The winner of the Hot Wheels™ Legends Tour 2022 was crowned during the virtual Global Grand Finals at Jay Leno's Garage on November 12, 2022. The 1992 Autozam Scrum Micro Truck built by Craig Meaux of Beaumont, Texas, is nicknamed "Texas Toot" and will be immortalized as a 1/64th scale Hot Wheels die-cast vehicle and added to the Hot Wheels Garage of Legends™.
Built in his own garage
"Texas Toot" was built in the Meaux garage for fun and began its life as a Japanese import car in 2020 before becoming the champion of the Hot Wheels Legends Tour this year. The customized Kei truck features a hydraulic lift, 454 Chevrolet big-block, TH400 transmission, FTI transfer case with 12-inch drop and reverse, 250-shot nitrous kit, and massive custom-welded 30 "x15" wheels.
Following this win, Meaux, in true challenger fashion, plans to take his passion project to burnout competitions, which he is sure to dominate with what Jay Leno calls his "superhero" truck.
"The competition was strong in 2022, but turning a Japanese minitruck into a monster truck was tough to beat," said Ted Wu, Vice President, Global Head of Design for Vehicles at Mattel. "As the first truck since the inception of the Hot Wheels Legends Tour, we hope Craig's passion project will inspire builders and fans around the world to aim big and pursue their dreams. I can't wait to see this oversized 1/64th scale mini truck."
"I didn't expect to win," said Meaux, "but I wanted to create something that no one else had. I had no previous experience with this type of production. So it's great that it worked out so well and that everyone likes the truck."
Where legends are created ...
The fifth Hot Wheels Legends Tour Global Grand Finale, hosted by Jay Leno and motorsports ambassador Jarod DeAnda, featured ten incredible vehicles from around the world and a panel of judges tasked with choosing the entry that best exemplified authenticity, creativity and garage spirit. Jay and Jarod were joined by Ted Wu, Global Head of Design for Vehicles Mattel, Bryan Benedict, Design Director of Hot Wheels and Matchbox Die-Cast Vehicles Mattel, Brendon Vetuskey, Lead Designer for Monster Trucks Die-Cast and Redline Club Vehicles Mattel, Dalal Elsheikh, Advance Autonomous Design Director at Ford and Hot Wheels Brand Ambassador, Magnus Walker, television presenter, fashion designer and passionate car collector, Misha Mansoor, founding member of the Progressive Metal Band, and Misha Mansoor, founder of the Progressive Metal Band.Misha Mansoor, founding member of progressive metal band Periphery and Hot Wheels Brand Ambassador; and Jon Chase, former Art Director at Hoonigan and founder of lifestyle brand DSTROYR.
As part of the exciting finale, Hot Wheels announced the brand's first-ever campaign for adults: "Where Legends are Made". This campaign was developed to further engage the global car enthusiast community. It serves as an umbrella for the activities Hot Wheels will launch in the future for its adult target group, which will extend beyond the traditional automotive industry into pop culture. This includes areas such as fashion, film, gaming, NFTs and luxury, while staying true to the brand's automotive heritage with activities such as the Hot Wheels Legends Tour - the world's largest traveling custom car show.
To kick off the campaign, Hot Wheels unveiled a video featuring influencers from around the world championing different categories of car fandom - exotics, muscle/hot rods, modified/drift, EV/future, motorsports, trucks/off-road and retro/classic.
"Where Legends are Made was created to reach more adult car enthusiasts with an affinity for hot wheels and encourage them to celebrate their passion and become collectors," said Wu. "Membership in our exclusive Red Line Club has tripled in 2021, proving that there is a strong demand for high-quality, limited-edition die-cast cars and a desire for an adult-only collector community for Hot Wheels die-cast vehicles."
A note from the editors: The highly interesting Puma from Germany unfortunately didn't make it to victory, but we liked it at least as much as Texas Toot.
Incidentally, a Volvo P1800 achieved worldwide legend status in 2021.
