HOT PIRANHA

Here is another model from my small Monster Truck collection. This is the Hot Wheels Piran-ahhhh. Yes, it is a giant fish on giant wheels. Not to be confused with Piranha Terror from the Hot Wheels Mainline.

The colour scheme of this version is red and black. Again, the model is mainly plastic, with a very limited amount of metal. The inner chassis is black, with a red outer chassis and suspension. This is similar to the design used on the Loco Punk, but there are a few small differences, such as the lack of a diagonal brace for the rear strut, and no projecting edges to the chassis frame. Marked with the Hot Wheels and Mattel names, and 'made in THAILAND'.

Only the upper body of the fish (and the engine ?) are metal. This has cast-in, textured stripe detail, as some versions have a striped finish. The tail is black plastic, with the lower jaw (and teeth), and the dorsal fin in red plastic. Clear red plastic is used for the eyes. Overall length 92 mm, or just over three and a half inches.

The wheel hubs are red plastic, and the tyres black. These are a different design to those used on the Loco Punk.

Red and white tampo printing. Red strips, gill detail, Hot Wheels name and the word TRUCKS; only the word MONSTER is white.

This example comes on a card (copyright date on the back 2021). The plastic bubble is shaped like a wheel. The model comes with a soft plastic sedan for your Monster Truck to drive over, and squash over and over again. Mine is orange.

There was also a twin-pack version that came with both Piran-ahhhh and a small Piranha Terror. It is also sold in a Monster Truck four-pack. A previous version was orange and green, with a blue chassis.

The world of miniature Monster Trucks is filled with way-out designs, with the wildest coming from Hot Wheels and Monster Jam. Some of these are film, TV, or Super Hero related, so they fit in to a Star Cars collection.

Paul Adams from New Zealand