Polestar partners with Hot Wheels to inspire young designers

Who doesn’t love a Hot Wheels? The tiny model cars have delighted automotive enthusiasts since the very first example, a dark blue custom Camaro was released on May 18, 1968.

Fast forward 56 years and the brand is as vibrant and relevant as ever, even attracting the likes of the Swedish electric performance car brand Polestar, which recently partnered with Hot Wheels on its 2024 Design Contest.

This year's contest invited contestants to submit designs inspired by Hot Wheels’ renowned 1:64 scale and Polestar’s own distinctive design language.

The winning design features exaggerated proportions which are a bold take on Polestar's typically subtle design language (Image: Shashank Shekhar/Polestar)

The winner, Shashank Shekhar, a professional designer from India, won first prize for his rugged off-roader dubbed the ‘Polestar TRX’.

The four-judge panel included representatives from Polestar and Mattel, said the concept, with its exaggerated proportions and sleek surfaces, presents a bold interpretation of Polestar's normally subtle design philosophy.

The design will now become the first Polestar to be included in Hot Wheels toy car series, with the die-cast collectable available for consumers in the summer of 2025.

The runner-up in the design contest was the 'Cyber Shaker' which features a cyberpunk design that pays homage to the shaker scoop seen on some V8 muscle cars (Image: Powei Chen/Polestar)

Honourable mentions included Italy’s Powei Chen, who was awarded runner-up for his colourful cyberpunk-style ‘Cyber Shaker’, and German Roman Moor’s classic Le Mans submission, the ‘Polestar Track Toy’ concept.

Polestar – which is owned by Chinese company Geely and started out in life racing and tuning Volvos – provided support for the aspiring students and professional vehicle designers who entered the contest, with the Polestar Design team engaging in one-to-one coaching with the shortlisted finalists to refine their designs before final selection.

The third-placed 'Track Toy' concept also impressed the panel of judges from Polestar and Mattel, with it taking inspiration from classic Le Mans racers (Image: Roman Moor/Polestar)

Now in its fourth edition, the Polestar Design Contest is an opportunity for both professional and student designers to showcase their visions of automotive design.

This year's partnership with Hot Wheels encouraged participants to push their creativity even further, attracting over 1200 participants from around the globe.

Judges were instructed to seek out designs that reflected the playfulness and vibrancy of the Hot Wheels brand while still incorporating elements of Polestar's signature minimalist design aesthetic.