Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

What Cars are the most rare?

Collapse
X
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • What Cars are the most rare?

    It may seem with the over-saturation of early Cars2 releases that all Cars are easy to find, but that's definitely not the case... There are some Cars from the Cars and Cars2 movies as well as the Cars Toon shorts that are hard to find, or rare... some of these are getting even harder to find, even on eBay and Amazon.

    We'll use this thread to try to identify those harder to find Cars... this will help new collectors as well as those of us who have been collecting for awhile learn what to be on the lookout for.

    Feel free to contribute to this thread.

    Some items on this list are going to be fairly easy to identify... others, not so... Certain items were released in certain countries so what might have been rare in one country might have been not so rare in another... Some items were plentiful for a short time period before disappearing from store shelves... Some items never made it to retail stores due to stores getting stuck with too many of the non-selling pegwarmers in earlier cases.

    We'll add photos where possible.

    Let's begin...

    2006 Factory set

    The 2006 Factory set was limited to 500 sets total... I believe it was originally available through the Hot Wheels RLC site at a cost of $149.99 plus shipping... it consisted of Desert Box singles and Movie Moments packages, and 2 first time carded releases as singles: Dirt Track Lightning McQueen and Rollin Bowlin Mater... This is one set I don't have in my collection and probably never will; current prices range from $1900 to $5000... even I have my limits.


    Speedway of the South set

    The Speedway of the South set came out in May 2008... I learned about it that March and joined the Hot Wheels RLC just to have a chance to purchase one of 1000 sets of the 36 Piston Cup Racers from Cars... With shipping and RLC membership fees, it was right around $362.00... When my wife learned I'd spent that much on one Cars item she was not happy with me... 2 weeks later, when they were going for $1200 on eBay, she wanted to know why I didn't buy 2 of them.

    Here's a photo of the 36 Cars in the 2 trays:


    I'm not sure I've taken photos of the display box... I still haven't assembled my SOTS set.


    World of Cars Spare Mint Gift Pack



    While almost anything from the World of Cars series is considered rare today, the Spare Mint Gift pack would be one of the most rare items... it was released in Singapore and possibly Thailand...


    Lizzie
    Everybody loves Lizzie... she was released as a single in the Desert Back series, the Supercharged Series, and the World of Cars series... she was released in some boxed sets in the Supercharged series... She hasn't been released since late 2008...



    I remember leaving several Lizzie on the pegs at $2.00 each towards the end of the Supercharged series... In late 2010 I saw several Supercharged Lizzie at the flea market for $10 each and bought them all for friends who needed them... last I checked the flea market had one remaining but had raised the price to $30.00.


    Blue-Ray Lightning McQueen


    Limited to 15000 pieces... was available free if you purchased Cars on DVD... I already had Cars on DVD and wasn't going to buy it again just to get a free Car that wasn't even in the movie... Silly me....


    Rollin Bowlin Mater


    I left dozens of these at the local KB Toys when they were going out of business... the price was $10.00... at the time I wasn't collecting Cars... Sigh...


    Bessie




    (McQueen with shovel "pulling" Bessie)

    For being a non-speaking character in Cars, Bessie sure was popular... by the time the Deluxe Bessie was announced, stores in the US were stuck with Mega Size Semis and not ordering new products... I received a couple from friends in the UK... the only stores in the US I found Bessie at were Burlington Coat Factory stores... Bessie just sold on eBay for $221.90.


    Frank


    Everybody knows Frank... the large combine that protects the Tractors... Frank was originally released on the Race O Rama cardback and then the Night Skyline cardback... again, stores didn't get a lot of those cases because they got stuck with cases containing too many semis.

    I have more photos of Frank somewhere.


    As it's getting to be time to get ready for work, I'll just list a few items for now and then add photos and reasons later.

    From the Cars Toon series:
    El Materdor
    Chuy
    Tokyo Mater with Oil Stains

    From Cars:
    Brian Parks Motors
    Chuck Choke Cables
    Stu Bop

    From Cars2:
    Newer items that haven't shown up in stores yet... online resellers have been pretty much the sole source so far although some of the 2 packs did show up at secondary resellers such as Gordman's in the US... The Security Guard Finn 2 pack was just found at a few Walmart stores in Texas within the last 2 weeks.

    Movie Moments:
    Mama Topolino/Uncle Topolino
    Security Guard Finn McMissile
    Ka-Ciao Lightning McQueen/Francesco
    Acer with Helmet/

    Singles:
    Chase Radiator Springs Ramone

    Metallic Paint Finn McMissile - available in the Walmart exclusive Cars2 Blu-ray movie... it was also added to the D23 Submarine Finn McMissile to increase sales of that item - with all the Submarine Finn McMissile on store pegs, people weren't buy the D23 Submarine Finn to get it in a nice box.


    We'll add more to this thread in the coming weeks.

    My best advice to you is this... if you see something at retail that you want that you don't have in your collection, buy it... make friends in other countries... I've had numerous trades with UK friends Rippers, MrBrownstone, niler7, madbob, pirelliboy, and djjd21... I've had numerous trades with friends in Canada such as cvc1968, toughenoughallnightlong, and stukatso... Trades with friends in Singapore and Germany... I've had numerous trades with friends in many states including Alaska, California, Florida, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Missouri, Texas, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Washington, and Tennessee...

