Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage Playset Review

Editor's rating:
8.0
Reviewed by Bobby Brower
User's rating:
4.6
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5
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We like

  • Hours of enjoyment and imagination building
  • Real working elevator that brings your cars to every level
  • Dual racing track allows for racing competitions
  • Private jet transports cars and has its own landing pad
  • A gorilla tries to knock your cars to the ground
  • The losing car in the race is flipped off the track
We don’t like
  • Elevator can easily become stuck
  • The gorilla may malfunction if set is not together properly

How it works

The Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage Playset is the biggest Hot Wheels playset yet. At about 3 feet tall and 4 feet wide, the Super Ultimate Garage has the capability to house the largest collection of Hot Wheels cars. The garage can store up to 140 cars or more. The set also comes with a spiral track, a corkscrew car elevator that has a gorilla attached, a private jet that can carry cars in its hull, and a variety of other stations that are found throughout the set. The racetrack is a dual-track where kids can race their cars from the penthouse section of the set down to the bottom where the end of the track has the capability to flip cars off of the road. The Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage Playset will entertain your children for hours and give them several opportunities to create stories and use their imaginations.

Design

Design

The Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage has an extensive design that offers a lot of imagination to kids who are playing with the set. From top to bottom, there are a plethora of stories that can be created and told with the Hot Wheels cars. From the top, there is a penthouse that offers a rotating garage where cars can be fixed and worked on for future racing. There is also a car wash located on the set where cars can then be washed after being fixed. The penthouse level also contains a landing pad for a private jet that can transport some of your Hot Wheels cars.

On the lower level of the set, there is a gas station and a jail. The jail is utilized when cars that have been caught drag racing by a Hot Wheels police car are impounded. But be aware, anyone can break out of the jail at any time. The rest of the structure contains parking spots for over 140 Hot Wheels cars, and there is a spiral, corkscrew motorized elevator that carries cars from the bottom to the top. There is a gorilla that is attached to the elevator that back and forth trying to knock the cars out of the elevator and onto the ground in an attempt to thwart drag racers. The set also comes with a set of stickers that are to be placed in specific spots throughout the set.
Safety

Safety

As with all toys with small parts, there is always a choking hazard and children under the age of three should not play with this set. When the box is opened, the parts all come in small plastic bags which can cause a choking hazard. Do not leave your child unattended when assembling the set. Adult supervision is always recommended for children under five-years-old as the set is designed for kids five years and up. The playset; however, can be enjoyed by kids and adults.

The massive size of the set makes it easy for anyone to stand or sit next to the structure and move and play with the cars as they are driven throughout the various areas of the set. The parts that make up the garage are of a durable plastic that can withstand the constant rolling of the cars and the crashing of cars all through the garage.

The gorilla is also made of durable materials that allow it to swing and come in contact with the cars, and the private jet has a landing pad where the jet can be clicked in to prevent it from falling off the garage. The garage and its accompanying parts are all stable and safe to use.
Assembly

Assembly

The Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage Playset is one of Hot Wheels’ most massive sets, which means it comes with a high number of parts. When all the parts are taken out of the box, they are grouped together and individually wrapped in their own little plastic bags. Many parents have found that the parts click together quickly (there is no need for a screwdriver or other tools to put the set together), and it shouldn’t take more than 30 minutes to put the entire thing together.

The instruction manual that comes with the set is a set of pictures that show you how to put the set together. There are no other explanations so paying close attention is essential; however, it shouldn’t take that long to assemble the product. Besides the usual pieces of the elevator, tracks, garage, gorilla, plane, and other areas of the set that are assembled, there is also a set of stickers that come with the set. These stickers have specific places they need to be placed on the set like in parking spaces. The stickers are self-explanatory as to where they need to be placed. Some parents have even had their children help them in the building of the set because it’s that easy.
Hot Wheels Cars

Hot Wheels Cars

The Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage comes with four Hot Wheels cars. It has been found that the cars that come with the set are ideal in size for racing down the track, moving around the set, and especially for the elevator. Cars of a different size may get caught in the elevator causing it to get stuck. One of the problems that many consumers have been having with the Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage is that the elevator gets stuck quite often. The first complaint was that the motor of the elevator is extremely loud, so while your kids are playing with the set, the loud sound of the hum of the motor can be heard throughout.

