Hot Off The Shelf 2020

A new class for the 2020 season is Hot Off the Shelf. I’m super excited about this class! This should be a great class for those new to, or just getting started racing as well as those that are more experienced. The class is structured so that everyone should be on pretty equal footing and have a good chance to compete.

Cars in this class must come from the 2019 or 2020 (and toward the end of the season may also come from 2021) mainline Hot Wheels sets. These are cars that everyone should have access to. Throughout the year Mattel puts out several insert sets, 3 packs, 5 packs, 9 packs, mystery models, color shifters, character cars, as well as other premium cars. None of these extra cars are eligible for the Hot Off The Shelf class. Only numbered mainline cars.

If you're having trouble knowing whether the car you picked up is the right year, check out this article for help identifying what year your car is by the packaging.

This class is a stock class so none of the cars can be modified. However graphite is allowed in this class as in all Diecast 64 classes.

So head over to Walmart, Target or your favorite Place to buy Hot Wheels and pick up some cars. Then rip those babies open, throw them on the track and see which ones are the fastest. Add a little graphite, pack them up and send them off to Diecast 64 to see if your cars are the fastest. It’s that easy! We race every month so check out the schedule for a link to the next race to get the details! Can’t wait to line up next to you on the track! See ya in lane 2!

Identifying What Year Hot Wheels Cars Are By The Package

In our Hot Off The Shelf race, you can enter cars from the current year, the previous year, and towards the end of the year, the following year's cars - which start coming out before the end of the year. Sometimes it can be difficult to tell what year car you’re buying.  Here is a guide for cars from the last few years to help you distinguish by the packaging which year a car is. 

2017

2017 Mainline car

In 2017 Mattel made a change to the way they numbered the cars.  In previous years, they had not numbered color variations differently, so the mainline set was out of 250 cars.  In 2017 Mattel began to number the color variations, so the number of mainline cars went up to 365.  This was also the case in 2018, but the 2018 packaging is easily distinguishable from 2017.

2017 Mainline cars were  out of 365

2018

In 2018 the mainline set was also out of 365.  Also in 2018 Mattel was celebrating Hot Wheels 50^th anniversary, so the 2018 packaging has a the 50^th anniversary logo in the upper right as well as a silhouette of some Hot Wheels Track sets, the most distinguishable are the double loops. 

The font for the name of the casting as well as the numbers changed a bit from 2017 as well.

Notice the font difference from the 2017 car on the left to the 2018 car on the right.

2019

In 2019, Mattel went back to not giving color variations new numbers, so the mainline set is out of 250.  

2019 Mainline cars were out of 250.

The track silhouette from 2018 is still part of the packaging, but there is no 50^th anniversary logo.

2018 car on the left with 50th anniversary logo. 2019 car on the right, no 50th anniversary logo.

2020

In 2020, Mattel is still numbering the mainline set out of 250.  The track silhouette is still there. A new logo has been added toward the bottom left of the card.  It says “It’s Not The Same, Without the Flame.” Also the background of the numbers is a dark blue which was not the same in the previous year. 

New logo on 2020 packaging.

Blue background behind numbers on 2020 packaging.

One thing that can be kind of tricky is that often toward the end of the year, the packaging changes to match the next years packaging.  Depending on when your buying cars, one thing you can do is check which case the car is from.  This can be found in a number on the back of the card.  There will be a string of letters and numbers at the very top of the back of the card. The very last letter of the code is the letter of the case.  If it is a letter further along in the alphabet then the car is from the earlier year and if the letter is early in the alphabet it will be a newer year car.

The car on the left is from a "C" case.  The car on the right is from a "Q" case.

 However if it’s toward the end of the newer year or even a later year, that might not be helpful.

Often something will still be different between the two years packaging.  Here is an example.  Toward the end of 2019, packaging of 2019 cars changed to look like the 2020 packaging.  

Both cars are 2019 cars, but the car on the right was released later in the year and has the new 2020 logo.

The “It’s Not The Same, Without the Flame” logo was added.  The Mustang is from early in 2019 “C” case, no “It’s Not the Same” logo.  The cougar is from later in 2019 “Q” case. It has the “It’s Not the Same” logo. It could be hard to tell this 2019 car apart from 2020 cars.  

