Like Selling Water to a Thirsty Man: Hot Wheels Japan Historics

I'm proud of my Premium Hot Wheels from The Fast and the Furious: Brian's Mitsubishi Eclipse and Dom's Mazda RX-7. But most people are equally excited about my two Team Transport models: the Porsche 962 and the Mazda 787B. Naturally, different collectors will boast about other tiny cars. It's common knowledge that any Hot Wheels Porsche enthusiast would be ecstatic to own the yellow 993 GT2 from the 2013 Boulevard series.

That's a great present if you're ever looking for one; just be ready to spend over $200. There has been a shift in strategy over at Mattel's HQ in El Segundo. The company has started developing more and more European and Japanese vehicles. We expected this to happen with the rising popularity of cars like the RX-7, Supra, Skyline, NSX, and others. You can see this change by looking at the Super Treasure Hunt vehicles series over the years. People demanded more Japanese cars, and the bigwigs paid attention.

The 2011 STH only featured one JDM vehicle and no European representatives. Fast forward to 2020, and the lineup looks different: four Japanese cars, four European ones, and seven from the US. Naturally, with such a diverse fan base across the globe, a solution was required to cater to the audience's needs. Adult collectors wanted Real Riders wheels, metal bases like in the old days, and life-like representations of actual vehicles. And the Car Culture series was perfect for that.

I am focusing on the "Japan Historics" mixes in today's story, as it all started with them in 2016. Most JDM enthusiasts would love to have at least one of the 15 vehicles in their collection. But some of them can be pretty pricey. Recently, I've seen two sellers on eBay listing the complete Japan Historics lineup. The cheapest option will cost you $390, while the other is $450. But let's look at each set and discover why they're so popular.

Japan Historics 1

Japan Historics 1 marked the debut of Mattel's Car Culture series nine years ago. The company's desire to cater to adult collectors was a big hit. Someone listed an opened factory case with two sets inside for $800. Others will try to make you think these five cars alone are worth $460. But that's just too much for a single set.

The cheapest one on eBay right now costs $160. You can get it more affordable if you have strong negotiation skills or find a seller who desperately needs to clear it out. Let's talk about brand ratio: you'll find one Datsun, two Nissan, one Mazda, and one Toyota inside. Jun Imai designed all of the castings here except for the Mazda, which Mark Jones worked on.

The two Skylines are the oldest castings in the set, as they've been around since 2011. But combined, these two barely have more iterations than the '71 Datsun Bluebird 510 Wagon (36 vs 31). It is, without doubt, the most popular casting here. You'll find four different Convention models, one NFT Garage iteration, five premium releases, and two Super Treasure Hunts!

Each of the five castings inside has been part of the STH series at least once. But the Nissan Skyline H/T 2000GT-R's sole Premium appearance happened with Japan Historics 1. From that point of view, it's the least popular casting in the set. By comparison, you'll find six GT-X variations with RR wheels and metal bases, two Toyotas, and five Mazdas.

The 2000GT does have the upper hand with a Red Line Club exclusive release, though. You know me, I'm obsessed with rotary engines, so the RX-3 is my favorite vehicle here. It debuted with Japan Historics 1, and some say it has not had a better color combo since the Metalflake Purple appearance. And it's one of the rarest vehicles in the set, with only ten iterations spanning the years (the Toyota comes in a close second with 12.)

Japan Historics 2

Mattel didn't bring back Japan Historics in 2017, but everyone was excited to see it return in 2018. The second set in the series was almost an exclusive Nissan affair with four representatives inside if you also consider the Datsun. The diecast manufacturer decided to bring back the RX-3, and this was the only vehicle to show up in both mixes. This set marked the debut of the Nissan Laurel 2000 SGX and the Nissan Skyline C210.

To make things more appealing to the public, the designers upgraded the Nissan Fairlady Z to the Premium class for the first time since its 2016 debut. Japan Historics 2 can cost as much as $300 these days, but the more sensible options are below the $100 threshold. The Datsun Bluebird 510 is the oldest casting here (2009 debut), and it shows. There are 47 variations to look for (more than all the other four castings combined); you should sit down for the details. You will find RLC iterations, HWC Special Editions, Collectors Convention models, one Super Treasure Hunt, and ten Premium 510s on the market.

There are multiple listings for this Hot Wheels item with an asking price of over $1,000, going up to $5,000. The Japan Historics 2 model is affordable, ranging between $20 to $70. I'd vote for it as the least exciting casting in this set, which may be partly due to the Silver paint job. RX-3 aside, both the Laurel and the Skyline are fantastic.

And if you can overlook the massive wheel gap on the Fairlady Z, that one is decent, too. While the cars inside are the main focus for any new Hot Wheels set, there's more to it than just that. You'll notice how the card art evolved from JH1 to JH2.

In the first set, the cherry trees and Mount Fuji will divert some of your attention from the attached vehicle. The car is the main focus in the second set, and I like the apparent manga twist on the design. But let's move on with the final five items on this list.

Japan Historics 3

Japan Historics 3 showed up in 2020, and it felt like the series had run out of breath at the time. I've seen leftover items from this set on pegs in 2022. That was mindblowing to me, considering how big the hype around JH1 was. The most expensive JH3 listing on eBay currently has an asking price of $137. But there is a genuine chance you could buy one for less than $40 with a bit of patience.

Mattel had a similar approach with this set, betting big on two Nissans and one Datsun. Honda debuted in Japan Historics with the tiny '85 City Turbo II. And I was happy to see Mazda was still in the game with the '68 Cosmo Sport. It and the '75 Datsun Sunny Truck (B120) were brand-new castings. The stakes were high as two other cars in the set had just graduated to Premium (the City Turbo and the Skyline RS (KDR30). For the first time since the start of the series, neither of the cars wore Jun Imai's signature.

Instead, it was a mix of Mark Jones and Ryu Asada's work. The Nissan Silvia (CSP311) is one of the rarest castings here, with only three iterations- all premium models! The '75 Datsun Sunny Truck (B120) is rare, too, as it has four similarly ranked variations. But the Cosmo Sport is the only vehicle with a Super Treasure Hunt appearance on the list.

For once, I would vote for the Datsun as my favorite collectible in the set, with the rotary-powered classic coming in second. I have heard people discussing a potential Japan Historics 4 set, but Mattel has not disclosed any official information. If I were to organize such a set, I would probably opt for the following five vehicles:

• A Toyota MR2 AW11 (although it's on the limit of being a Japanese Historic vehicle).
• A first-gen Mazda RX-7 (this casting has never had a Premium variation Mattel!).
• A Honda S800.
• A Nissan Silvia S12 (Super Silhouette version anyone?).
• A seventh-generation Skyline.

What would your list look like?