GAS HOG Review! A Hot Rod of the First-Generation Eldorado That Spills Gasoline!

About this die-cast car

GAS HOG is a hot rod based on the 1953 Cadillac Eldorado, released in the 1994 Hot Wheels Happy Meal.
A Happy Meal is what we call a Happy Set in Japan, and it started in the US in 1979.
Hot Wheels were first included in Happy Meals in 1983. At first, they were metal-on-metal and came in blister packaging, meaning you got the exact same high-quality item as the mainline products. However, starting in 1991, they were distributed as cheaper plastic-bodied versions of mainline products in plastic bags, and from 1993, original Happy Meal castings were also added to the lineup. Hot Wheels Happy Meals continue to this day, featuring both cheaper plastic mainline versions and original plastic Happy Meal die-cast cars.

“GAS HOG” is a slang term for a large vehicle with poor fuel economy, and I think it also carries a sense of irony, as if to say, 'We took a 50s Cadillac that already had a huge engine and was guzzling gas, and made its fuel economy even worse by turning it into a hot rod!' The designer is unknown, but the wiki said McDonald's. Which makes sense.

About the Cadillac Eldorado

The Hot Wheels wiki page for GAS HOG says,

“Based on the 1953 Cadillac Series 62 Convertible.”

But this is half-wrong, or rather, a very misleading way to write it. The person who wrote the article probably misunderstood.
It is clearly a 1953 Cadillac, but if you look at the shape of the side windows, they are square windows, not the triangular windows found on the standard Series 62 model. This is a feature of the Eldorado, the luxury version of the Series 62. It is sometimes called the Series 62 Eldorado, but it is usually just called the Cadillac Eldorado, so they probably got it wrong.

The Cadillac Eldorado was originally the name of a concept car announced in 1952, and production began in 1953 as the top-of-the-line limited edition convertible of the Series 62. In other words, GAS HOG is a casting of that first-generation Eldorado.
It was a 2-door convertible equipped with a 4-speed Hydra-Matic transmission and the same 5.4L V8 engine as the Series 62. Of the 85,446 units produced, which set a new sales record for the Series 62, only 532 were produced, accounting for 0.006% of the total. After all, it cost $7,750, which was enough to buy two Packards of the same year.
GM, thinking they had gone too far, decided from the following year to stop changing the body shape from the Series 62 and instead adopted a strategy of adding trim to make it look luxurious. They significantly lowered the price to $5,738 and recorded four times the sales.

Review

Front

The actual car has a heavy, imposing presence, and the middle of the grille looks like it's baring its teeth, which is a bit scary, but this version is a little cuter, with the eyes emphasized. While the actual car gives a flatter impression, the grille area has been stretched vertically a bit.
Like breasts,the Dagmar bumpers, which look like missiles, also look kind of cute. The license plate has an M for McDonald's, not... well, you know. It's quite detailed, isn't it?

It's a plastic body on a metal chassis, which usually leads to disaster, but I think it works well on this casting.

Rear

Ah, those wonderful tail fins. The molding around the bumper and such isn't very clear, but the tail fins are emphasized to make up for it, which is wonderful. Wonderful. (I said it twice because it's important.)
There is a mark that looks like the Laputa emblem on the trunk.

Side

The windows are yellowed and the tires are dirty, but I think they'll look clean if polished.
More importantly, the front fender arches have been widened upwards in true hot rod fashion. However, instead of the usual old Hot Wheels style of stupidly widening them to match the tire shape, they have been widened with quite a bit of taste, extending the original fender shape and stopping at the line one level up.
And then, the rear skirts are left on, lol. Maybe they thought it looked cooler that way?
Another modification point is the large side exhaust. Old Hot Wheels with added side exhausts often look bad, but this one is attached perfectly next to where the original silver molding was, so it blends in well.

Also, a feature of the 1953 Eldorado is the beltline (the line extending from below the windows). It dips down slowly and then rises again at the door cut. On the Series 62, this is just straight.
This design is more cohesive, following the line of the tail fins below it. It's amazing how well-thought-out the differentiation in design by grade was in this era.
Also, the square windows mentioned earlier are a feature of the Eldorado; on the Series 62, the area where the triangular windows are is incorporated into a wider, curved windshield.
The curved windows typical of 50s American cars are said to be dangerous because the sides look distorted, but even if you hit someone or crash into a utility pole, the people inside will definitely be safe with these bumpers. I think anyone hit would be happy to be killed by such a beautiful car.
This beltline depression and the wide, curved windows were apparently favorites of GM's styling chief, Harley Earl, the big power-harassing guy.

Top

It's a car that symbolizes the voluptuous bodies typical of early 1950s automobiles.
I apologize for the dirty interior. Hot Wheels sometimes puts effort into the interior quality of open models, but this one is average. It's about the same quality as a Tomica Premium Cadillac.
And the hard tonneau cover that stores the soft top is also unique to the Eldorado.

The spare tire-like thing sticking out of the engine hood is likely the engine's air filter. It's an iconic part of this casting.

Under

The undercarriage is simple. While it has minimal detailing, it likely wasn't modeled after the real thing.
It's held together by triangular screws, so it's easy to remove if you have a triangular screwdriver, but for me, not having one makes it harder to disassemble than a riveted one...

Conclusion

Thank you for reading until the end.

Actually, this is my second one. The first one was in better condition, but I ended up taking photos of this one I had on hand. I kind of regret it lol
I want to make a few customs, so I'd like to get a third one. Even though the model year and car type are different, something like that famous 1950 Le Mans spec would look good on it.

If you want to see more die-cast car reviews like this, I'll see you tomorrow at Big Bear Customs! See you later!