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Respect the Classics: What is a classic?

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  • Respect the Classics: What is a classic?

    Several years ago I saw and purchased my first Mattel Cars diecasts; my grandson, who was 4 at the time, saw them and asked me to buy them... once I started, I had a hard time stopping... I have a tough time saying no to my grandchildren...

    I've posted 12 articles so far in the "Respect the Classics" series... I chose the title because I liked how Fillmore said it in the Cars movie... I felt it was a great line delivered by George Carlin's character...

    I was thinking this evening... of the 12 articles I've written very few have included anything about Cars2 characters... I included photos of the Cars2 launchers in the Launchers article... I included the rubber tire (tyre) racers in the History of Kmart Cars Collector event article... and I included the 4 Cars2 Collect and Connect Puzzles in the Puzzles article...

    What makes a Car a classic? Is it a particular character? I think many of the Mater characters from Cars and Toons are classics, but there's no way that Race Team Mater is a classic... I don't think that something is a classic just because it's a store exclusive or an exclusive character in a 2 pack or boxed set... What do Zen Master Pitty and Tomber have in common? They are exclusive vehicles that are pegwarmers... someone over-estimated how many of those we wanted... there's a new Zen Master Pitty variant that has a mustache... I think I'll just take the one that I've opened and draw a mustache with a Sharpie... Going back to Mater - I liked the Mater the Bomb character but is the Car from the Toys R US 5 pack a classic? How about Wasabi Mater? How about Pit Crew Mater? I don't consider any of those classics like Rollin Bowlin Mater or El Materdor or to a lesser extent the Ransburg Rescue Squad Mater from the SDCC boxed set... and I'm not sure Tokyo Mater with Oil Stains is a classic even though it is worth quite a bit on eBay...

    What Cars2 Cars do I think are classics? I'd say Brent Mustangburger - not because of his character in the movie, but because it's based on a Ford Mustang from the 1960s... those are classic Cars... Are all the Cars2 racers classics? It's hard for me to say... I like the racers... I like the Metallic Paint racers more than the others... I think the Hudson Hornet Lightning McQueen single is the closest non-metallic paint racer to a classic - because it looks like Lightning McQueen evolving from Cars to Cars2... I felt that we got to know the Piston Cup racers in Cars... I'm not sure we got to know the World Grand Prix racers in Cars2...

    I like Michael Caine as an actor... I think the Blue Ransburg Finn McMissile might be what I'd consider a classic... but there's no way that Finn McMissile, Submarine Finn McMissile, or Hydrofoil Finn McMissile are anything more than pegwarmers...I like John Lasseter - I think he's a top-notch director and enjoy his movies... but is the John Lassetire truck a classic? I'm not sure... I like some of the Cars2 crew chiefs - Cruz Besouro is a great representation of a VW Beetle - I had good times in high school riding in a friend's 1971 Beetle... I like Francesco's Crew Chief - it's based on real car... But is it a classic? As far as Deluxe Cars are concerned, the Popemobile and the Double Decker Bus are my 2 favorites... but again... are they classics?

    Anyway, most of my articles have been on Cars from the first Cars movie... most articles that I have in my mind for future writing in the Respect the Classics series are from Cars, not Cars2... There are some great characters in Cars2... I'm looking forward to Dragster Mater, the Queen, and Taco Truck Mater - in time, I might consider them classics...

    In music, albums (since replaced by CDs and now digital downloads) that contained classic songs were often greatest hits collections or an album that stood on its own... classic albums weren't hit and miss... to many, Cars2 items are hit and miss... the Cars are a lot lighter than they used to be... more plastic... less metal... quality appears to be lacking... and selection? Pegwarmers are everywhere... new stock has been hard to find... and it's tough to maintain enthusiasm for Cars when there's nothing new in stores and very little new on eBay.

    Feel free to comment about what you feel are classic Cars from Cars, Cars Toons, and Cars2.

    Chris


    I am cac1959... I am a Cars-a-holic... and a proud supporter of Nathan's Playroom

  • #2
    I think that classics currently applies to any line that is hard to find or no longer on sale. So Mood Springs is good but You the Bomb Mater is not, etc.

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    • #3
      The four tuner cars from Cars 1 are classics. They were my son's favorites from when he was 2 years old. I had a heck of a time tracking them down when we first started collecting. Boost was my first ever eBay purchase when I finally gave up looking for him. Lizzie was my second. She is also a classic. Still no plans for her to be rereleased anytime soon.

      signature courtesy of BomBom77
      http://www.pixarcarsdiecast.com/foru...ars-for-trades

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      • #4
        Doc Hudson, Flo, Sheriff, Filmore, The King and Finn McMissile are all classics to me!!

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        • #5
          Todd the Pizza Planet Truck, Unique and a Classic in my eyes!

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          • #6
            Good comments, everyone... I agree with most everything that's been said... While I think the set of Piston Cup racers from Cars is a classic set, I'm not sure that all of the individual Cars are... Hard to say... And how could I forget Todd? And the Tunerz? I think both Race Damaged King and Race Damaged Mood Springs are classics... for that matter, I think every King is a classic... Great Car, great character, and portrayed by Richard Petty... I like Fillmore - always liked the VW Bus and George Carlin... and Sheriff - now that's a police Car... Sarge - the Army Jeep... Sally - love the Porsche...

            Again, there's not a lot of mention about Cars2 Cars... but I had hoped we'd get more comments on the topic.

            I'll try to add some photos in the next few days...

            Anybody else care to add comments?


            I am cac1959... I am a Cars-a-holic... and a proud supporter of Nathan's Playroom

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            • #7
              Once he stops being a pegwarmer and has not been seen in the stores for a while, I'm sure Zen Master Pitty will become a classic. He is a really neat car. We are all just tired of seeing tons of him everytime we go looking for new cars.

              signature courtesy of BomBom77
              http://www.pixarcarsdiecast.com/foru...ars-for-trades

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              • #8
                Is it safe to say that you love almost everything about Cars???

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by MrBrownstone View Post
                  Is it safe to say that you love almost everything about Cars???
                  Maybe not everything... not a huge fan of many of the Lentiuclars... not a fan of the Mega Size Semi Cabs - too many of those caused many retailers to stop ordering the mega size/deluxe size Cars items.

                  And while I'm not happy with Mattel's case assortments and distribution of Cars products as well as retailers who canceled orders resulting in product lines being dropped... I do love my diecast friends.


                  I am cac1959... I am a Cars-a-holic... and a proud supporter of Nathan's Playroom

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