However, the 2020 cars do have one difference.  The dark background behind the numbers is not present on the 2019 cars, but is on the 2020 cars. 

2019 car is on the left, 2020 car is on the right. Both have new "It's Not The Same..." logo, but only 2020 car has dark blue background behind number in the top right corner.

If you're still having trouble identifying your car, here is a great website that you can look up cars from any years. https://hwcollectorsnews.com/assortments-by-year


Hope that helps.  Remember the Hot Off The Shelf race for the 2020 season allows 2019 cars, 2020 cars, and later in the year when they come out, 2021 cars.  So good luck, happy hunting and we'll see ya in lane 2!

Diecast 64 January 2020 Races

This month we will race all 5 classes.

• Cars are due January 18th, 2020. Racing will start the following week. 
• Video and results will begin to be posted the following Saturday, January 25th.
• Local and Mail-in cars are welcome.  
• Mail-in cars should be sent with return postage if the racer wants them back.  Return postage can be included with the cars or sent through PayPal HERE. For more information on shipping cars economically and safely check out this VIDEO.
• Mail-in cars should also be accompanied with an ENTRY FORM.

Mail cars to:

Robby C

P.O. Box 156

Washington, Utah

84780

Open Modified 

• Cars must be 57 grams or under. 
• Cars may be modified for speed, looks, or both. 
• Length: must be 3.75 inches or less 
• Height: must be 2 inches or less 
• Width: must fit on Hot Wheels orange track 
• Dry lubes only 
• 2 cars per entrant 
• There is a $1 per car entrance fee.
• The winning car each month in this class will be kept here at D64 to be raced in a "Car Of The Year" race at the end of the season. 

Modified Street

• Cars must be 57 grams or under. 
• Cars may be modified for speed, looks, or both. 
• Must be actual production cars
• 4 wheels that all touch the ground
• Original silhouette
• Exceptions would be cosmetic modifications such as blowers, engines, spoilers, racks on trucks, etc.
• Original base
• Weight must be on the inside unless it is a truck (real trucks often carry things in the back) or incorporated into an actual object you might see on a car.
• Length: must be 3.75 inches or less 
• Height: must be 2 inches or less 
• Width: must fit on Hot Wheels orange track 
• Dry lubes only 
• 2 cars per entrant 
• There is a $1 per car entrance fee.
• The winning car each month in this class will be kept here at D64 to be raced in a "Car Of The Year" race at the end of the season. 

Open Stock 

• Cars must be stock - no modifications for speed other than dry lubes 
• Dry lubes are allowed 
• Cars may be any brand 1/64 scale 
• Cars must be 3.75 inches in length or less.
• 2 cars per entrant 
• There is a $1 per car entrance fee.
• The winning car each month in this class will be kept here at D64 to be raced in a "Car Of The Year" race at the end of the season. 

Hot Off The Shelf 

• Cars must be stock - no modifications for speed other than dry lubes .
• Dry lubes are allowed.
• Cars must be 2019 or 2020 Hot Wheels brand mainline cars.  NO premium, insert sets, character cars, color shifters, mystery, multi-packs etc., just mainline numbered cars. They need to have been bought in a regular blister with a number on them.
• Cars must be 3.75 inches or less in length. 
• 2 cars per entrant 
• There is a $1 per car entrance fee.
• The winning car each month in this class will be kept here at D64 to be raced in a "Car Of The Year" race at the end of the season. 

Feature: Lightweight Downhill Dash

The Diecast 64 Lightweight Downhill Dash is your chance to race your fastest lightweight car. Cars must have both a base and a body and should resemble a car.

• Cars must be 37 grams or under.
• Cars may be stock or modified.
• Length: must be 3.75 inches or less
• Height: must be 2 inches or less
• Width: must fit on Hot Wheels orange track
• Dry lubes only
• There is a $1 per car entrance fee.
• 2 cars per entrant 

2020 Diecast 64 Racing Season Update Summary

The 2020 Diecast 64 racing season is going to be awesome!  We are going to make a few changes, but you can still count on great racing every month!

