November 2008 Notable Toys — Cars

Themed after “The Dark Knight,” Carrera of America’s 1:43 scale GO!!! Batman slot car race track system is giving the young - and the young at heart- a chance to step into the cockpit of Batman’s “Hyperdrive” and take on the Joker in his “Joker Mobile” through the streets of Gotham City at scale speeds up to 450 miles per hour. Licensed through DC Comics and WarnerBros. (WB), the set brings the streets of Gotham City to life, featuring the following: two 1:43 scale slot cars: Batmobile “Hyperdrive” and “The Joker Mobile”, straights (114 mm and 342 mm), curves 1/90°, a junction, loop sections with supports, fly over sections with supports, a narrow section, a connecting track section, a straight with lap counter, two speed controllers, a transformer, and accessories: track section bolts, guardrails, replacement contact brushes, spare guide keels and instructions. Dimensions when assembled: 210 x 98 cm/6.89 x 3.21 ft. Track length: 6,2 m/20.34 ft. Launch date: July 2008.

Carrera of America is recreating the excitement, thrills and spills of real-life motorsport racing with its new Digital 132 GT Racer set, which combines superior model making and state-of-the-art technology to provide lightning-quick, brilliant tactical moves, precision drifts in search of the ideal line, pit stops and peak speed capacity, and is compatible with other manufactures’ analog racetrack and slot car systems. Carrera’s 1:32 scale Digital GT Racer set is outfitted with a Porsche GT3 RSR Felbermayr Proton Competition LMES 2007, a BMW Z4 M Coupé Schubert Motors, 11 standard straights, three 1/3 Straights, a connecting track with black box, two Digital 132 lane change sections (four track sections), 10 curves 1/60°, a wireless tower, two wireless speed controllers, a transformer, guardrails, replacement contacts, instructions, verge border sections and track section interlocks. Assembled dimensions are 350 x 179 cm/11.48 x 5.87 ft. Track length: 9,0 m/29.53 ft. Launch date: November 2008.

Collectors can finish their diorama display with their favorite model car in 1:18 scale with the latest set of fantastic figurines from the imagination of Motorhead Miniatures. This is the couple you see every weekend showing off their car and mixing it up with freinds and fellow motorheads. The hand-painted, cold-cast resin figures include metal-framed chairs, a floor sign and, of course, the dog. The product is also available in 24-scale for model kits, die cast and garden railroads. "Motorhead Minitures is the market leader in limited-edition figurines to complete displays of die cast, model cars and garden railroads. The Car Show is just the latest in themed sets of figurines and accessories for the model or train enthusiast," Drew Heitner, president of Motorhead Miniatures LLC, told TDmonthly. Launch date: April 2009.

A complete slot-car racing set, Police Chase features two authentically detailed cars. One, a Crown Victoria police interceptor with working headlights, and the other, a Corvette with blue under-lighting, race along the tracks at the command of two turbo-speed controllers included in the set. The lap-counter keeps track of who is in the lead.   
— Five percent of 68 retailers said in October 2008 that slot cars are their top-selling hobby item.