Disney Pixar Cars - Haulers vs. Semis El Fin

This is my third and final installment of comparing the Haulers and Semis. Alternator Valley friend and reader Tim, has contributed some great photos once again! First, we'll compare the faces of the first three releases of Haulers and Semis...Mack, Chick Hicks and Gray.

Mack Hauler's eyes are open while his mouth is wide open
Mack Semi has eyes half open with a mouth in a half smile


Chick Hauler's Eyes are open while his mouth has a smirk
Chick Semi has the same eyes while his tongue is showing


Gray Semi has eyes straight ahead and a full smile
while Gray Hauler has eyes to side and a half smile


The Hauler on the left has the tight hookup for the trailer
The Semi lacks the same hookup and the trailer can slip apart


Both the Gray Hauler and Semi have sponsors on mud flaps


Octane Gain's box opens by a flap and keeps the box intact
Wally & Jerry's is opened via perforation & compromises it

A few final notes...Mack Semi is the only one with no hole to attach a trailer. All Semis appear to have sponsors on the mud flaps. As shown above Chick Hicks and Gray Semi have holes, but lack the white plastic piece to secure a trailer. I discussed the packaging and we'll have to see what future Semi releases hold in store for us. I've decided to continue to buy two of each Hauler and one of each Semi. How about you?

Subscribe to Alternator Valley and never be in the pits!

http://CarsDieCastToys.Blogspot.com

Disney Pixar Cars - Haulers vs. Semis Part Deux

It is always appreciated when readers contribute to the community! Tim has once again sent me a great pic, and pointed out the finite differences between the Haulers and Semis. Boy, those tricky Mattel Marketing monkeys are always scheming. Take a look and you'll see subtle differences between the two.

Gray Semi has eyes straight ahead and a full smile
while Gray Hauler has eyes to side and a half smile

In addition to the eyes and smile, here's what Tim says about the hookup, "Here's the difference: the holes in the Semis don't have the little extra insert that makes it a tight fit between the trailer pin and the "5th wheel" on the truck. So, if you were going to actually play with them, the two could separate."

I think that kind of sucks! So, you can't even hook up the darn thing if you like the Semi's facial expression better than the one the Hauler has! Hey Mattel, fix this!! So, does this make you more or less likely to get both the Semis and the Haulers? I'll probably just get one Semi and continue getting two of the Haulers.

When you see the chance to contribute to the collecting discussion, feel free to send me your pics and info.

Subscribe to Alternator Valley and be part of our world!

http://CarsDieCastToys.Blogspot.com

Disney Pixar Cars - Upcoming Cars Pin Sets

I know a lot of you collect pins in addition to Cars die cast toys. I thought I'd let you know about a few Cars pin sets that may interest you. You can supposedly order both sets I'm going to show you. I personally like the Mystery Tin Set.

The first set is being released on March 24, 2009 at Disney World. It is an Open Edition Starter Set and will retail for $24.95. You get four pins...a Lightning McQueen, a Mater, a Chick Hicks, and a pin with Guido and Luigi. You also get a lanyard and the set comes packed in a plastic pouch. You can check it out at this link Cars Pin Set

The second set will be released on March 27, 2009 at Disneyland. It will be a Limited Edition Set of 2000. This set will contain ten pins...a Sheriff, a Sally, a Ramone, a Luigi, a Guido, a Mack, a Lightning McQueen, a Mater, a Sarge and a Doc. They come packed in a metal tin, and you get four (4) randomly packed pins in each tin. Each tin will cost $32.00. You can check out this set at this link Cars Mystery Tin Set

Hopefully, I'll have some pics of some upcoming releases for you you this week!

Subscribe to Alternator Valley and be Happy!

http://CarsDieCastToys.Blogspot.com

Disney Pixar Cars - Would You Like Metal or Plastic

Can you tell which is die cast metal and which is plastic?

Alternator Valley reader Tim, sent me these pictures of these two Mack Haulers to compare for you. It is tough to tell which is die cast metal and which is plastic. The top is the Target Exclusive, which is made of die cast metal and manufactured by Mattel. The bottom is the Disney Store Exclusive, which is made of plastic and manufactured by Disney Consumer Products.

