Modelo : McLaren M6a

        The McLaren M6A has been a suspected CIPSA casting for many years.The evidence to support the existence of a CIPSA McLaren M6A was
        primarily a photograph of single scrap of paper of unknown origin, in the collection of my friend, the "Mad Hunter". The scrap is a two
        inch square that provides Spanish language instructions on how to apply striped stickers to Hot Wheels cars. The illustration of a car on the
        paper is clearly the McLaren M6A. In the absence of further evidence, it was presumed that the McLaren M6A was probably made by CIPSA.



                          Mad Hunter's McLaren Scrap

        The origin of the paper was recently discovered. At the 2018 Hot Wheels Convention in LA, I purchased several accessories in sealed
        boxes and an open boxed tracked set. One of the accessories is the 1971 release of the "Correcaminos Doble" or the Dual Lane Rod Runner.



                        Instruction Sheet for the "Correcaminos Doble"

        When I opened the box of the "Correcaminos Doble" to inspect the contents. I found that the instruction sheet was stapled together with
        some additional papers including the decorative stickers for the Rod Runner, a QC inspection report and a sheet of adhesive racing
        stripes stickers. The top half of the racing stripe sticker sheet features a drawing that is clearly the McLaren M6A and it is identical
        to the one in Mad Hunter's collection. Therefore, it is confirmed that the McLaren M6A sticker sheet is contemporary with the 1971
        issued cars, track sets and accessories.



                        The Two Racing Stripe Sticker Sheets

        Interestingly, the sticker sheet does not name the car in the image. The legal language at the bottom of the sheet makes no mention of
        the McLaren M6A. International licensing agreements of the time would have required CIPSA to specify the trademark information. It is
        reasonable to conclude that the stock image was provided by Mattel and used by CIPSA as an example for placement of the stickers but
        the car in the example was not identified to avoid additional licensing fees.



                        The English and Spanish Language Racing Stripe Sticker Sheets

        The origin of the sticker sheet was finally confirmed when an English language equivalent was found in association with a Super
        Charger which revealed the intended purpose of the adhesive strips. The McLaren M6A, the Chaparral and others castings have a rear
        opening hatch. When passing through a Super Charger, the impulse force would cause the hatch to open and the car to crash. The
        strips are provided to keep the hatch closed when used with a Super Charger. CIPSA provided the strips to prevent the rear opening
        hatches when used with a Rod Runner. On the CIPSA version, the image of the Mc Laren is clearly "redrawn" and the copyright date is
        changed to 1971, which is consistent with the catalog release date of the Rod Runner track sets and accessories.




                        Correcaminos Circuito Doble Set

        Further evidence came from the track set that I purchased, a nearly complete example of the "Correcaminos Circuito Doble" known domestically
        as the "Dual Lane Rod Runner Race Set". The set included the instruction sheet but the stickers were already applied to the Rod Runner and
        no additional papers were found in the box.






                        Licensing Agreement Trademark Declarations

        However, the relevant aspect of this set is found in the legal language section on the back of the box. Here CIPSA lists the cars that are
        trademarked by Mattel. It is reasonable to assume that these six castings are the models that CIPSA was licensed to produce. The McLaren
        is contemporary with these castings, however it is not found in the list of trademarked castings.

        Based on the evidence, I believe that CIPSA did not have a license to produce the McLaren M6A.
        Therefore, it is my opinion that the CIPSA McLaren M6A does not exist.








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