MG B-EAST Crowned Hot Wheels Champ

You may remember, back in July, we reported on the Hot Wheels Legends Tour whereby potential entrants to the competition could have their very own car immortalised as a miniature die-cast toy, to be forever part of the iconic and ever-expanding Hot Wheels collection. Well, the UK final took place at Radwood last week and a lucky winner was announced. Plucked from a record 274 entries there was stiff competition but the honour of the UK Hot Wheels Legends Tour goes to a bit of a beast.

No, not that one. This particular creature feature is Michael Wallhead’s 1979 ‘MG B-EAST’. Aside from its 3.0-litre Jaguar AJV6 engine – a powerplant that’s capable of chucking Abingdon’s finest from parked to 60mph in 4.2s and on to a top speed of 148mph – what’s special about this car is that it is built almost entirely from reused or recycled parts.

A labour of love for Michael over a period of eight years the MG B-EAST features myriad parts from other vehicles; from a Range Rover propshaft Reliant Scimitar axle to Triumph motorcycle throttle bodies and Nissan Silvia S14 brakes it’s certainly a unique machine. Even the glove box is made from an old number plate and the seats are upholstered with used jeans with Michael telling us “everything has second or third life and I try not to throw things away that can be reused.” A rare thing in today’s world but highly commendable nonetheless.

Michael certainly knows his onions when it comes to engineering and making things go faster. With Hot Wheels inspiring not only this build but also his chosen career as a creative engineer. Currently designing turbos to earn a crust, his passion for the subject extends to his personal life, too and Michael holds the Guinness World Record for the fastest wheelie bin, achieving 88.344 km/h in May this year. From bins to Bs Michael hopes his builds inspire children to dream and do something different – either as a career or building fun projects.”

For the first time, the UK final was open to the public, and all 274 entrants were offered the opportunity to attend the show and exhibit their build at this year’s RADwood, held at Bicester Heritage. Our man Darren was at the event so keep your eyes peeled for his report in these hallowed pages soon.

Our man Paul Cowland was on hosting duties and was joined by an expert panel of judges including renowned motoring journalists as well as design manager for Hot Wheels, Craig Callum to decide which cars best represented Hot Wheels’ criteria of authenticity, creativity and ‘garage spirit’, with Michael’s MG B-EAST finally taking the crown having impressed the judges with his reuse of materials in new and exciting ways.

Michael and the MG B-EAST will now go on to represent the UK on the global stage for his chance to have his MG recreated in 1:64 scale. This year’s final takes place on the 11th of November with the 2023 Hot Wheels Legends Tour seeing another marked increase in both entrants and popularity after just four years since the competition was launched in the UK. A true testament to the inherent quality and depth of talent in the UK car scene, finalists from the past two years have both reached the Global Final, with the UK’s Volvo P1800 Gasser, Ain’t No Saint, going on to win overall in 2021. Now, thousands of 1:64 scale models of the wild drag racer are being enjoyed by fans across the world.