our way in 2023.
55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s 30 photos
Photo: eBay/User carsncardscanada
55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes: the Blooming 2000s
This story has taken us further than we initially imagined, and yet we realized that it could've gone on even longer. Some of the more popular Corvette castings launched so far deserve their own stories, given how much history there is behind them.

Still, we've split our journey into five eras, each one corresponding to 11 years of Hot Wheels legacy. So far, the third era we've covered has been the most prolific one, with 10 different castings. A closer look revealed that there are about 200 variations for those items, but the best was yet to come.

That's because, between 2001 and 2011, Mattel released 23 Corvette castings that add up to 287 variations. That's almost 300 items you have to look for if you're keen on completing your Hot Wheels collection. So without further ado, let's dive in and see what's what. The C6 Corvette takes top honors with 34 different iterations produced between 2004 and the present day.

When it came out, it was part of the 2004 First Editions and featured an interesting shade of red called Enamel Bright Red. It didn't take long for it to join the Treasure Hunts "family," as an Enamel Black with gold Real Riders wheels showed up in 2006. We've found a seller that's asking $100 for one of these, but there are probably cheaper ones out there.

55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes\: the Blooming 2000s
Photo: eBay/User artstoyz
The C6 casting hasn't been used since 2018, but it's coming back for next year's Anniversary set. And one can only hope that a Car Culture version is in the works too. Until then, you can have a look at the Bullrun Exclusives from 2005. There are six cars in that run, and you could pay about $125 to get them over on eBay.

The second popular casting of this era is the '69 Corvette designed by Phil Riehlman. This ZL1-replica came out in 2006, and it too will be part of the Anniversary set coming up. In 2014 you could have picked up a Spectraflame Purple Super Treasure Hunt version of it, but now some sellers have listed one for as much as $325. You might like the 2006 KMart exclusive model that came with PR5 wheels, but that's going to set you back anywhere between $120 to $250.

Two of the castings released in this era would go on to produce between 21 and 30 iterations: the C6R and the Corvette Grand Sport. These were designed by Jun Imai and Larry Wood, respectively. It comes as no surprise that the first two variations of the race car were both finished in Metallic Yellow, paying homage to the Pratt & Miller-developed machine.

Its most recent appearance was this year as part of the "Then and Now" mainline series, and you might notice that it doesn't have a roll cage anymore. Judging by the classifieds, the 2006 First Editions Pearl Silver model with 10-spoke wheels seems to be highly desirable, with an asking price of up to $225.

55 Years of Hot Wheels Corvettes\: the Blooming 2000s
Photo: eBay/User jeablack
The Corvette Grand Sport first came out in Enamel Dark Blue back in 2008, and it made its way up to the Treasure Hunts series later in 2011. One of those will cost you about $75 or less, which is relatively affordable in the big picture.

We hadn't seen this casting in stores since 2019, when it was used in the HW Race Team series. This ZAMAC variation was exclusively available at Walmart, and it comes as no surprise that some people had hoarded them when they had the chance. Still, paying $54 for a lot of 10 cars doesn't sound all that prohibitive.

Moving on, there are eight Corvette castings from the third era that have between 11 to 20 versions released so far. The '09 ZR1 is one of our favorites, and you might have seen us taking a virtual one around the Nurburgring recently in Assetto Corsa.

The ZR1 replica was introduced in 2008, featuring a Metallic Aqua Blue paint job. Three more colors were added that same year, and it looks like the Metallic Golden Rod one was a Kmart exclusive. A Spectraflame Red Super Treasure Hunt came up in 2013, and one of these will cost you between $35 to $80 on the market. But hold that thought as we will continue to look at Hot Wheels Corvettes from this era in the next story.

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About the author: Dragos Chitulescu
Dragos Chitulescu profile photo

The things Dragos enjoys the most in life are, in no particular order: cars, motorcycles, diecast cars, and drifting. He's seen (and driven) many vehicles since he started his writing career back in 2009, but his garage currently houses a 1991 Mazda RX-7 FC3S Turbo II and a 1999 Suzuki SV650-S.
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