More Mustangs: Greenlight 1966 Shelby GT350, Maisto 1:43 2015 Ford Mustang GT, Hot Wheels 1969 Boss 302 Mustang, and custom Hot Wheels 2015 Ford Mustang GT

So many Mustangs, yet so much of them have been profiled before.  These three show off the Mustang in three different ways.

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Greenlight 1966 Shelby GT350

When it comes to 1:64 Greenlight castings, some see duty every series almost every time.  Then there's some that barely get a few bits before quietly fading in the past, only to reappear again.  The last Greenlight that I recall do this is the 1967 Chevrolet Impala 2-door.  The next one is this 1966 Shelby GT350.  The color is Candy Apple Red, but it looks more like Fram Orange.  The front has the detailed headlights, silver bumper and outer grille, and inner grille with prancing pony logo.  Very accurate and to the touch, just like the dual racing stripes and open cutout for the hood scoop.  The sides have lower stripes, fender scoops, and nice smooth fastback roof.

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The rear has a very-chisled taillights, gascap, and silver bumpers.  Overall, this is a small, but nicely done Shelby.  The mag wheels are the only disappointment since the black inbetween the spokes are not equally stamped, causing some of the wheels to look like they lack chrome; this was the same problem with the same wheels that I had with the 1969 Dodge Charger Daytona in B5 Blue.  The interior also has a nicely-done look with detailed twin-cockpit dashboard, 3-spoke steering wheel, gauges, and dual bucket seats with the option of rear seat delete from the 1965 GT350.  The shifter is a bit crude, but overall the interior is nicely-done, along with the detailed door panels.  The metal base has all the correct drivetrain components, while the opening hood shows off a typical detailed engine in Greenlight 1:64, though it lacks the Cobra valve covers and hi-rise intake manifold.  Sure it's not perfect to some, but for the size and price this is one fantastic Shelby from Greenlight!

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Maisto 1:43 Power Racer 2015 Ford Mustang GT

The first diecast replica of the 2015 Ford Mustang GT came from Maisto in their 1:18 scale.  For those who don't want a large-scale Mustang, Maisto offers a 1:24 scale or this 1:43 Power Racer.  The red with blacked-out multi-spoke wheels look good and accurate even at this scale range.  The front has a detailed grille with red inner fangs and silver prancing logo, detailed signal lights and foglights, and headlights that are not as clear as the large-scale cousins, but overall they're there.  The sides have detailed rearview mirror and 5.0 badges and calmer rear fenders than the Hot Wheels version has.  The rear shows off the ducktail on the trunk lid, blacked-out valence panel, and separate detailed taillight lenses, while at below is the silver prancing pony plate and detailed reverse lamps between the dual exhaust.  As typical Maisto's Power Racers have a blank base and a the rear pull back motor completely eliminates the rear seat, making this Mustang a two-seater.

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Other than that the interior looks just like the larger-scale versions with the twin-dash design, round gauges, center touch screen and auxiliary gauges inbetween the air vents, shifter, and seats with texture pattern.  Even the door panels are detailed, though they come up short of the separate door panel pieces of the Welly 1:43 models.  Overall this is one nice Mustang that features the large-scale looks and details with the compact size, a feature that is common with many Maisto Power Racers over the years.

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Hot Wheels 1969 Ford Mustang Boss 302 Trans-Am

One of the most hyped new casting releases for 2015 is the Trans-Am version of the Boss 302 Mustang.  For one, this was supposed to be first released in the Cool Classics line, then got cancelled, then got reinstated and released at the same time this modified Mainline casting came out.  Second, its a Super Treasure Hunt for this year in a darker metallic orange with the same gray 6-spoke wheels that were used on the Hot Wheels racing version.  Having both the Mainline and Cool Classics (not shown), you can see some tooling modifications, the most noticeable is the rear spoiler that is now part of the metal body.  Still, the mainline looks good in orange with black hood and silver hood clips, side Boss 302 side stripe, and blacked-out 5-spoke wheels.  The stance screams Trans-Am racer, with large front chin spoiler dominated by larger grille and driving lights.  The fender have a slight flare to them, while the roof has the window retainer rivets.  The rear has a detailed tri-taillights, low gas tank, and visible roof bars.

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The interior has a race-car look with driver's seat, stripped-out twin-pod dash, 3-spoke steering wheel, and a few mechanical pars take over the passenger seat area.  Sadly there's no shifter and roll cage to complete the racer look.  The base shows off the beefy drivetrain details and dual exhaust that exits out to the sides.  The modified 302 CiD V8 produces 450 horsepower through a 4-speed manual.  Kudos to Hot Wheels for making the mainline version just like the stock Boss 302 Mustang, and for making an even sweeter Treasure Hunt version.

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The making of a cleaner Hot Wheels 2015 Mustang

When I heard that Hot Wheels was releasing the second recolor of the 2015 Ford Mustang GT in blue, I was excited because the new Mustang looks good in blue with the blacked-out rims (see the Maisto 1:18 and 1:24 versions).  However, when the final car came out it looked like this:

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Yuk! Nice dark blue messed-up with yellow graphics and yellow wheels!  Time for a change.  The plan was easy: wipe the graphics off with nail polish and then us a few Sharpie's to add more details and fully black-out the wheels.  Then I found out about Mattel's new way to apply graphics under the clear coat.  So what may seem easy took a painful long time and a careful touch not to erase the blue paint.  When it was all done the blue paint mostly spare the worst, but a few areas  lost some paint, especially around areas where the paint is thinner like the hood blades and door crevices.  No problem, used a dark blue Sharpie to cover those spots, yet also it gave off a reflective look so I managed to make a new graphic that was more of a ghost blue and blended in with the dark blue from a distance.  Finally was the addition of detailed lights at the front, lights at the rear (including the roof brake light), dual exhaust and reverse lamp, and the black valence panel.  Instead of trying to write GT on a small surface, I used the non-GT round faux gas cap as a substitute.  Finally a black Sharpie comes back and eliminates the yellow ring to complete the transformation.  The end result is that its not perfect, but looks a whole lot better than stock, and stealthy too!

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