Recent Finds: December 2012 Store Purchases

[cac1959]

After being stuck at home yesterday due to the weather, made a trip to Richmond today... Walmart had singles on clearance for $1.50 each... other than Francesco and McQueen, there was one Holley, one Grem, and a few Carlo Maserati... The Ka-Ciao McQueen/Francesco 2 pack was $5.00... the 2013 Case A 2 packs were regular price of $6.88 plus tax - got 3 Austin/Nigel, 2 Bruno/Raoul, and 2 Darrell/Bob... would have gotten Mrs King/Tex but they were gone.

Launchers on clearance for $7.00... Lewis, Max, Nigel, and McQueen.

Quick Changers on clearance for $3.00... they'd marked down some Action Agents... Take Flight and Deluxe were regular price...

Stopped at Meijer - they only had 19 singles on the pegs... all Finn McMissile... 10 Deluxe - 2 Hyrdofoil Finn and 8 Submarine Finn... 10 2 packs from May 16, 2011... there's room for new stock but no sign of new Cars.

I hope to make a trip to Dayton or Indy tomorrow; I want to return a Frank Clutchenson 7 pack at Target and check Target, Walmart, and Toys R US.

Thanks for checking for the new 7 pack for me, Scavenger... I'll get it one of these days.

[cac1959]

Made another trip to the Dayton (Ohio) area today hoping to find some Cars on clearance sales... didn't spend as much as I'd hoped but the trip was worthwhile:

Target 12 pack:


I wasn't going to buy it at $34.98, but we may get snowed in again overnight... I also returned a 7 pack on a receipt from 12/23 that was $29.99 plus tax, so I upgraded from a 7 pack to the 12 pack for $5.34 with tax.

The same Target had the Cars Take Flight on clearance for $4.18 each:


I got these at the same Target for my friend GOMATERGO who is still unable to go anywhere and look for Cars:


The small town Walmart where I'd bought my first several 2013 2 packs (after getting a few in trades) had gotten in 2 more cases... I bought this:


They also had gotten in the Deluxe case with Funny Car Mater and Kimura (The Queen was gone)... I took a photo using my iPhone but didn't buy them at $7.97 plus tax... This was the first time I've seen Funny Car Mater and Kimura Kaizo in a store.




Got these on clearance at another Walmart:


The 2 Lights and Sounds are 2 of my favorites... and just maybe I can get GotFrank to create another custom hauler for me...

The only 2013 singles I found were 1 Cactus McQueen and 1 Chick Hicks, and several Francesco and Lightning McQueen... nothing good in the way of 2012 singles (1 Walmart had gotten in yet another Mel Dorado case)... No sign of the 2013 Target 7 pack with Kit Revster... I stopped at 3 Target, 4 Walmart, 2 Kmart, and 1 Toys R US...

Hopefully I can get more of the 12 pack if the price goes down to $24.98.

[Junior]

decent days work Chris - are the Wally haulers quite easy to get a hold of? Iv still not seen any haulers inthe Uk apart from Mack, obviously the walmart ones wont appear over here as we dont have walmart.

[cac1959]

Thank you, Junior... Wally Haulers are Walmart exclusives... most stores got in only 1 case this time around - there were 4 Mack and 2 Wally Haulers in the case... I can keep my eyes open for you if you'd like.

What's also a sign of the times is that while I consider today's purchases to be a pretty large purchase (I spent about $130 on Cars) there were days a few years ago where I might have spent $300 on Cars in stores... Today I did buy Cars in 4 different stores - some days I'd buy Cars in 10 to 12 different stores and other times I'd buy something in 1 store out of 10.

[Junior]

Wow, its a different world over there where you are, there are 4 shops in my town (Ayr - if you like golf its sandwiched right in between Turnberry and Troon) who regularly stock them but its mainly all the usual suspects (mater, finn, lightning, francesco) although one shop i was in today suddenly had 30 rod torques ( i hadnt seen him in scotland until a month ago) i need to travel an hour to Glasgow to access some more stores. Annoyingly Iv been in the US once - New York 2009 - but i didnt start collecting Cars til Bens first birthday in 2010 - I now kick myself thinking i was probably stood a few feet away from dozens of stores selling cars which would have cost a couple of dollars but id have to pay about £20 on ebay for now. lol

Yes that would be great if you could look out for a wally for me, thanks!

