It’s something he’s been dreaming about since he was 8.
Amaury Diaz Serrano, a five-year resident of the city and an automotive designer who’s been with General Motors for nine years, remembers the first toy car he ever owned.
It was a 1968 Camaro, one of the Matchbox line of toy cars based on real vehicles. And when the Hot Wheels line, with customized versions of the vehicles, was introduced, it sparked his desire to someday put his imprint on a vehicle.
After years of working on cars for the road, it’s come full circle: Serrano won a contest Hot Wheels put to several automotive manufacturers to design toy cars influenced by the major brands for its 40th anniversary celebration next year.
“One of the critical parts of Hot Wheels’ success over the last 40 years have been our partnerships,” said Erin Sullivan, brand manager for Hot Wheels. “That’s why, for the first time ever, we went outside of Hot Wheels and asked (for designs). We wanted to go to the major automotive manufacturers and allow them to really participate.”
Out of 15 companies around the world that were invited to participate, GM, Dodge, Ford, the United Kingdom’s Lotus, Mitsubishi and Honda submitted designs. One vehicle from those six companies, along with one internal design, was chosen to make seven anniversary cars for the toy line.
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