Treasure Hunts are Mattel's short-printed chase cars, hidden in normal cases since 1995 — and the reason grown adults check pegs at 7am.
Regular TH vs Super TH
Regular Treasure Hunt — normal paint and wheels, marked with the low-key circle-flame logo printed on the vehicle and hidden in the card art. Modest premium over retail.
Super Treasure Hunt — the prize: spectraflame paint (candy-metallic over polished metal), Real Riders rubber tyres, usually a metal base, "TH" graphics on the card. Short-printed and genuinely valuable.
The tells, in order of reliability
The logo — circle-flame on the casting (regular) or gold "TH" behind the car on the card (Super).
The paint — spectraflame has visible metal sparkle through candy colour; ordinary metallic paint does not glow the same way.
The wheels — rubber Real Riders on a mainline-carded car is a loud clue.
The base — metal where the normal release is plastic.
Loose cars: harder, still doable
Out of the package, identification hangs on paint, wheels and the base casting text — which is exactly the variant-level detail worth cross-checking against the official release lists, because same-casting lookalikes are everywhere.
Point your camera at it
Vekkle Diecast identifies the casting and exact variant from a photo, flags Treasure Hunts, and shows live collector prices.