This particular Hot Wheels car isn't new, but the X-Raycers Carbonator is new in this deco. The design is incredibly clever - a bottle of soda is labeled "Carbonator Race Juice," and the clear plastic bottle rests atop a metal base. The kicker is the metal base is also a functioning bottle opener... which odds are nearly no kid is actually going to use nowadays since soda in glass bottles is something of a premium product. I'm not sure how many other cars are based on their functionality with other items - there's Fast Cash, a money clip, as well as the Fig Rig which is compatible with Lego toys.
This car was a Treasure Hunt vehicle last year, so I wasn't able to find one. I was out bumming around after dinner at Lenny's last week and saw one of the 2014 model in a giant bin of cars at a Walmart. Interestingly there were tons of Batmobiles and Flintmobiles, but only one Carbonator - I was pretty surprised there weren't more.
Like many cars in this line, it's obvious the designers had a much older customer in mind. The notion of a metal bottle cap is something removed from modern life, so having a car that can remove one is more than a bit of a novelty. As the car has another cap as a sort of hood ornament, it's certainly not the kind of thing that feels like it belongs in the 21st century.
Marked 2008 on the bottom, this mostly die-cast metal vehicle has a sparkling, somewhat glittery bluegreen paint covering the metal components. Plastic wheels are cast in clear, with a yellowish green bottle and some silver elements finishing up the design..
Despite being somewhat scarce so far, this current model of the Carbonator isn't worth much of anything - a few cents to a dollar at the most. Odds are you'll see more in the coming months, while you peruse shelves trying to find the new Simpsons car, The Homer (and fail). If you see it, get it - how else can you easily hide a bottle opener on your desk at work? Nobody'll ever know.
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