Remember playing with Hot Wheels as a kid? Well, I say “as a kid” but I have a widebody R32 Skyline GT-R on my desk right now. The die cast cars we had as kids lacked the perfect replica Volk TE37s of that modern car however — the toys we had were simpler, less refined, and are more deeply etched into our early love of cars. Search back into those early automotive memories, and you may well find something familiar on that Civic above: Those classic Ultra Hot wheels.
Mattel ran the original Ultra Hots line in the mid-’80s, with bright paint and these distinctive “low friction” wheels. The company brought back the line twice more — though only the current revival has the classic wheels intact — but the wheel artists over at Concept Car Studio decided to beat Mattel at its own game. Why settle for a classic Hot Wheels wheel design brought back in die cast, when it could be applied to your real-life tuner car?
Look how perfect these are
Concept Car Studio builds these wheels — called the UHOT — to order, meaning they come in a huge array of sizes and shapes. Diameters from 14 to 28 inches, widths from six inches all the way up to 15, the company prides itself on being able to offer these wheels for whatever you drive. That’s a good thing, because we’d be lucky to see these out on our roads. Just look at that pink Maverick! Did I not just say, mere days ago, that I wanted to see more Mavericks laying frame?
These wheels scratch a similar itch to Mercedes-Benz monoblocks, a flat front face that looks best when it’s almost flush to the fenders. Will these Hot Wheels-style wheels be Volk light for track rats? Almost certainly not, but who cares? Picture these pressed against the inner fender lining of a slammed Toyota Crown, and tell me that’s not a gorgeous picture. You can’t, because these wheels are perfect for VIP builds. Concept Car Studio did something we don’t see much of in the automotive world, and absolutely nailed it.
Out there, intentionally
That idea of bringing something new to the table was the entire idea, according to Concept Car Studio founder and friend of the show Brent Lawson. Lawson spoke with former Jalop Andrew P. Collins over at The Drive, and summarized the goal behind both the UHOT wheel and the brand as a whole:
“People keep saying that our wheels are ugly—and it’s intentional, we don’t want to make cool wheels for your cool BMW or Porsche. … The market has been dictated by affluent car people who don’t really have taste. It’s the same reason why every luxury vehicle on aftermarket wheels is sporting a 24″ or bigger multispoke wheel or big face monoblock style wheel. Everyone is copying each other, and we are truly just here to try and break that up.”
The UHOT is a bit of toy car nostalgia, a bit of tuner style, and a bit of a middle finger to the sameness of high-dollar car culture all wrapped in to one. Now all I need is for Concept Car Studios to make a motorcycle version that I can throw on my Suzuki.
