An interesting subset of the Mattel Disney Pixar Diecast CARS are the English-only Canadian cards.

Now, they are not technically part of the U.S. release so in this case, you can safety ensconced yourself in the complete blanket without any of these CARS but they are amusing and during the occasion lulls of CARS collecting, er, what’s French-Canadian for ‘Collect Them All’?

But first, let me take you back in time – a time of being in the CARS wilderness – mainly around August of the year 2007. Remember that time, when money and gold flowed down the streets and we grumbled that there was just way too much of it and it was all too messy?

That and the Sarge and CARS embargo was all the world’s people could talk about … or maybe that’s just the people I hung out with 🙂

The embargo-recall ended with the first wave of Movie Doubles which excited a few people but not many … but the real end of the embargo was the sudden appearance of the WM8 pallet of 2007 …

… followed by the resumption of singles CASES … notably CASE U.

CASE U
Bling Bling McQueen
Bob Cutlass
Brand New Mater
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Darrell Cartrip
Dinoco McQueen
Doc Hudson
Ferrari F430
Fillmore
Hamm
Hydraulic Ramone
Leak Less
Lizzie
Mario Andretti
Ramone – Green
Sally
Sheriff
Tongue McQueen

The details of the switchover recently covered in this post.

But the greater effect is what happened after the CANCELLATION of two of the U.S. cases scheduled after CASE U:

CASE V
Bling Bling McQueen
Boost
Darrell Cartrip
Chick
Cruisin’ Ramone
Dinoco Helicopter
Dirt Track McQueen
DJ
Fabulous Hudson Hornet
Fred
Lightning McQueen
Mario Andretti
Mater
Nitroade
Ramone – Purple
RPM #64
Snot Rod
Tex Dinoco

AND CASE W:

Bob Cutlass
Brand New Mater
Crusin’ McQueen
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Dinoco Chick Hicks
Dinoco Helicopter
Doc Hudson
Ferrari F430
Fred
Hamm
King
Lightning McQueen
Radiator Springs McQueen
Ramone – Green
Ramone – Yellow
Tongue McQueen
Yeti

Instead the CARS seem to have been sent to Canada.

So for about a month in September and before we got the first 2008 CASE here in US (in October 2007), these were available in Canada:

Keep in mind that the ‘larger than normal’ interest in these three were due to:

a) there were very few new CARS on the shelf.

b) information did not flow as fast as today surrounding CARS so it’s like life during a riot, ‘you grab, you snatch, you run and ask questions later.’

c) would these be the only time to see these CARS? Unlike now, there were no numerous sources to verify if CASE A-C info was accurate – even though we knew it was coming …

d) Canada releases normally are in tri-languages. English only is a mistake.

e) we have a reasonable idea how many CARS are available in the US where the population is 350 million but in Canada, no one is quite sure how many of these mistakes/errors slipped out?

f) they were on SUPERCHARGED cards while in the US, we switched over to WORLD OF CARS.

g) they were available first.

All contributing to the ‘over the top’ interest … even though ultimately, Dinoco Helicopter shipped a few weeks later, Fred a few weeks after that and Yeti, the Abominable Snowplow in January 2008 – All on WORLD OF CARS cards (versus SC cards).

Also note, Yeti was already released in the US but just called Yeti, the Canadian card was the first with his official FULL name, Yeti, the Abominable Snowplow.

The back of these cards were “normal.”

By just showing them as a checklist, Mattel could avoid the legal requirements of naming them and be able to mostly use this design on different international releases. (There it is! Collect Them All in various languages 🙂 )

Canadian Supercharged cards normally look like this.

One other single I missed out that was released on Canada but not in the US on Supercharged was Old School Ramone.

(photo courtesy of Bill W.)

In the US. this car was released in the Supercharged series as Crusin’ Ramone. In the subsequent re-release on WOC cards, he was renamed Old School Ramone.

But this Ramone only appears as ‘Old School Ramone’ on Canadian Supercharged card.

Of course at the same time, they were busy changing Red Ramone to Hydraulic Ramone even though he was not actually hydraulic and while this Ramone had red, he was not not really red Ramone and subsequently not Crusin’ Ramone because that would imply he was painted as such during the crusin’ down Main street portion of the movie – hence, the flashback moniker, Old School.