[cac1959]

I did drive 180 miles today on my trip... there's been very little at the stores in the county for months... but I've got a couple of Walmart stores I will check the next few days.

[e.davies1]

Found a 2013 7 pack today including:
Coriander Widetrack
Polly Puddlejumper
Fiber Fuel
Chick Hicks
Lightning Mcqueen
The King
and... wait for it... kit Revster!

[MrBrownstone]

More Radiator Springs Classics in TRU today - Dexter Hoover, King, Ramone, RS LMQ and Shiny Wax (but I already have them all)

I did leave with a Playmobil boat for the bath though.... (which I'm sure that I'll play with...!!!)

[cac1959]

Nice score, e.davies1! I appreciate the trade.

Glad to know you got a boat for your birthday, MrBrownstone!

[MarknotaMack]

Found these in Tesco. Looks like new stock is about. Only brought the GGG and Erik as I have the rest.

Get looking in Tescos guys
Unfortunately nothing goes on clearance in the UK it only goes up. You guys in the US are so lucky buying cars at next to nothing, whilst we get ripped off even more.

[TopherDawg]

I'd like to see the economics relating to pay & cost of living.

[yuffie]

it seems new stuff never reaches any tesco's down this way

[cac1959]

Nice find, MarknotaMack... of the Cars in the photo (Porto Corsa cardback), I saw Kabuto at Target one time... I saw GGG one time each at Elder Beerman, Kohl's, and Kmart... never saw saw any of the rest of them in stores.

[niftynigel]

Found these in Tesco. Looks like new stock is about. Only brought the GGG and Erik as I have the rest.

Get looking in Tescos guys
Unfortunately nothing goes on clearance in the UK it only goes up. You guys in the US are so lucky buying cars at next to nothing, whilst we get ripped off even more.

The Tesco supermarkets around my way are still selling singles for £4.47 GBP. That said, they are still restocking with the 997J case! Plenty of Otis, Suki and even Alex Vandel on the shelves down here! Nothing as neat an arrangement as you have photographed! I guess that when the 998G case gets put out, the prices will go up to £5.00 GBP here too? I'm hoping they skip that case and go straight to the last Cars 2 case or even the 'other' five silver racers?

I'm a bit worried that as the five other silver racers are not in the final general case, how are Mattel going to distribute them? They are not going to end up at obscure places like the Movie Moments and Deluxe started to just before Christmas. Most 'normal price' stores are still stuck with loads of Mater/Zen and Submarine/Hydrofoil Finns, so Mattel distributed the last batches of Movie Moments and Deluxe to bargain basement shops. They might just as well sent them directly to evil Bay as that's where many have ended up at prices much higher than Hamleys!

Disney Stores in London were still restocking with their five silver racers up to Saturday! No sign of Cartney Brakin' as yet! They only had a bit left from the Prince Wheeliam case plus the usual overstocks of Lightning McQueen, Mater, Francesco and a few diecut carded Finns. Nothing or even nothing of note in the TK Maxx and B&M Bargains that I managed to visit over the weekend. Hamleys had their usual multiple 997J contents at their OTT prices!

Mattel go back to work on Wednesday after their 'winter break' so hopefully they'll start to deliver some more goodies!?

[niftynigel]

I'd like to see the economics relating to pay & cost of living.

I don't know about the US, but the UK has always had a problem with inflation. The official figures given out by National Statistics bear no relation to the cost of living rises for the average man in the street. Most of us have had a pay freeze for about four years now, with no prospect of that changing significantly for a few years. Sure, with a few minor hiccups here and there, the standard of living has risen for about 30 years from the early 1980s, so the current situation is a correction for excessive spending years (govenments and individuals) that were the 2000s or naughties as some have dubbed them!

When I was growing up in the 1960s and 1970s, most people were poor and cars were a luxury, now every 17 year old must have one! Only the cream went to university (when qualifications actually meant something), now the majority of young people go to universities and pretty average people have more responsibility that they are capable of handling!