Over the last few years, collecting has become huge again. Pokémon cards have enjoyed an incredible resurgence, sports cards have attracted a new generation of collectors, and everything from vintage toys and trainers to watches and die-cast cars now has a passionate community behind it. For many people, collecting something they loved when they were younger has become a way of reconnecting with their childhood, while for others it is simply the enjoyment of hunting down something rare, interesting or difficult to find.
It got us thinking about Scalextric cars, because in many ways Scalextric has everything that makes those other collecting hobbies so enjoyable. There are decades of releases to discover, rare and unusual models, different liveries, limited editions, famous cars from motorsport history and, perhaps most importantly, an enormous amount of nostalgia attached to them.
The big difference, of course, is that when you've finished admiring your Scalextric collection, you can actually put the cars on a track and race them.
The boom in Pokémon cards is probably one of the best examples of how a childhood hobby can suddenly become popular with adults again. People who collected Pokémon cards at school are now returning to the hobby years later, sometimes looking for the exact cards they remember owning as children. Once they start searching, they discover different sets, rare cards, promotional releases, graded cards and entire areas of the hobby that they never knew existed.
Sports cards have followed a similar pattern. Collectors might focus on one footballer, basketball player or team, hunt for rookie cards, try to complete a particular set or simply collect cards that mean something personally to them.
Although the values attached to certain cards naturally attract attention, the financial side isn't necessarily what makes collecting enjoyable. Much of the fun is in the hunt. It's searching through listings, visiting shops or fairs, finding something you haven't seen before and eventually tracking down the missing item that completes part of your collection.
That's exactly why we think collecting Scalextric cars can be so addictive.
You might start by buying one car because you owned the same model when you were younger. Then you discover that Scalextric made another version in a different racing livery. That leads you to another car from the same racing series, and before long you've somehow created an entire shelf dedicated to classic touring cars.
Anyone who collects anything will probably recognise how quickly that happens.
One of the best things about Scalextric collecting is that there isn't really a correct way to do it. Scalextric has produced such a huge variety of 1:32 scale slot cars over the years that you can build a collection around almost anything that interests you.
A Formula 1 fan could collect cars from a particular decade or try to build a miniature history of F1. A Porsche enthusiast could concentrate entirely on Porsche 911s. Someone interested in endurance racing could build a collection around Le Mans, while a rally fan could hunt down classic rally cars from different eras.
You could collect Ford racing cars, British Touring Car Championship cars, NASCAR models, GT3 cars, classic sports cars or simply famous motorsport liveries. Some collectors might be interested primarily in vintage Scalextric cars, while others will want the latest highly detailed modern releases.
You don't even need a theme. There is absolutely nothing wrong with buying a Scalextric car simply because you think it looks fantastic.
In some ways, that's part of what makes collecting Scalextric particularly interesting. You're not restricted to collecting Scalextric itself; you're effectively collecting miniature pieces of automotive and motorsport history.
This is where Scalextric has a fairly significant advantage over many traditional collectibles.
If you finally track down a Pokémon card you've wanted for years, you'll probably admire it and then carefully place it into a sleeve, binder or display case. If you find a rare sports card, you'll probably do something similar.
When you find a Scalextric car you've wanted for years, you have another decision to make: do you put it on the track?
A collection of Scalextric cars can be a display collection and something you actively use at the same time. You might have 30, 50 or 100 cars sitting beautifully on shelves, but you can still choose a handful of them, build a circuit and spend an evening racing them.
That creates a very different relationship with the things you're collecting.
You aren't necessarily just looking at a miniature Porsche 911, Ford Escort or Formula 1 car. You can watch it racing against another car from the same era, recreate famous motorsport battles or simply find out which one is quickest around your own circuit.
For us, that's a huge part of the appeal of the hobby. If you're weighing up digital vs analogue Scalextric, the ability to race a whole grid of collected cars on a single circuit is one of the strongest arguments for going digital.
Nostalgia is also one of Scalextric's biggest strengths as a collectible.
For generations of people across the UK, Scalextric was part of childhood. Mention the name and you'll often immediately hear stories about Christmas mornings, enormous tracks taking over the living room, racing against brothers and sisters, or cars repeatedly flying off the circuit because someone refused to lift off the throttle for a corner.
