The country on the base

Your Hot Wheels says “Made in Hong Kong” – what years does that mean? We counted the country on the base for 35,822 of our 50,311 models: 10 countries with model count and the exact years each one appears in our data.

10 countries on Hot Wheels bases

Number of models, castings and the years in which each country appears in our data.

Country	Models	Castings	Years in our data	By decade
Malaysia	17,463	2,206	1981–2027	2020s 4,458 · 2010s 6,960 · 2000s 3,489 · 1990s 1,833 · 1980s 637
Thailand	9,191	2,483	1997–2027	2020s 3,395 · 2010s 3,087 · 2000s 2,472 · 1990s 215
China	5,316	1,924	1988–2027	2020s 410 · 2010s 692 · 2000s 2,589 · 1990s 1,367 · 1980s 5
Indonesia	1,630	643	2017–2027	2020s 1,299 · 2010s 331
Hong Kong	1,090	366	1968–1991	1990s 3 · 1980s 432 · 1970s 550 · 1960s 81
USA	244	55	1968–1993	1990s 2 · 1970s 50 · 1960s 192
Vietnam	218	46	2002–2026	2020s 182 · 2010s 22 · 2000s 14
Italy	86	57	1970–2016	2010s 1 · 1980s 15 · 1970s 31
Mexico	64	51	1970–1987	1980s 34 · 1970s 26
France	56	42	1983–2016	2010s 1 · 1980s 55

How complete is this?

Data basis: 35,822 of our 50,311 models carry a country at all – 72 % of the 1968–1999 releases, but only 74 % from 2000 on. These lists therefore show what is printed on the bases we have recorded. They are not a production record and say nothing about where Hot Wheels are made today.

Decade	Models	With a country	Share
1960s	381	273	72 %
1970s	847	657	78 %
1980s	1,610	1,181	73 %
1990s	4,886	3,430	70 %
2000s	11,390	8,564	75 %
2010s	14,749	11,095	75 %
2020s	13,436	9,744	73 %

The counting, the year ranges and the grouping of spellings such as “HK” or “Raised Malaysia” under one country are our own work – the original value stays next to the country on every model page. Sources & licenses · Wheel types on the base

Frequently asked questions

Where are Hot Wheels made?

We answer this only from our own records, and only for the cars whose base we have recorded: Malaysia 17,463, Thailand 9,191, China 5,316, Indonesia 1,630, Hong Kong 1,090, USA 244, Vietnam 218, Italy 86, Mexico 64, France 56. 84 % of those entries are from 2000 or later and 16 % from 1968 to 1999; the field is filled for 74 % of our models from 2000 on and 72 % of the older ones. We make no claim about today's production.

My car says “Hong Kong” – how old is it?

In our data all 1,090 models with Hong Kong on the base fall in 1968–1991, and only 3 of them from 1990 on. See the full list.

Were Hot Wheels made in France?

Yes: 56 of our records carry France on the base, and every one falls in 1983–2016 – the shortest and most clearly dated group in our data. All 56 models.

Are there Hot Wheels made in the USA?

In our records 244 models carry USA on the base, all from 1968–1993 – the early Redline years. That is the subset whose base we have recorded, not a complete Redline list: for those same years we hold many more models whose country field is empty. All 244 models.

Malaysia or China – which came first?

In our records Malaysia starts in 1981 and China in 1988, and both run on in parallel through the 1990s. That is why the country alone does not date a car from those years – the date code on the base and the toy number do. All years.

This page last changed: Nov 11, 2026. The Hot Wheels database behind it is our own and is updated daily – releases from 1968 onwards plus our own unboxing videos.