First here are some highlights of the changes

• Two new classes will be added to the line-up: Modified Street and Hot Off The Shelf Stock
• The Sportsman class will be retired 
• The winning car each month will be kept here at D64 to be raced in a "Car Of The Year" race at the end of the season in all classes except the feature race.  Last year we only kept the open modified cars.
• There will now be 5 classes to race in, up from 4 last year.  That may require some additional time so video will BEGIN to be posted on the 4th Saturday of the month, with possibly additional video being posted in the few days following the 4th Saturday if needed. 

Here is a summary of how things will look for the 2020 diecast racing season. For official rules check out the rules and classes page HERE.

5 classes
We will have 5 classes to race in this year. The Sportsman class is being retired.  It was fun, and could possibly show up as a feature race in the future or a bonus race once in a while.  Two new classes are being added.  The first new class is Modified Street.  These will be production cars that stay true to the casting.  The second added class is actually a class we are bringing back with some changes - Hot Off The Shelf.   So the five classes will be Open Modified, Modified Street, Open Stock, Hot Off The Shelf, and the Feature Race.

Open Modified 
The Open Modified class will stay pretty much the same as far as the racing.  I like having a class with a consistent weight where you can experiment and try new things and still have a consistent baseline to compare improvements with.  It will continue to be 57 grams and open to pretty much anything that fits the basic weight, height, width, and length requirements.  There is no special way these cars need to look. Again, I’d like this to be a “testing” class of sorts where you can try new things in your quest to make cars faster.  To help keep things interesting and keep people building and innovating, the winning car of each monthly open modified race will be kept here at D64 until the end of the season at which time there will be a “Modified Car of The Year” race.

Modified Street
This is a modified class at 57 grams.  This is the class for the “car guys”.  While sometimes the cars in open modified may stray from traditional looking cars, opting for aerodynamics rather than looks, the Modified Street class is all about looks.  It’s about pulling up to the stop light, looking good, revving your engine, and beating that guy next to you off the line.  These are production cars staying true to the original casting with perhaps some cosmetic modifications like blowers, engines, spoilers, etc. To keep things interesting and keep people building, the winning car of each monthly modified street race will be kept here at D64 until the end of the season at which time there will be a “Modified Street Car of The Year” race.

Hot Off The Shelf
This is a stock race that is fun because those with less extensive collections or less racing experience should still be able to be competitive against more experienced racers. The idea of this race is to be racing Hot Wheels cars that you can go out and buy right now.  We include the current year plus the previous year and the next year, because quite often, depending on when it is during the year you may see the current year, the previous year, and even next year’s cars (if it is towards the end of the year) on the shelf. In previous years our Hot Off The Shelf class was a rip’n’race, but that is NOT how the class will be this year.  Cars may be opened and tested.  Graphite is also allowed.  Only mainline numbered Hot Wheels cars will be allowed in this race.  The winning car each month in this class will be kept here at D64 to be raced in a "Car Of The Year" race at the end of the season.

The Feature Race
The Feature Race class will stay pretty much the same.   I would really like this class to be the premier race each month.  This is where builders really get to show off a bit.  Take everything that you’ve been doing in open modified and apply it to more restrictive requirements.  Where open modified can show who can build fast cars, the feature race will show who can take that skill and build something with certain requirements like a different weight, or a particular look or theme, or to run on a special track.  The Feature Race is a place to show off your best!

Open Stock
Open Stock will remain the same as last year.  Hopefully we will continue to see some of the fastest cars in the country battle it out for the 2020 points championship. In hopes of mixing things up a bit and seeing some different cars on the podium each month, the winning car each month in this class will be kept here at D64 to be raced in a "Stock Car Of The Year" race at the end of the season.

Racer of the Month
The racer of the month award will continue in the 2020 racing season and will be given to the racer that scores the most points that month across all 5 classes.

Diecast 64 Achievements
In addition to the aforementioned awards and recognition, in 2020 we will continue to recognize smaller individual milestones achieved by racers as they continue to race and improve.  These will be kept track of on a leaderboard where racers can continue to see their progress as they strive to be the fastest. Hopefully it will help racers of all levels have more fun, set goals, and continue to improve.   Last year racers received buttons each month commemorating each new accomplishment. This may or may not be the case this year depending on further evaluation of interest.   

I’m really excited to get the 2020 season started.  As the 2019 season finishes up all the pages will be changed to reflect the 2020 updates.


See ya on the track!