THE REAL-LIFE CRAZY CARS THAT INSPIRED THE ORIGINAL HOT WHEELS

If you’re a subscriber to the MotorTrend app, over the past few weeks you may have seen our new original series, Hot Wheels Life Size, in which NASCAR and NHRA racer Nicole Lyons gets behind the wheel of—er—life-size versions of some of Hot Wheels’ wackiest toy cars, including Twin Mill, Bone Shaker, and the Darth Vader car.

But back in the 1960s, when Mattel was creating the original Hot Wheels models, they did it the other way around with cars like the Custom Camaro based on actual vehicles. What makes the Original 16 lineup of Hot Wheels launched in 1968 both groundbreaking and fascinating, though, is that even the ones