Hot Wheels is getting its own television show, toymaker Mattel announced last week.
The show is titled “Hot Wheels: Ultimate Challenge,” and the first episode will air later this year on NBC in a primetime slot.
Rutledge Wood, of “Top Gear America” fame, has been picked for hosting duties, alongside Hoonigan's Hert Eugene Jr. and Dalal Elsheikh, a Ford designer and Hot Wheels brand ambassador.
The official description makes the show sound like a version of MTV's “Pimp My Ride” aimed at kids. In each episode, two Hot Wheels fans will bring their dream designs to life using real vehicles.
The modification work will be handled in the "Chrome Zone," where each contestant will have access to a high-tech garage and a team of experts. They'll also have to deal with something called the Inspirationator 5000, which may be a computer of some sort that spits out ideas that need to be integrated into the build.
The competing designs will then be judged by a panel that will include celebrities, and the winner will take home a $25,000 cash prize and the chance to enter a final round where contestants will compete for $50,000 and the honor of having their design turned into an official Hot Wheels toy car.
Mattel in recent years has been expanding Hot Wheels to move it beyond a line of toy cars. A video game was launched in 2021 and a movie is in the works.
