El Segundo toy maker Mattel Inc. has recently started selling a tiny version of Tesla Motors’ flagship electric luxury sedan, the Model S. The toy car, 1/64 the size of the real thing, sells for $1.09, part of Mattel’s popular Hot Wheels brand.
Mattel spokesperson Alex Clark said the cars are on store shelves now and about 700,000 units will be made. Mattel will release a toy Model S under its other mini-car brand, Matchbox, later this year, Clark said.
Mattel designers decide which cars to miniaturize based on which cars are hot and capturing consumers’ attention, Clark said – a description that certainly applies to Tesla. The Palo Alto carmaker, founded by Los Angeles billionaire Elon Musk, has an outsized reputation in the auto industry despite selling, for now, pricey autos out of reach for most drivers.
Clark said he expects the Hot Wheels Model S to be a hot item in the brand’s collector market, which he said has “a very loyal and large global following.”