Rare Hot Wheels Custom Camaro Discovered by Toy Collector Could Be Worth Over $100,000

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The Chevrolet Camaro was designed, built, and first released to the general public in 1966. One year later, toy manufacturer Hot Wheels produced a tiny replica of the coveted car, sold for about 59 cents.

In February 2020, a renowned toy collector discovered one of these coveted Hot Wheels Camaro toys in his collection, but that’s not all he found; 53 years on, the rare toy Camaro could be worth four times the price of the real thing.

As per Australia’s 9 News, “America’s Toy Scout” Joel Magee is calling the valuable find a “holy grail” collector’s item.

In the first week of February 2020, Magee announced that a tiny metal “Enamel White Prototype Custom Camaro Hot Wheels” replica car toy in his collection, measuring about 7 centimeters in length, could be worth as much as $150,000 Australian dollars (US$100,695).

“It’s hard to imagine a little toy car is worth more than a real one,” Magee told Car and Driver. “It didn’t resonate with me.”

“It was actually another Hot Wheels person who asked for a better picture,” the collector explained, recalling the moment that the model’s true value was revealed by a fellow enthusiast. “He said, ‘Oh my gosh, I’ve never seen or heard of one of those before, especially Camaro.’”

Magee then contacted Larry Wood, a former Hot Wheels replica designer, who helped Magee identify that his was a rare “Redline” Hong Kong version of the replica Camaro, and the only known model of its kind. Wood speculated that Magee’s toy had likely made its way to the United States as a prototype.

“Sometimes they did weird things at the factory,” Magee explained, speaking to Car and Driver. “[T]he Mattel employees used to goof around.”

Magee then regaled tales of Mattel factory workers placing pennies inside car replicas before they were sealed in their boxes, just for the fun of knowing that it would please and perplex the children on the receiving end.

After further investigation into the origin of the Redline Camaro, Magee told Fox News that the 1968 miniature replica was one of a mere few enamel white prototypes ever made. The prototypes were designed with a view to manufacturing a “Sweet 16” Camaro but were never intended for retail.

According to Magee, Hot Wheels designers must have taken the prototypes home for their children, where they were eventually given or sold, ending up in general circulation. Magee’s valuable model, to date, is the only example of its kind that has resurfaced.

“There were only a few other white Camaro prototypes known to exist but they were all U.S. models,” Magee told Robb Report. “The guess is that while experimenting with castings and checking quality, a Mattel designer grabbed a Hong Kong casting and mixed it in with the U.S. castings.”

“Boy, it would’ve been amazing to be a fly on the wall when this happened,” Magee reflected.

Besides Hot Wheels model cars, Magee’s personal collection specializes in toys related to G.I. Joe and Star Wars. The collector, as per Car and Driver, is also the “Disney expert” for the TV show “Pawn Stars.” Given the sheer size of his collection, Magee remains unsure of exactly where he purchased the valuable Redline Camaro.

As per Fox News, Magee’s “holy grail” is third only to the Olds 442 and the iconic Beach Bomb Hot Wheels prototypes, both models of which are valued even higher than $150,000 Australian dollars (US$100,695).

As per Chevrolet, to purchase a brand-new Camaro would set a buyer back $25,000 or more. Despite the extraordinarily marked-up value of Magee’s Hot Wheels replica, as of February 2020, the toy scout does not plan to sell.

The one-of-a-kind model car will instead take pride of place in Magee’s impressive collection.