NASCAR Die-Cast Cars: More than just a Toy
Children have been playing with die-cast model cars for generations, but now that they have been combined with the success of NASCAR, their popularity and value is going through the roof. There are thousands of different paint schemes available for the most popular 1/24 scale Nascar Die-cast cars. That means you are sure to find replicas of your favorite driver’s car.
Die-cast cars have been around since nearly the beginning of the 20th century – over a hundred years. But the toys themselves and the market for them has changed considerably over that time. The early toys were crudely cast and often broke after extended use. Improvements in the casting process now produce a sturdier toy even though the material, an alloy made from a mixture of aluminum and zinc, is basically the same.
Just as the toys have evolved, so has their market. The major automobile manufacturers started partnering with toy car makers like Mattel to make models of their newest cars. This was seen as a good marketing strategy because it got a model of the car into the family and it was felt that children were quite good at influencing their parent’s decisions. It was in the 1980’s that the cars began to be viewed as not just a toy for young children, but as collectibles for older kids and adults as well.
Adults were buying there favorite cars as collectibles for their desks and bookshelves. In the 1990’s, Racing Champions and other brands began to make replicas of Nascar cars in 1/24, which is about 8 inches long, and 1/64, which is about 3 inches long, scale and opened up a huge new market for collectibles. The beauty of the market was that NASCAR legends like Dale Earnhardt Sr. would show up at races with a one time custom paint job. A commemorative, officially licensed Nascar Die-cast car made especially for the occasion with the matching paint job would be guaranteed to be an instant collector’s item. The large number of avid NASCAR fans made a perfect readymade audience.
This meant that even after a collector had a replica of his favorite driver’s car, there would still be several new versions to collect each season. Selling them as limited edition just fuels the demand for them. Earnhardt, who helped to start the special paint craze, cashed in by starting his own die-cast car company, Action Collectibles. There are now a dozen companies making NASCAR die-cast cars.
The variety of sizes means that the die-casts come in different price ranges. Not surprisingly, bigger is more expensive. This means that the 1/64 size makes a good entry level, while the 1/24 and a few larger sizes are more expensive. Of course, the standard issue cars are more affordable than the limited editions. For those who want to start collecting, there are dozens of websites where cars are for sale. There is also EBay, the world’s largest auction site, where new and used cars are for sale by the thousands.