What's particularly interesting is how clearly people remember the cars.
Someone might not remember exactly which Scalextric set they owned, but they'll remember that they had a red Ferrari, a Ford Escort, a Mini or a particular Formula 1 car. Finding that same car again 20 or 30 years later can bring those memories straight back.
And that's often how a collection begins.
You search online for the car you remember having as a child. While looking for it, you discover another version. Then you realise there were several different liveries. Then you find the matching car from the original Scalextric set.
Before long, you're no longer looking for one childhood Scalextric car. You're building a collection.
It's very similar to what has happened with Pokémon cards, retro video games and countless other hobbies. The children who originally enjoyed them grow up, but their affection for them doesn't necessarily disappear. It's the same nostalgia we see in our piece on why Scalextric still beats Xbox and smartphones — the memories made around a track simply don't fade.
We see this nostalgia first-hand through Adam's Scalextric Events.
One of the things we notice when providing Scalextric hire for corporate events, exhibitions, trade shows, weddings and private events is how many people immediately have a story to tell as soon as they see the track.
Someone will walk past, notice the cars and say, "I haven't played Scalextric for years." Five minutes later they're holding a controller, racing their colleagues and talking about the Scalextric set they had when they were eight.
For some people, one of our tracks is their first proper introduction to Scalextric. For others, it's a gateway back into Scalextric after 10, 20 or even 30 years away from the hobby.
Modern digital Scalextric can also be quite different from what people remember. Digital racing allows multiple cars to share the circuit and change lanes, while wireless controllers and modern race features create a much more involved racing experience. Someone whose last memory of Scalextric is two cars going around a simple track on the living-room carpet can be surprised by how much the hobby has developed. We've written more about this in our behind-the-scenes look at why we chose digital Scalextric for our events.
That's one reason Scalextric hire works so well as event entertainment. You don't need to know anything about slot-car racing to have a go, but there's also enough depth behind it that people naturally become interested in the cars, the technology and the wider hobby.
We regularly find that the racing starts the conversation. Someone wants to set the fastest lap or beat their colleague, but then they begin looking at the cars more closely. They ask what scale they are, whether you can buy a particular car, how digital Scalextric works or whether their old Scalextric cars would still work.
You can almost see the thought process beginning: maybe I should get a Scalextric set again.
That's why we think a Scalextric hire experience can be a genuine gateway into the hobby rather than simply something to do for five minutes at an event. You can see the kind of setups we bring to events in our portfolio of past events.
Another major attraction for collectors is Scalextric's connection to real racing.
Rather than collecting completely fictional designs, you can build a collection containing miniature versions of cars that actually competed in some of the world's most famous races and championships. That could include Formula 1 cars, Le Mans prototypes, GT racers, touring cars, rally cars and countless classic racing machines.
It means a Scalextric collection can become a miniature representation of the motorsport you personally love.
A Le Mans enthusiast could collect winning cars from different decades. A Formula 1 fan could create a timeline of F1 machinery. Someone who loves classic touring cars could build a grid of Ford Escorts, Minis and other famous racers.
You could even collect cars associated with one driver, manufacturer, racing team or iconic livery.
This gives the hobby a depth that goes beyond simply collecting slot cars. You're also learning about the real cars, races and stories behind the models.
Naturally, once people start talking about collecting something, the question of value isn't far behind.
Some old Scalextric cars are highly collectable, particularly unusual releases, desirable racing liveries, promotional models, limited editions and older cars that have survived in excellent condition with their original packaging.
As with most collectibles, condition and rarity can make a significant difference. A common car that has been heavily raced and is missing parts is obviously a very different proposition from a difficult-to-find model still sitting in its original box.
However, we'd be cautious about approaching Scalextric purely as an investment.
The recent boom in Pokémon and sports cards has shown what can happen when speculation becomes a major part of a collecting hobby. Prices can rise rapidly, but that isn't necessarily what makes collecting enjoyable in the first place.
We think there's a much simpler rule for collecting Scalextric cars: buy the cars you actually like.
If you love classic Ford racing cars, collect them. If you've always wanted a Gulf-liveried Porsche, find one. If you remember a particular Scalextric car from childhood, hunt it down.