Got that? Good. Now repeat that back to me.

Is it any wonder only smart people collect this line? 🙂

And to list every detail during this time of confusion, instead of the canceled Supercharged CASES V & W, instead we got the following CASES A & B on WORLD OF CARS card designs.

CASE A
Bob Cutlass
Brand New Mater
Bug Mouth Lightning McQueen
Crusin’ Lightning McQueen
Darrell Cartrip
Dinoco Helicopter (2)
Dinoco Lightning McQueen
Mario Andretti
Pit Crew Member Fillmore (2)
Pit Crew Member Fabulous Hudson Hornet (2)
Radiator Springs Lightning McQueen
Ramone – Green
RPM #64 (2)

CASE B
Bling Bling Lightning McQueen
Chick Hicks
Crusin’ Lightning McQueen
Dale Earnhardt Jr
Darrell Cartrip
Dinoco Chick Hicks
Dinoco Helicopter
Dinoco Lightning McQueen
Doc Hudson
Fred (2)
Lightning McQueen
Mario Andretti
Old School Ramone (formerly Crusin’ Ramone)
Pit Crew Member Fabulous Hudson Hornet
Pit Crew Member Fillmore
Snot Rod

But wait, there’s more! There were also a couple Movie Moment changeups …

The last case of Supercharged Movie Moments was also canceled – that case was to contain Flik & PT Flea; and Rusty & Dusty Rust Eze.

Instead, these English-only Supercharged cards were apparently shipped to Canada & Puerto Rico.

Since MM’s are not made in great quantities, no one is exactly quite sure how many escaped to Canada & Puerto Rico? Hundreds? Thousands? It seems likely that it numbers in the three digits as the situation was quickly changed so Canada started getting the tri-language ones? So, these two may be the rarest of English only cards? It would be hard to bet against that fact but the actual number is unclear.

At the same time in the US, the last Supercharged box containing Mrs. The King & King; and Red Mia & Tia were also not shipped in great quantity adding to the frenzy though that shipment was almost certainly in the thousands.

Then in early 2008, WOC versions of Rusty & Dusty Dust-eze, Red Mia & Tia & Mr. & Mrs, The King reached our shores in the next/first boxes of WORLD OF CARS Movie Moments and while the “new” Movie Moments haven’t been always easy to find in 2008, they are usually always available somewhere. Of course, even to today, PT Flea & Flik are not easy to find so that compounds the rarity of the Canadian Supercharged versions.

Bottom Line – these 4 singles & 2 Movie Moments are NOT technically part of the U.S. releases since the back of the cards are NOT in English but they are interesting because they are in English on the front and that the ‘mistake’ was quickly corrected.*

So, whatever was shipped to Canada (and to Puerto Rico) was quickly correctly. How quickly before the spigot stopped? No one knows. Was it as few as a few hundred CASES? Maybe. A few thousand? Maybe? I highly doubt it was much more than that as the eBay auctions really only lasted a few weeks before the only new additions were the ‘corrected’ ones … and of course, for the vast majority of collectors, since Dinoco Heli, Fred and the Rust-Eze boys were available on the shelves (albeit in another card motif), that was good enough. Yeti & Crusin’/Old School Ramone were released 6 months prior and the name change/card change was not a major factor – they either wanted it because they missed the other release, so packaging was not a major consideration … and of course, Flik & PT Flea was just hard to find in any packaging.

The inherent interest in these is mostly because they were available BEFORE their availability in THE US on an “older” card and all in English … then add in the scarcity of them so you have the ‘perfect storm.’ As Philippe B. notes, there is also a Luigi & Guido one all in English but since it was available in the US under a slightly different Guido & Luigi, it doesn’t garner that much interest.

So, there you go …

* Because, yes, other CARS get released in other places first (such as the Movie Moments with Whitewalls McQ/Tumbleweed McQ but because they are in tri-languages, they don’t garner as much interest plus there is no real scaricity of them).

If you want more details, be sure to buy and read the book on every CARS minutiae in 2006 & 2007 🙂