Colorful Wheels: Rims of 1/64 Scale

As far back as the early 90's and likely before then, Nascar diecast cars have been produced by a variety of companies and each one has certainly tried their hand at creating the most accurate (& cost effective) models as possible. Cars have worn different colored rims for years, and capturing that detail can make or break the way a replica reflects the real life version of the car they were made in the image of. Recent samples shown on social media proves this is an ongoing effort, for more, read on...

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Lionel Racing has, for years, beautifully replicated the various colors of rims that we've seen across the Cup series. Some colors naturally look better than others. The brighter the color, the harder it typically is to keep the diecast from looking too 'toy-like.'

Below are just a few examples of models that do both. The BK Racing 83 driven in 2016 by Matt DiBenidetto, and the CGR Chevy driven by Kyle Larson in the same season have blue rims, and white rims respectively. The blue rims look very subtle, and more realistic mostly because their dark color isn't too far off from the usual black that most cars used. The white rims on Larson's car, while bright white, also weren't overly painted, so the natural pattern of the rim, and even the illusion of open spaces on the areas around the axel are apparent. Both of these cars avoid the 'toy-like' appearance.

But the bottom two cars, an MWR Toyota once driven in 2013 by Martin Truex Jr., and the Alliance Truck Parts Fusion from the 2014 season that Brad Keselowski drove, both seem to have had their rim detailing applied too thick, so they don't look as convincing compared to the other two. 

These are older 1/64s, some from nearly a decade ago, but here, in 2025, Lionel still seems to have some issues. In 2022 Nascar brought a brand new race car to the Cup series. So, as is always the case when a new model arrives on track, Lionel had to invest (probably a significant amount of money) in three new toolings, or castings for each of the three OEMs in the cup series. Since then, both the Ford Mustang, and the Toyota Camry have undergone body style upgrades. But the wheels for the Gen 7 car have remained unchanged. The four cars shown below were produced between the 2022 and the 2024 seasons. They also represent each of Lionel's three main lines of 1/64s, the Gold Line, the Authentics Line, and the Winner's Circle line.

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By taking a look at the photo above, you can see that Lionel has used roughly three different styles of gray/silver, and unsurprisingly on the Authentics line, black. Different lines get different treatment, but the gray/silver used on the Alex Bowman 48 Chevy seems to be the best looking and most realistic. Also, the realism Lionel attempts to replicate in their 1/64 line of Winner Circle cars means that hyper-realistic wheels are also made available and can be seen on Denny Hamlin's number 11 raced Camry. So, it's clear to me that Lionel could​ get every rim close to perfect, but why don't they?

​It seems like different teams have different requirements when they license their cars to Lionel. For example, Team Penske appears to require that all Team Penske Fords have shiny chrome-like rims. This is apparent on both the 1/24 scale, and 1/64 scale cars. But rarely if ever do the real Team Penske Fords use chrome rims, so I'm not sure why this continues to happen because it kills the realism of the rest of the model.

​There's also the issue of different price points. Less expensive cars get fewer details, which is understandable to a degree. But when every car is no less than five dollars, and no more than twelve or so (fourteen at the haulers and the shops sometimes!), can't we make a few compromises elsewhere? 

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A few weeks ago on social media, Lionel teased this photo of a 1/24 and 1/64 sample of Corey Lajoie's Rick Ware Racing Mustang that he infamously qualified for the 2025 Daytona 500 by stating he'd used money from his child's college fund in order to get the car entered into the race. Anyone paying attention knows that Rick Ware has his Mustangs running golden rims at all times, the only team to really have a different color other than the standard gray/silver. Now, these are just the samples, but I think you can draw your own conclusions. 

If you're still not quite sure about any discrepancies, take a look a the real version in the photo below. Hopefully Lionel will think critically about how to make that 1/24 scale diecast car look a little less like a Tonka truck. The 1/64 which I'm more interested in looks a bit better, but still slightly concerning. It still remains to be seen if both the 1/24 scale and 1/64 scale versions of this car get produced, but it will be interesting to see what comes of these new rims, and how they may set the bar either higher or lower for Lionel in the future. 

The real thing: Corey LaJoie, driver of the #01 Take 5 Oil Change/DuraMax Ford poses on track during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500. (Photo courtesy of Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images, Jayski.com)

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Conclusion:
Rims in 1/64 scale play a pretty vital role in making a model look realistic. The quality and the detail of the rims can truly impact the value of the car, and the story that car itself can tell. The realism of the diecast plays a role in capturing that story. It will be interesting to see where Lionel Racing goes from here with this brand new rim color for the Gen 7 cars. 

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Sources:
-Jayski.com
-Lionelracing.com
-Nascar.com
-racing-reference.info