What’s more, the elevator will get stuck because the cars shift while they are in the corkscrew preventing the screw from being able to freely turn and that causes a huge clicking and jamming sound that is louder than the motor. Because it has been found that the elevator gets stuck more often than not, many parents have encouraged their kids to not use the elevator or make sure they are using the proper-sized cars while playing. Because the garage can house up to and over 140 Hot Wheels cars, Hot Wheels cars of any generation or from any other set can fit in the parking spaces, the track, and around the set. You just need to be careful with the elevator as that is where the most problems occur.
Gorilla

Gorilla

One of the unique features of the Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage is the gorilla that climbs up the parking garage. The plastic gorilla is clicked into the side of the elevator and as the corkscrew elevator turns, the gorilla begins to climb up the side and swing his arm back and forth in an attempt to knock cars out of the elevator and down to the ground below. As the cars get higher so does the gorilla. Once the gorilla gets to the top of the garage he will slide down the side back to the bottom and start his climb all over again as new cars find their way into the elevator.

When assembling the elevator, make sure the top of the piece is firmly secure. The littlest gap in pieces can cause the gorilla to get stuck and not return back down to the bottom to climb back up. The gorilla runs on the same mechanism that turns the corkscrew of the garage, so when the elevator gets stuck so does the gorilla.
Connection To Other Sets

Connection To Other Sets

One side of the Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage is equipped with snaps that allow other Hot Wheels sets to be connected to the Super Ultimate Garage. With that, kids have the opportunity to expand their imaginations. The biggest asset of the Super Ultimate Garage is its ability to let kids create stories and situations for their Hot Wheels cars. Not only do kids get to create a movie-like scenario of car chases, car flips, and oversized gorillas trying to destroy everything, but they get to add cars to the set, which also has the capability to store all of the cars in one spot.

The hours of imagination and creativity is endless. The hours of constant enjoyment is the most important as this will keep your children occupied while also allowing them to expand their minds. By making the cars the main attractions in their stories, they are able to see the world and be imaginative in a way that is far different than playing with figures or video games.
Racing Competition

Racing Competition

The most fun feature of the Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage Playset is the racing track. Three feet high and spiraling down the length of the set, two cars can race each other at the same time and the losing car gets flipped off of the track. Racing starts at the top of the track behind two barriers, but once the barriers are dropped, racing commences. Cars can be airlifted to the top of the garage via the jet where the cars can then roll out of the jet and up to the barriers, or the cars can get to the top of the garage via the elevator as long as the gorilla doesn’t knock the cars out of the elevator and back to the ground below. Kids can have endless hours of racing the cars down the track, and when other sets are attached to the garage, there are more racing possibilities.
Storage

Storage

Due to the massiveness of the Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage, it is quite hard to store it anywhere except where you build it. Before putting the set together, ensure that it’s going to be in the place where it is going to live. Although the set is extremely light and your own child can move it with ease, keep it in one place to ensure it doesn’t break or come apart. Once in its place, it becomes a storage unit of its own. All of your child’s Hot Wheels cars can fit into the garage, and everything can be in one place. Because the set will be in what could be its permanent place, the Hot Wheels cars won’t leave that space and the potential mess that could be dozens and dozens of small cars all over your house will now be contained to one area of one room.
Price

Price

The Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage Playset is at the higher price range. Some parents have found the price too steep because of the possible malfunctions of the elevator and gorilla. Other parents have found the price too steep because of the noise the motor makes when it is turned on. For the size of the unit, the number of parts it contains, the four cars and a plane that comes with it makes the price is just about reasonable. The imagination and creativity that come from having a set like this also makes the price somewhat reasonable.

Conclusion

The Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage Playset is a great toy for exercising the imagination and fostering creativity. The endless storytelling possibilities will have your child creating and entertaining themselves for hours. With the ability to race, avoid the gorilla, and use the private jet, kids will find themselves never running out of fun. Although it does have its glitches and it does make a lot of noise, the toy itself is worth having as it also doubles as a storage unit for all of your Hot Wheels. The size and intricacies of this set make it a great buy for your toy car lover.
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