AutoWorld X-traction Ultra-G Series 8 Release by Paul Shoemaker The summer heat is on and it shows up the hottest in my little studio as the new Auto World X-Traction Series 8 cars are being unwrapped. This release is somewhat unique, in that, there are no new body styles with this run. HOWEVER, Auto World did several cool new things in this batch. Stirring in a pinch of Pow and a generous sprinkling of new parts and icing the the cake with some really eyeball snaring paint, the dough has risen and the biscuits, Baby, are ready to serve! So here, hot out of the Auto World oven: X-Traction Release #8! Our first appetizer is the Dodge Challenger. Auto World has done a couple of new things in this release, starting with the power bulge hood scoop. A Hemi needs a lot of fresh air and this sure looks like it can provide all it needs. Secondly, we have some cool retro paint decking out these modern muscle rods. The white version of the new release has the billboard “Hemi” logos with a nice little displacement badge letting you know this car is packing. The metallic green version has the traditional appearance of a 70’s Challenger with the belt line strip in black. This blends in nicely with the tutone paint with the simmer of the black giving way to the cool ease of the green. Here’s a shot of the first release Challenger. Those new hoods really set this car off from their predecessors. The next serving on the retro-buffet is the 2010 Chevy Camaro. Like the Challenger in this release, this new bowtie has a new hood and scoop and some ultra slick paint from the present and the past. The Black and White Camaro has a very retro white stripe across its nose ending in some traditional SS Super Sport badges. The Blue and Black looks more modern/custom with nice silver pin-striped details surrounding the black centered stripe. Both cars have a license plate asking “WHO NEXT”. Sounds like a challenge to the Challengers to me. The next item on the menu is the Corvette C5. This car remained unchanged from previous releases, but Auto World has once again refreshed this release with some stellar graphics. The Royal Blue and White Striped version is truly an awesome combination of colors and layout. With detailed red pin-stripping, this car really stands out. The photos here cannot capture the deep blue color. You would swear it would ripple like a pond if you touched it. The Silver car has a tutone checkered flag motif running from mid-door to the rear quarter panels. This really sets off the details the silver paint brings out in this body. This is one of Auto Worlds best detailed cars. Next on the griddle, we have the newest Ford GT40 super car. The first new version captures the Gulf Oil sponsored paint scheme wonderfully. This car really stands out. The orange is barely separated form the sky blue body by the thinnest of black stripes. Also of note, a nod to the Auto World Guru and Bringer of Wondrous Slot Car Goodies, Tom Lowe, a California license plate bearing the name Lowe, is tucked on the rear valence. The Yellow GT40 is a real eye catcher in a bright, vibrant yellow, set off with wide black stripes. It flashes across the track like a super-sonic bumble bee. Details still in abundance with “Ford GT40” logos held within the rocker panel stripes and the Ford oval prominent on the nose. Still have the munchies? Let’s hop into the VW Samba Bus and head to 7/11! We get two new variations on this model as well. Auto World went WAY psychedelic this time around. Haight-Ashbury, Woodstock and the Summer of Love are all captured in these new renditions. First up, the tamer of the two, a Red and White “Peace and Love” and “Flower Power” VW bus with a flower covering the tarp top. The second version is by far my favorite VW release in some time. Somehow, Auto World has managed to recreate the tie-dye appearance on the VW Bus! I swear I could hear the Grateful Dead singing “Truckin’” When I opened the package! With every color in the rainbow and a Peace sign on the roof, this V-Dub is a stand out! And what’s a meal without dessert? And Auto World gives it to us flambé style with two sizzling ‘55 Chevys. The first up is a tutone Black and Orange Five-Fiver with Black flames blowing back across the Orange dog house. A slick “5 TIL 5” license plate adorns both cars. The second offering is a deep purple which my camera does no justice! It looks like a clear coat purple, so deep you could drown. That would be enough, but Auto World added the traditional Yellow, Orange and Red flame job to this pool of cool purple, setting off a blaze of ‘tude. Both cars are trimmed out around the windows and have their Bel- Aire belt line chrome. Wicked Awesome just doesn’t cover it. Normally, when I see a company “re-release” cars they have already done 2 or 3 times, I get that ho-hum, that again thought running through my head. Not this time. All twelve variations of these “re-releases” stand on their own and in some ways above and beyond their predecessors’ releases. In a time where companies need to keep their budgets tighter, Auto World brought back cars they had the tooling for, already in place. But they added some exchangeable parts in the way of hood and scoop add-ons and on top of that, the graphic design teams knocked it out of the park with the paint schemes. The combination really added a value to something we already knew and recognized, and made it “new” all over again. I’m betting these will disappear as quick as they arrive in the stores. Series 8 for X-Traction is a winner! Keep watching here at SCI for more reviews and How-Tos. And if you are a vendor, importer or manufacturer and you would like to have your HO products put in thte spotlight, contact me here at SCI for details to get your products on board. Email me at:
Paul_S@SlotCarIllustrated.com Go Fast-Turn Left-Repeat Until Checkered!
-Paul | 
