If you grew up in the 1980s or 1990s, you probably remember when fast food chains offered diecast toys in their kid's meals. Some of my favorite toys growing up were diecast cars, even if I did sometimes get hurt playing with them! What can I say, it built character. Diecast cars and toys are still popular today, but have a target demographic of adult collectors.
For the past year, I've been collecting Jada Toys' diecast cars and figures. My personal favorites are their line of Batmobile cars, which have exceptional detail and care put into each one. Each Batmobile is on display in my living room, and even with five cats who sometimes mistake the cards for their own toys, these Batmobiles are durable!
Jada Toys makes more than just replica Batmobiles. They make die-cast cars and toys inspired by many other properties as well.
On June 3rd, Jada Toys unveiled their newest toy line - TrueSpec - at the FuelFest event at Irwindale Speedway in Los Angeles.
FuelFest and Jada also unveiled their new diecast car line, CASTED, due out later this year. The first wave of TrueSpec collectibles will include Fast & Furious, Jurassic Park, and Knight Rider.
These collectibles will be available this fall only on Jada Next Level. The CASTED line will be inspired by some of the best cars that car enthusiasts love, such as the Acura NSX-T, the Corvette C8 Z51, or the Nissan GT-R. I'm a German performance fan, so I'm holding out for a Jada Toys diecast model of one of those!
As I said earlier, Jada has also released a number of fun-inspired diecast cars based on popular pop culture figures. This 1:24 Spider-Man alongside a 2017 Ford GT is sturdy and brightly colored, and while I'm sure it would display great out of the box, the box itself makes for a nice display piece too.
While the car is really what I was interested in, I am a fan of Spider-Man. The detailing on him is excellent. If you collect smaller figures and toys, you're well aware that sometimes paint jobs just don't work out for small figures! Thankfully that's not the case with Spider-Man.
Diecasting has been around since the late 1830s, with diecast models of the earliest vehicles made in the late 19th century. Collective diecast toys have become a unique niche with collectors. Vintage pieces by companies such as the British company Dinky Toys can range in price but are still affordable for collectors of all levels.
Hot Wheels, arguably one of the most well-known diecast companies, can be worth some real money. In May 2023, a 1969 emerald green Oldsmobile 442 sold for $2,353 on eBay. Hot Wheel toys from the 1960s and 1970s regularly fetch over $1K in auctions -- so if you find a few out in the wild, you may have struck gold! Of course condition and type will matter, but that's a rabbit hole for another day.
If you're new to collecting diecast, I strongly urge you to check out Jada Toys today. You may just find your new favorite hobby.
*Any perceived investment advice is that of the freelance blogger and does not represent advice on behalf of GoCollect.