American animated television series
American TV series or program

Hot Wheels is a thirty-minute Saturday-morning cartoon series broadcast on ABC from 1969 to 1971, under the primary sponsorship of Mattel Toys. The show took pains to stress that it was "pro-safety", contrasting the safe and responsible behavior of the series' racing-club protagonists with the reckless behavior of their rivals.

The show was criticized by the FCC, which considered it a half-hour commercial for toy cars. ABC contested the charge, saying that there was no prior commitment to Mattel, and that Hot Wheels cars were never advertised during the program. The network was backed up by the National Association of Broadcasters, and the show remained on the ABC schedule for two seasons.

Synopsis

The series mainly focused on the racing exploits of a high school student, Jack "Rabbit" Wheeler, who led the Hot Wheels Racing Club.

Voice cast

Episodes

Sky Sailor

The Funny Money Caper

Surf's Up

The Winner

The Hot Head

Big Race

The Family Car

Fire Fighters

The Jewel

Fake Out - Stake Out

The Buggy Ride

Four Wheel Time Bomb

Hit and Run

It Takes a Team

Ardeth the Demon (Ardeth the Highwayman)

Like Father, Like Son

Avalanche Country

Danger Around the Clock

Tough Cop

Hotter Than the Devils

Underground

Rough Ride (The Test)

Race to Space

Monkey a-Okay

Diamonds Are a Girls Worst Friend

Big Heart, Little Hearts

Get Back on That Horse

Hitchhike to Danger

Dragon's Tooth Peak

The Doc Warren Trophy Race

Show-Off

Drag Strip

Mata Hari Ardeth

Slicker-Slicks

FCC action

Some time during the show's broadcast, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) received complaints from toy companies who argued that it was actually a thirty-minute commercial for the toys; one of them was Topper Toys, a rival to Mattel. The FCC obliged by ordering stations to log part of the airings as advertising time.

Home media

The show was available on DVD in 2023.

International broadcast