Has the MBX Mercury Cougar been retired?

[DAVID4SUE]

It’s been well over a decade since the ‘68 Cougar was used in the MBX lineup. Does anyone know the status of this casting, or whether it’s been ‘retired?’ If it still exists, I’d say it’s high time for this to make a return to the lineup, even if only in a 5-pack.

Does anyone else like and miss this casting? 

[Engine 32 below]

11 hours ago, DAVID4SUE said:

It’s been well over a decade since the ‘68 Cougar was used in the MBX lineup. Does anyone know the status of this casting, or whether it’s been ‘retired?’ If it still exists, I’d say it’s high time for this to make a return to the lineup, even if only in a 5-pack.

Does anyone else like and miss this casting? 

Agreed! I’d love to see this one again, as all of its releases were at a time when I wasn’t collecting. Unfortunately, it’s probably gone for good. The wiki page mentions that Matchbox no longer has the Mercury license, and based on discussion from the Hot Wheels side of things, rule of thumb is if a casting goes more than 7 years without a release, then the tooling is gone and it will need to be retooled. 

https://matchbox.fandom.com/wiki/1968_Mercury_Cougar

[DAVID4SUE]

On 8/14/2024 at 6:36 AM, Engine 32 below said:

Agreed! I’d love to see this one again, as all of its releases were at a time when I wasn’t collecting. Unfortunately, it’s probably gone for good. The wiki page mentions that Matchbox no longer has the Mercury license, and based on discussion from the Hot Wheels side of things, rule of thumb is if a casting goes more than 7 years without a release, then the tooling is gone and it will need to be retooled. 

https://matchbox.fandom.com/wiki/1968_Mercury_Cougar

I know the MBX and HW teams are different, but since both brands are owned and produced by Mattel, based on several 2024 HW releases so far, Mattel still has the Mercury license. I was unaware of a general policy of castings getting retired after 7 years, but with the re-release of Phil Rielhman’s awesome ‘49 Drag Merc casting showing up again after more than a decade absence (last seen in 2013), they definitely proved that’s not a hard and fast rule. 

Can any HWC/MBX mods comment on this please?

The ‘49 Drag Merc returned in a big way this year with the M case Zamac having just been released, which I was delighted to see. (Haven’t yet found one though, but hopeful)

[Engine 32 below]

1 hour ago, DAVID4SUE said:

I know the MBX and HW teams are different, but since both brands are owned and produced by Mattel, based on several 2024 HW releases so far, Mattel still has the Mercury license. I was unaware of a general policy of castings getting retired after 7 years, but with the re-release of Phil Rielhman’s awesome ‘49 Drag Merc casting showing up again after more than a decade absence (last seen in 2013), they definitely proved that’s not a hard and fast rule. 

Can any HWC/MBX mods comment on this please?

The ‘49 Drag Merc returned in a big way this year with the M case Zamac having just been released, which I was delighted to see. (Haven’t yet found one though, but hopeful)

Sorry, I didn’t mean that it was official Mattel policy, just that it was a general rule of thumb that other people had noticed. And the ‘49 Drag Merc actually proves my point, they’ve updated and changed the tooling (according to wiki, the wheelie bar no longer folds out and the spoiler is now metal instead of plastic) before bringing it back. I bet if you looked at the base, it would show 2 copyright dates, 1 for the original tooling and 1 for the updated one.

That being said, I’d love for a retool of the Mercury Cougar! Now that we have the Moving Parts line, maybe they can give it opening doors like the Lesney casting, or an opening hood.

[nevertoomany]

I cannot say about the 68 MBX Mercury casting but as mentioned above, Mattel still owns the Mercury licensing. Or maybe better put the license to produce them (not sure if it is a blacket license or per model and if it applies equally across all Mattel companies and products but... picked this HW up a few months back at a grocery store. So I think it is still possible.