Pokémon became one of the biggest franchises in entertainment history. Experiencing a huge boom in the nineties and still going strong in the first years of the new century. Its influence has been so great that it even reached the automotive industry. You can see that perfectly with the “Pikabug“and New Beetle completely transformed to resemble the franchise’s most iconic character, Pikachu.
One of the main points for Pokémon was the release of the Pokémon Red, Blue and Yellow for the famous Gameboy. This prompted Nintendo to look for an effective way to advertise its new game and keep the presence of the cartoon strong. For this reason, Nintendo approved the purchase 10 new beetles in the United States, which was made in Mexico and would later be used to travel across the United States doing such advertising work.
The 10 beetles were bought in Washington and later they were sent to the state of Missouri where a private company was responsible for customizing them to look how they do. Paint added “Yellow Thunder”, brown stripes, red cheeks, black contrasts around the headlights as if they were eyes and he was given wooden ears.
Pikachu’s tail was made of foam, but due to lack of durability, they were also changed to a wooden one. In addition, some decals were added and in the trunk you would find a Nintendo 64 and TV so that those who had the opportunity to attend an event with one of these cars present could play the console versions of the latest Pokémon games.
Once the advertising campaign was over, the 10 beetles had different adventures, some losing their customization and others simply changing owners frequently.
In the case of this “Pikabug”, it was purchased by a US citizen for $10,000 and who undertook to repair some damage as well as verify that this was one of the original 10 beetles from that advertising campaign.
As time passed, he started receiving offers from third parties. Until they decided to put it up for auction, where they calculated that it was worth up to $250,000 or about $4.2 million pesos. However, a mechanical problem and damage it received when it was transported to the place that would handle the auction ended up giving the owner a bad experience.
Because of the above, he decided to sell it on his own, probably not asking for the $250,000 estimated by the auction house, but $125,000 dollar which would be equal to approx $2.1 million in Mexican pesos.
It might be too much of a price for a Beetle, even for the simple modifications. But at the end of the day, his history and the value fans place on the franchise means he can easily be around those numbers. Let’s remember that at times, original Pokémon cards have sold for more than $5 million dollars.
With information from | The Drive
2024-05-09 17:05:17
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