Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at Young V&A
Play Gallery, Moving and Making, Case 4

Spoiler Sport

Toy Car
1976 (manufactured)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Introduced in 1968, Hot Wheels were the US competitor to Matchbox. Although there are roughly 10,000 models to date, the brand is famous for its custom hot rods and muscle cars. Elliot and Ruth Handler, co-founders of Mattel, wanted to make a range of cool cars for children. One of the design team members was Harry Bradley from General Motors. When Elliot first saw Bradley's classic Southern California hot rod in the parking lot he said, "Man those are some hot wheels" and so the Hot Wheels brand name was born.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Titles
  • Spoiler Sport (manufacturer's title)
  • Hot Wheels (series title)
Materials and techniques
Painted die-cast metal, plastic
Brief description
Toy car, metal and green plastic, Hot Wheels, Spoiler Sport, made by Mattel, Hong Kong, 1970s
Physical description
Green car with spoiler on roof and sunset graphic on both sides. It has four black plastic wheels and a silver bottom.
Dimensions
  • Maximum length: 7.7cm
  • Width: 2.4cm
  • Maximum height: 2.5cm
Production typeMass produced
Marks and inscriptions
'Hot Wheels. Spoiler Sport. Mattel inc 1976. Hong Kong'
Object history
Purchased as part of collection of 6 Hot Wheels cars (B.112-2004 - B.117-2004), see purchase price.
Subject depicted
Summary
Introduced in 1968, Hot Wheels were the US competitor to Matchbox. Although there are roughly 10,000 models to date, the brand is famous for its custom hot rods and muscle cars. Elliot and Ruth Handler, co-founders of Mattel, wanted to make a range of cool cars for children. One of the design team members was Harry Bradley from General Motors. When Elliot first saw Bradley's classic Southern California hot rod in the parking lot he said, "Man those are some hot wheels" and so the Hot Wheels brand name was born.
Collection
Accession number
B.112-2004

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Record createdJuly 31, 2008
Record URL
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