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Original poster

Hot wheels track, waste of money?

29 replies

Heartbeeps · 25/09/2020 17:06

I can’t decide if a hot wheels track will be a good present for my DS or not. I’m looking at ones that have a loop the loop or some sort of stunt in the set up.

He will be almost 4 at Christmas and is particularly loving hot wheels cars (or any little metal cars) at the moment. The reviews are so mixed, I can’t tell if they are overpriced rubbish or whether they can actually be played with and fit for purpose?

Does anyone have any insight?

OP posts:
Sunnydaysstillhere · 25/09/2020 17:07

At 4 my ds wanted to be too hands on to watch hot wheels!! Same with a track and battery operated cars.. He is 6 and showing interest in hot wheels again!!

Theyhaveallbeenused2 · 25/09/2020 17:12

My ds who was 4 last Christmas still loves his hot wheels...he got the hot wheels crate last year and it has been the most played with christmas gift.

Iseeyoulookingatme · 25/09/2020 17:16

My ds 7 loves his hot wheels tracks, we add an extra bit every Christmas and birthday and he has about 100 cars but it's his most played with toys. He loves the crate boxes as well. For his birthday we got him a curved bit of track and we've got him loads of extra track bits for Christmas so he can build a faint track all over the house.

Iseeyoulookingatme · 25/09/2020 17:17

Giant track not faint track Grin

RightOnTheEdge · 25/09/2020 17:18

My dc used to love the Hot Wheels cars they had hundreds.
One Christmas my family got them a couple of hot wheels tracks with loops and things that were pretty expensive and we could not get any of the cars to go round the loops. They just got half way up the loop and just fell off.

They did love the garages and other tracks that didn't have the big loops though.

Scrunchcake · 25/09/2020 17:20

It's a while since my DS was really into hot wheels but he got by far the most use out of the packs of track that can be configured in lots of ways. The more expensive sets with battery-powered this and that quickly lost their novelty value.

Ihatemyseleffordoingthis · 25/09/2020 17:23

We have 3 Dcs worth of hotwheels cars and track. Now teens and tweens - it got a lot of play and still does when it is remembered. Agree you don't need battery stuff just a good launcher bit

Love51 · 25/09/2020 17:25

At 4 he might need a fair bit of help. It has been a lasting you in this house, albeit one they had to grow into. So, not a waste of money - still played with at 7.

gigi556 · 25/09/2020 17:39

My son likes his and he's 3 but we don't get it out all the time. I have no idea how much it costs though. I bought a bunch of it second hand.

Thisischocolate · 25/09/2020 18:15

DS(5) has lots of track, components, and a large car garage to connect it all too. He’s has it since he was 3 and it comes out of the loft once every few months, but I have to say I think it’s a waste of money.

Half the time we put it together according to the various plans on the packaging and the cars are always flying off the tracks. DS gets frustrated with it but at the same time doesn’t want to get rid of it (I’d love to send the lot to the charity shop). I think it looks much better than it actually is and I’d invest your money on something more reliable.

TheBlueStocking · 25/09/2020 18:17

I bought quite an expensive one for my son once and had to throw it away as I literally couldn't put it together. I spent hours on it and I was pretty much in tears.

museumum · 25/09/2020 18:21

We have mix and match new and 2nd hand but none with batteries just the plain track and elastic band launchers. Ds played with it from age 4 to 7 so pretty good value.

Original poster
Heartbeeps · 25/09/2020 18:26

Oh no, mixed reviews here too!
Any recommendations for presents that have been a hit with the 3/4/5 age range instead?!

OP posts:
Sully84 · 25/09/2020 18:29

I got a Chad fire truck that opens up into a little driving area for hot wheel cars and my three year old loves it and goes back to it often. Pretty sure it was reduced last year in the Sainsburys/Argos sale around October half term leading up to Xmas so they may do it again this year.

StrictlyAFemaleFemale · 25/09/2020 18:42

Dont get the wall mounted ones unless you have a proper wall (not plasterboard).

Sleepinyourofficeinstead · 25/09/2020 18:48

If be interested in links to any that are actually good!

We bought a loop the loop one with a battery powered bit last year. It's been out about 3 times, takes my husband an hour to build it and it DOES NOT WORK. The cars ALL fall off the loop.

Utter waste of time and money. It's usually on top of DS's wardrobe unless he asks for it, he doesn't call it hot wheels, in this house it has the moniker The Hard Track...

He'd definitely be interested in a decent version of it but we're extremely wary!

Stinkyguineapig · 25/09/2020 19:18

My DS has had hot wheels for about 4 or 5 years, he rediscovered it during lockdown - hes nearly 11.

Thisischocolate · 25/09/2020 19:48

DS(5) absolutely loves Lego and has done so for the past couple of years.

Also train sets - he has a wooden one with various extras like a train wash, bridges, train station, cranes etc from Big Jigs and Brio. Track is a generic mix from Sainsbury’s & Tesco etc - no need to buy expensive track. He also has a plastic track set for Thomas the Tank Engine battery-operated trains which is popular too.

Sand pit with a decent waterproof cover - always popular but won’t get much use when it’s cold.

DS uses the above toys x100 more than the Hot Wheels sets which we didn’t so unreliable.

Equimum · 25/09/2020 20:18

Sorry, all of the Hotwheels sets we’ve had have been terrible. I hoped it would be a good progression from Brio railways, but it never seems to fit together properly, and the loops never work. My boys use one of the launchers to see who can send cars furthest across the garden, but that is pretty much it.

Pansypath · 25/09/2020 21:09

My Ds's are 7 and 4 (nearly 8 and 5) and I just bought them this summer a loop the loop set. They love it. Youngest needs my help to set it up, or lets oldest do it then plays with him (steals it from him) but he can nearly do it alone and actually of all the toys to play with as a grown up, it is one of my favourites.

GetRid · 25/09/2020 21:13

My ds has some but he only plays with it if he has a friend over. He won't play with it on his own. It's a bit fiddly.

Blutrack is LOADS better, easy to use, but expensive

SalmonEile · 25/09/2020 21:18

Our loop worked fine and DC enjoyed making score cards to see which cars went the fastest on it, the track wasn’t the easiest to put together though,
It’s not played with much now because we don’t have room though

TheBlueStocking · 25/09/2020 23:02

There's a bumper pack of Hot Wheels cars I got on Amazon. I think it was about 50 for £50. My son was so excited with that. I'd recommend that over a track.

TheBlueStocking · 25/09/2020 23:03

£65 currently. But DS loved this more than anything I've ever got him before.