    There are items that you'll have to pay more for... but check with friends before spending more for something than you'll have to.

    Again, feel free to add to this thread.

    Chris
    Last edited by cac1959; 03-30-2012, 11:51 AM.


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

  • #2
    Great idea for a thread Chris - I'll have a think about it myself...

    Chase Van with Stickers (actually WITH the stickers) spprings to mind as does Chase Luigi and Guido with paint rollers (especially for US collectors) along with Chase Impound Snot Rod with Confetti...

    Can we keep this list to items that were actually released and not one off customs or acclaimed factory customs please. Please also don't list error variants (this has given me ideas for 2 new threads though)

    Thanks

    Comment


    • #3
      Patokaa shocked me as to what it was worth

      Also found the prices of majority of the lenticulars surprising and some of the more common cars (well they seemed common to me back in the day) like Sheriff, Sally and Wingo

      Some of the Final Laps seem to be rising as well

      Comment


      • #4
        This thread will be what we make it... My intentions were for only released Cars and not customs or factory models... That's why I didn't mention the JL Surfer Truck - so far it's only been officially released to Pixar employees...

        Good mention on the Patokaa and the Tunerz, Rippers... and the Chase Van with Stickers with the actual rear bumper sticker, MrBrownstone...
        Last edited by cac1959; 03-30-2012, 01:39 PM.


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

        Comment


        • #5
          Final Lap Muddy McQueen, Dexter Hoover with checkered flag, and Antonio come to mind.

          Comment


          • #6
            Race Damaged mood springs, the last run of Final Laps, mrs Mini, Mrs King, Dinoco and HTB haulers

            Comment


            • #7
              Todd the Pizza Planet Truck, not too rare but nearly impossible to find!

              Comment


              • #8
                Story Tellers Tractor and Retro Ramone where hard to find, I never did get a ST Tractor :-(

                Comment


                • #9
                  Story Tellers Laverne, Sheila, Rhonda, Cousins Buford, Jud & Cletus and Bubba/Mater set.
                  Last edited by pirelliboy; 04-03-2012, 09:24 PM.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Times have changed so much with cars, and a lot is covered by everyone above.

                    I can remember kmart 1 Transberry Juice going for A LOT. Boy would I love to see pegs like this one more time!


                    Milton Calypeer (fixed eyes)


                    Luigi & Guido with paint rollers (US Version is probably harder to find than the UK version)


                    KMART Easy Idle


                    Al oft the lightyear blimp


                    Leroy Traffik


                    Dinoco Helicopter


                    Sally with cone


                    Red Mia & Tia


                    Luigi, Guido & Tractor


                    Story tellers







                    Red & Stanley


                    Boot Camp


                    Haulers




                    Cars with Piston Cup




                    Disnry Parks Exclusives

                    Last edited by madbob; 04-04-2012, 11:40 PM.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Great photos, madbob. Thanks for adding them to thread.

                      Yes, the photo showing the Kmart Cars was definitely one from the golden age of Cars


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

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        That's an awesome pic of all the K1 cars. What's up with the random K2 Shifty Drug? Were all those K1 releases pegwarming into the day 2 era?

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          The 3 Showstoppers (Laverne, Sheila, and Rhonda) are extremely hard to get and sell for around $100 a piece on eBay when one is out there. I paid dearly for mine but am very happy I have all 3 now. The 3 Cousins are hard to find as well but sell for about $60 a piece.

                          Another rare item - Race Damaged Mood Springs. Continually selling on eBay for about $64 a piece.

                          Nitroade USA version crew set is also rare but not horribly expensive.

                          Patooka has high resale but I worry it could be re-released at some point.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by cac1959 View Post
                            2006 Factory set
                            The 2006 Factory set was limited to 500 sets total... I believe it was originally available through the Hot Wheels RLC site at a cost of $149.99 plus shipping... it consisted of Desert Box singles and Movie Moments packages, and 2 first time carded releases as singles: Dirt Track Lightning McQueen and Rollin Bowlin Mater... This is one set I don't have in my collection and probably never will; current prices range from $1900 to $5000... even I have my limits.
                            Those are asking prices and the same 5 sellers continually have their sets priced for that and they never sell. The actual SELLING price and true value of a 2006 Factory Sealed Set is around $800-$900. Check eBay completed listings and you will see that for yourself as well. I bought one last month for $850 but USPS dropped a spear or something right through the outer shipping box so the set arrived damaged and I am pursuing a claim for reimbursement. But when I buy another Factory Set to replace the damaged one I will be looking for sellers who know the true value of their sets. The Factory Set is very cool but there is nothing exclusive to it other than the 2 carded backs. I think that hurts its value since all the cars can be obtained separately.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Good points, Popemobile... just because someone is asking a certain amount for a Car/Cars item doesn't mean that's what it's worth... Your best bet is to log into eBay, search for an item, and check Completed Sales to get an idea of what they are selling for.

                              Sorry to hear about your new Factory set that was damaged in shipping... hopefully you'll receive reimbursement.


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

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X