Treasure Hunt

Treasure Hunt vehicles are toy cars, which were introduced by Mattel in 1995, and consisted of 12 cars; one released per month. The original production run started at 10,000 pieces worldwide, and has since grown due to the demand and increasing popularity of Hot Wheels collecting.

Treasure Hunt Vehicles are found by the denotion on the package. Usually it will say "Treasure Hunt" or "T-Hunt." The cars are decorated with flashy designs and special "rubber" wheels. They have a high price tag when they are first released. The price does typically stabilize once more of the cars are available on the market. Sometimes collectors will see this as the car dropping in price but empirical data strongly states otherwise. Instead, the high prices we see initially are the result of the internet boom. When only a few new Treasure Hunts are available on the market and hundreds of collectors are after it the price will skyrocket. Data collected over the past twelve years actually indicated the price on Treasure Hunts is rising quite well generally. Prices off on the internet are generally much higher as often when collectors quote a value they do not take into account shipping, risk, and inconvenience as all negative factors on the online market.

In 2007, Mattel introduced a two-tiered Treasure Hunt system. A regular Treasure Hunt would feature normal enamel paint and normal wheels compared to other Hot Wheels cars. The production of these is rumored to be greater than Treasure Hunts of the past. The super Treasure Hunt is much rarer and is like Treasure Hunts of the past, featuring premium wheels, and Spectraflame paint. All 12 Treasure Hunt cars are planned to be released in both regular and super versions.