Hot Wheels 2008 Dodge Challenger

Hot Wheels' 2008 Challenger follows close on the heels of their model of the concept version and differs very little from that model, with the inclusion of the rear boot lip spoiler and sunroof being the only real differences.

The casting itself is nice enough, and the black sills and front chin spoiler that are moulded into the baseplate look good. The model has a nice chunky feel and the tampo'd rear lights look good. The bonnet stripes are good as well, but on the two examples of this model I have, both have these slightly off-centre and they don't quite come down to the front of the grille properly. Similarly, the side-marker light tampos have a tendency to be a bit off and often seem to pick up imperfections. The headlights would also look really good if they were silvered - although this is pretty easy to do yourself. It is, however, important to remember that Hot Wheels retail in the UK for between 87p and £1.00, and for the money, the models offer pretty good value.

Really the only big issue with the model is Hot Wheels' extremely bad habit of fitting their models with wheels that are larger at the rear than the front as this gives it a bit of an odd stance. Also, although the FTE wheels are a nice design in themselves, they are a bit on the too-wide side at the back.

Matchbox are producing a model of this car in the 2009 range, so it will be interesting to see how the two compare.