If one of those cars becomes particularly valuable in the future, that's a bonus. In the meantime, you've owned something that you genuinely enjoy. If you're just starting out, our guide to the best Scalextric deals available right now is a sensible place to begin without overspending.
There will always be a debate amongst collectors about whether collectible Scalextric cars should stay in their boxes.
For genuinely rare or pristine vintage examples, keeping them boxed might make perfect sense. Some collectors get just as much enjoyment from displaying immaculate boxed cars as others get from racing them.
But Scalextric cars were also designed to move.
There's something particularly enjoyable about taking two beautifully detailed miniature racing cars and actually watching them battle around a circuit. A few marks and battle scars can become part of the car's story rather than something to worry about.
You can also have both types of collection. Keep your rare cars safely displayed and have another group of cars specifically for racing.
There are no rules saying every Scalextric collector has to enjoy the hobby in exactly the same way.
Trading-card collectors will know the satisfaction of finally finding the last card needed to complete a set. Scalextric can offer exactly the same experience, except the completed collection can potentially become a complete racing grid.
Imagine deciding to collect the cars from a particular era of Le Mans and slowly tracking them down. Or trying to find every Scalextric version of a particular Porsche. Perhaps you want every car from a specific racing championship or every version of a famous motorsport livery.
You might spend months checking listings, browsing model shops and keeping an eye on new Scalextric releases before finally finding the missing car.
Then, instead of putting your completed collection into a binder, you can line the cars up on a miniature starting grid.
For a motorsport fan, it's difficult to think of many collecting hobbies that combine collecting, nostalgia, modelling and actual competition quite as effectively.
We'd love to see it happen.
Pokémon cards have demonstrated that something millions of people enjoyed as children can develop into an enormous adult collecting community. Sports cards have shown how a passion for sport can combine naturally with collecting.
Scalextric sits somewhere between several different worlds. It appeals to motorsport fans, model collectors, car enthusiasts, slot-car racers and people simply looking to rediscover something from their childhood.
Perhaps most importantly, there are decades of Scalextric cars already out there waiting to be discovered.
For someone completely new to the hobby, seeing a large digital Scalextric track at an exhibition or corporate event might be the first step. For somebody who raced Scalextric as a child, having a go at one of our events might be the reminder they needed to start looking at it again.
One race becomes a Google search. That search becomes one car. One car becomes five.
Then suddenly you need another shelf.
If you've been thinking about collecting Scalextric cars, our advice would be to start with something that means something to you rather than worrying about what's rare or potentially valuable.
Find the car you remember racing as a child. Look for a miniature version of your favourite real car. Choose a manufacturer you love or start building a collection around Formula 1, Le Mans, rallying, touring cars or another area of motorsport.
Part of the enjoyment is discovering just how much is out there.
Pokémon collectors have their Charizards and sports-card collectors have their rookie cards. Scalextric collectors have decades of automotive and motorsport history recreated in miniature.
The difference is that ours don't have to stay in a binder.
We can race them.
At Adam's Scalextric Events, we provide Scalextric hire for exhibitions, corporate events, trade shows, brand activations, weddings and private events across the UK.
The competitive side is what often attracts people initially. Everyone wants to beat their friends, colleagues or customers and get their name at the top of the fastest-lap leaderboard. But one of our favourite parts of running the events is seeing people rediscover the wider Scalextric hobby at the same time.
For some guests, it's their first experience of Scalextric. For others, it's the first time they've held a Scalextric controller since they were a child.
Either way, it gives people a glimpse into a hobby that goes far beyond the track in front of them. There are thousands of cars to discover, tracks to build, collections to create and decades of motorsport history to explore.
So perhaps your next Scalextric race won't just be about setting the fastest lap.
It might be the start of your collection.
We'd love to hear from other Scalextric collectors and racers. How many Scalextric cars do you currently own? Which car is your favourite, which is the rarest in your collection, and what's the one model you've been trying to find for years?
Whether you own three cars or three hundred, that's part of what makes the Scalextric community interesting. Everyone has a different collection, a different favourite era and usually a story behind at least one of their cars.
Because Scalextric isn't only about what happens on the track. Building the collection can be just as much fun as racing it.
From exhibitions to weddings, a Scalextric track gets everyone racing — and for many guests, it's the start of a new collection. We deliver fully managed experiences across the UK.
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