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?

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Disney Pixar Cars - Haulers vs. Semis

I'm sure a lot of you have been considering whether you should buy the Haulers and the Semis, or just one or the other. I've been giving this a lot of thought and have decided to simply get the Haulers. The economy has impacted my business, and the thought of purchasing what are essentially duplicates, doesn't make sense to me. If you continue the usual collector's habit of buying two...One two keep Mint in the Package, and one to open and play with, then two Haulers from Walmart will set you back about $30.00. Buy two of the Semis of the same character and that will set you back about $13.00. The way I look at it, save the money buying the Semis and have the extra money to pay for the second Hauler.

If you bought these?

Why just buy the Haulers like I've decided? Because I want the entire cool setup. And, this way I can just unhook the Semi and leave the trailer parked like in the movie. So, which way have you decided to collect these?

Then, why buy these?

If you're like me, you've probably wondered, "Why the heck are they selling the Semis in the first place?" Well, probably because they are the actual die cast part of the entire Hauler. If you are a hard core collector, you may only care about the die cast part. Additionally, if you just buy the Semi you save 50% over buying the Hauler! I found out that the expressions of the Semis mouths are different. I also found that you can't hook up the Semis to the trailers because they don't have a hole for connection. That small a variation doesn't do much for me, but this reasoning makes sense to some collectors.

So, are you a Hauler type of collector, or a Semi type of collector?

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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!

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Disney Pixar Cars - Where is the Walmart Hauler

If you're like me, you've been searching your local Walmarts for the white Walmart Hauler. Finally, the Gray Hauler, Chick Hicks Hauler and Mack Haulers have been showing up in Orlando and around the country. The question is, "Where is the Walmart Hauler?!" Again, I am endlessly dumbfounded by the lack of product in stores.

Yesterday, a friend went into a Walmart and told me it was well stocked with Haulers and Oversized Cars. I went to that same store today, and the shelves were literally bare! This is the norm for Disney Pixar's Cars. New stock is sold in hours and is lucky to last a day. Who is making the stupid decisions that keep the store shelves empty? You have the "Hottest" toy line in the world and don't come close to meeting consumer/collector demand! I've complained about this to every entity involved with Cars for the last two years. I've told Mattel this, Disney this, Walmart this, Target this, Toys R Us this, and other collectors this.

I've been told that part of keeping the line going strong entails a strategy of keeping the product scarce. I think it is only a useful marketing strategy to a point. If people feel you are artificially keeping supply scarce to create demand, you do nothing but upset collectors, lose credibility and ultimately damage sales. The Haulers and Oversized should have been stocked in abundance during November and December. Instead, even though Walmart advertised the Oversized for $5.00 in their Black Friday circular, most stores never had them! Additionally, the Haulers never showed up until the last week or so. So, again I ask, "Where is the Walmart Hauler?"

I guess the only thing to do is "Fahgettaboudit!" Then like Presto does magic (Pixar reference for you fans), the Walmart Hauler will appear when you least expect it! Tah-Dah!!

Coming to Alternator Valley: Mater the Greater Prototypes will be Previewed this Friday! Subscribe to Alternator Valley so you'll be notified every time I publish another article!

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