Below is my latest list of Hot Wheels top 100 cars. Updated as of April, 2024 after more than two years of time testing my collection of over 2,500 cars across many brands, including a large collection of fast Hot Wheels cars (based on my experience and also researching YouTube racings channels and other racing sites). I've recently been testing new release cars from 2024, especially those with with speed potential.
Hot Wheels of course is the diecast leader. The brand started in 1968 and has been releasing sets every year since. The inventory of Hot Wheels is vast, but there are specific castings, wheel types and series that are faster on the track.
Key notes/considerations:
Please see information on the home page for more details on testing method, speed tiers and other details.
Hot Wheels of course is the diecast leader. The brand started in 1968 and has been releasing sets every year since. The inventory of Hot Wheels is vast, but there are specific castings, wheel types and series that are faster on the track.
Key notes/considerations:
- I race on a two-lane, 27 foot Derby Magic track (equivalent to about one-third of a mile). The Derby track is 22% wider than a typical Hot Wheels orange track, allowing me to race more car sizes/scales.
- I categorize my cars into speed tiers with 5-Stars being the best. The 5-star performers all have times under 2.500 seconds.
- I've applied graphite to the cars, which really brings out the speed potential for diecast.
Please see information on the home page for more details on testing method, speed tiers and other details.
Observations:
- Some great vintage representation in the Top 100 including:
- 8 Ultra Hots from the 1984-1986 series
- 8 Blackwalls from the 1970's, 1980's and into the 90's
- 7 Hot Ones cars from the 1980's
- 2 Redlines from the early 1970s (Noodlehead and Short Order)
- 1 Speed Demons car from 1986 (Evil Weevil)
- 1 mainline release from 1989 (Sol Aire CX4)
- There are 9 Faster Than Ever (FTE) cars, all from 2005 or 2006
- There are 8 Character cars in this elite group with Star Wars and Marvel cars having the best representation
- A good balance of weight classes with 26 Heavyweights, 23 Light Heavyweights, 36 Middleweights, 14 Welterweights and 1 Featherweight (Salt Shaker). See the home page for breakdowns on the weight classes.
- The funny cars are over-represented among the Top 20, leveraging good balance and heavy weight to generate more speed. Many of the funny cars also benefit nicely from graphite.
Fastest 100+ Hot Wheels Cars
Starting with 5-Star Cars
Note that the #15 ranked Star Wars Character Car "K-2SO" is too wide for the standard orange track