This plastic version has a beautiful paint finish!

I touched upon the Disney Store Exclusive a number of weeks ago. You can see the plastic version is a longer and more accurate Mack in scale to Lightning McQueen. The Target Exclusive is a true die cast metal, and is shorter due to bringing it to retail at a reasonable price. I own both versions, but I prefer the good ole die cast metal!

Subscribe to Alternator Valley and Get All the News!

http://CarsDieCastToys.Blogspot.com

Disney Pixar Cars - Disney Shopping Presidents' Day Sale

DisneyShopping.com is having a Big Sale!

Everyone likes to save money. Today I saw that
DisneyShopping.com started a Presidents' Day Sale
and they have Disney Pixar Cars stuff! Here are a
couple of things you may want to add to your stash...

Cars Mack Truck Carrier

Cars Tire Shaped Carrying Case
for 1:55th Die Cast Toys

I haven't seen the Lightyear Tire Carrying Case before. I've seen a similar Hot Wheels Case. About two years ago, I spoke with a Manager at Once Upon a Toy at Downtown Disney in Orlando, he claimed a huge Cars Carrying Case was coming that would hold 35 Cars. That never materialized! This case looks like a DisneyShopping.com exclusive. Happy Shopping!

Don't Be Left Out! Subscribe to Alternator Valley and Stay in the Know!

http://CarsDieCastToys.Blogspot.com

Disney Pixar Cars - Wally the Walmart Hauler

I was supposed to have something special for you to see today, but my contact at Mattel was not able to get it to me by the end of the business day. I should have it for you tomorrow!

I want to talk about Wally the Hauler today! A friend spotted him in an Orlando Walmart yesterday, but she reported that he must have had a run in with some crazy kid. She told me his package was crushed and that he was terribly damaged. She wanted to justify buying him for me, but she said he was simply too beat up for my taste.

To date, Wally has only shown up in a very few places. Only two people have listed him on Ebay. Hopefully, we'll start seeing him appear in more stores across the country. I've recently seen the first three Haulers...Gray, Chick Hicks, and Mack starting to show up with some regularity now.

I had to laugh when I found out he was named Wally! I assumed he would just be called the Walmart Hauler. Didn't you? Me and many of my friends call Walmart, "Wally World." Now, obviously he could just be named Wally because of Wal being turned into Wally. It would be interesting to know if it was because people often refer to the store as "Wally World." Either way, he's a unique exclusive, and I 'm sure we're all looking forward to adding him to our collections!

Tomorrow, something cool! Subscribe to Alternator Valley to get the latest Cars News First!

http://CarsDieCastToys.Blogspot.com

Disney Pixar Cars - The NEW Mack Track Challenge Playset

It is time to see another NEW Cars item way before it comes out! Here's another item direct from the Mattel "Design Center!" It is expected to come out in the Fall and retail for $40.00...Mack Track Challenge will allow you to play with Lightning as if he were Evil Knievel. Maybe he can jump Snake Spring Canyon here in Alternator Valley.

Lightning Does His Best Evil Knievel

Yippee! Looks like fun to me!

So, is all this plastic contributing to the high price of gas? Is Lightning going to jump through Mack during the Global Race? That would be a cool stunt! I can't wait to see what kind of playsets come out once Cars 2 comes out in 2011.

NEW Cryptic Shout Outs! Hi Emeryville, do you have an office at Pixar?!

http://CarsDieCastToys.Blogspot.com

Disney Pixar Cars - Mack Welcomes You to Alternator Valley

Mack wants to WELCOME all of you from around the world who have recently discovered Alternator Valley! To ALL of our readers...Thank You! We continue to break traffic records and build our community every week! We work extremely hard to bring you the most reliable, accurate, and breaking news about collecting Disney Pixar's Cars on the web. We hope you enjoy the site and all it has to offer!

http://CarsDieCastToys.Blogspot.com