• thermal_shock@lemmy.world
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      6 days ago

      yup. since my kid was born, we’ve collected them. about 500 last count, all inside, never played with in sand. matchbox ones are cooler though, more real world cars in my opinion.

  • Gammelfisch@lemmy.world
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    6 days ago

    Cheaper and cheaper as time goes on. My Tonka dump truck was made from steel and it would hurt me more than I could hurt it.

  • mtdyson_01@lemmynsfw.com
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    8 days ago

    Well now wait a minute, the Corvette on top may be correct. The car manufacturer puts so many covers on the bottom of cars now the hot wheels might be accurate.

  • kerrigan778@lemmy.world
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    7 days ago

    This seems accurate to what modern car underbodies look like, a smooth underbody is very important for aerodynamics and therefore fuel efficiency. For race cars it is often even more important not only for fuel efficiency but for downforce.

      • A7thStone@lemmy.world
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        6 days ago

        All of those plastic covers are a detriment in the north east. All of the salt and sand gets inside of them then you can’t clean it out.

          • MonkderVierte@lemmy.ml
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            6 days ago

            Salt only lowers melting point around 4°C, below is split. The occasional fire for heating the engine on the other hand…

            Edit: Rollsplit being loose gravel.

            • Dozzi92@lemmy.world
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              7 days ago

              I don’t pretend to be an expert on salt (though I have certainly listened to the testimony of experts on salt), but I do know there are different compounds that all fall under the general heading of “salt,” despite some of them not being salt at all. And that heading is probably one coined by a layman like myself.

              As far as whether the other compounds are responsible for corrosion the way tradition salt would be, I have no idea!

              • Typically they are – for two of the same reasons, first being that most of the “salt alternatives” in use, the original “salt” in this case being sodium chloride, are also chlorides (potassium or calcium chloride, usually) and it’s that chlorine ion that’s corrosive. They also all turn the meltwater into an electrolyte, forming an easy electrical connection between the various metals in your vehicle’s parts and dramatically accelerating galvanic corrosion.

                Technically any compound composed of positive and negatively charged ions that balance out to a net neutral is a salt, chemically speaking, and by definition they are compounds, i.e. held together with weak ionic bonds via their electrostatic charges and not molecules held together with strong covalent bonds. This means they like to liberate their constituent ions easily, allowing whatever-it-is they’re composed of to readily react with something else.

                TL;DR: Pretty much all salts, not just sodium chloride salt salt, are corrosion promoters.

            • Trainguyrom@reddthat.com
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              7 days ago

              In the north there’s even people who will specifically head south to buy a car that’s never spent a winter driving on salted roads. Road salt corrodes so badly it’s nasty

                • Trainguyrom@reddthat.com
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                  6 days ago

                  I think for some people it’s more about killing multiple birds with one stone. One guy I know went to see a Dolphins game, bought a car and got some warmer weather during the coldest part of the year. Another bought a car while visiting family (and learned the hard way that radiators are sometimes refilled with water and therefore will freeze in the winter if brought north) and another had their 20 year old truck die while hauling their RV and bought a new truck from the nearest dealership. So maybe it’s not widespread, but every one has talked about the benefits of a car that’s never seen salted roads

  • Jesus@lemmy.world
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    8 days ago

    Apparently, in order keep the “die cast” label, either the base or the top are die cast.

    Some cars are plastic on top and metal on the bottom, and others are metal on top and plastic on the bottom.

    As I recall, the wheels are also no longer 4 separate axel pins. They’re just two long pins. One in the front, one in the back.

  • Track_Shovel@slrpnk.net
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    7 days ago

    I had a jeep that changed colours from army green to bright yellow. Also an old school caddy that went from purple to pink. All metal; great toys

  • IninewCrow@lemmy.ca
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    7 days ago

    Hot wheels from the 70s and 80s were deadly weapons … you stepped on one it was like stepping on a roller skate, you broke one it turned into knife and if you threw one, you could cause a concussion. Even just opening up one of those damned things when you were kid usually meant you severely cut yourself (I know from experience).

      • IninewCrow@lemmy.ca
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        7 days ago

        I have one or two hot wheels shaped wounds somewhere on my skull from when my brothers tossed these things at me in a fight … and I returned the favor as well.