Mini-Vehicle

This article is about the Generation 1 small Autobots. For the Hot Wheels-style cars from Revenge of the Fallen, see Mini-Vehicle.

The Mini Vehicles are a subgroup of Transformers from the Generation 1 continuity family.

Messengers with meaning! Whatever that means.

The Mini Vehicles (also known as Mini-Autobots or Minicars) are Transformers of small stature. Size notwithstanding, many had considerable abilities or armaments, the latter usually built-in, as they usually did not carry guns or fit external launchers.

A popular fan-coined term for the Mini Vehicles is Minibots, which is also the Japanese name for the Mini Vehicles. Its use has eclipsed both official terms.

Toys

The Mini Vehicles were small, simple, and inexpensive toys.

In 1984, the Mini Vehicles were originally known as "Minicars". But after that year, non-car toys were added to their subgroup, and so the new, more general term was needed. Mini Vehicles were in production from 1984 to 1986. Many were redecoed or retooled from the earlier Micro Change line. They generally had super deformed proportions in vehicle mode, since in the Microchange backstory they represented robots that became small toy cars. (Specifically, they were meant to look like Choro-Q / Penny Racer cars.)

After 1986, their place as the line's low-end price point was filled by a series of gimmick-based groups, including the Throttlebots, Triggerbots/Triggercons, and Micromaster patrols.

Generation 1

1984

• Bumblebee — Espionage
• Brawn — Demolition
• Cliffjumper — Warrior
• Gears — Transport / Reconnaissance
• Huffer — Construction Engineer
• Windcharger — Warrior

A seventh toy was also available briefly in the early releases of the line. The toy that would eventually become known as "Bumper" did not have its own name or card, but came on either Bumblebee or Cliffjumper cards. How the hell this happened is still a mystery.

The initial run of the "Mini Cars" (as they were called then) were packaged with the toys in their alternate modes, as the rest of the line's toys were. This changed to robot-mode packaging, which the assortment would retain throughout Generation 1. This change was probably made because these smaller but deeper bubbles were more prone to separate from the cards by accident than the later-revised larger robot-mode bubbles.

1985

• Beachcomber — Geologist
• Cosmos — Reconnaissance & Communications
• Powerglide — Aerial Warrior
• Seaspray — Naval Defense
• Warpath — Warrior

The six standard Mini Cars from 1984 were made available again. ("Bumper", of course, was not.) In addition, the Mini Vehicles had bonus Mini Spies attached to the cards for a time.

The vehicle-mode photos on the cardfronts could have either white or gray borders. This packaging variation exists for all 1985-version Mini Vehicles.

1986

• Hubcap — Communications
• Outback — Gunner
• Pipes — Warrior
• Swerve — Metallurgist
• Tailgate — Scout
• Wheelie — Survivalist

The five Mini Vehicles new to 1985 were also re-released in 1986. Bumblebee continued to ship through '86 as well, the only one released in 1984 to do so.

The initial releases of all Mini Vehicles and Special Teams in 1986 were part of a promotional campaign that featured reflective iron-on patches as part of a contest. Later in the year, packages without bonus patches were released.

1985 Brazil

• Camaro
• Carrera
• Jipe
• Pick-Up
• Sedan
• Sedan
• Volks

Generation 2

Four Autobot 'Minibots' were re-released as vacuum-metalized versions for Generation 2.

• Beachcomber — green chrome version of 1985 toy
• Bumblebee — gold chrome version of 1984 toy
• Hubcap — red chrome version of 1986 toy
• Seaspray — violet or blue chrome version of 1985 toy

Keychains

In the early 2000s, four of the original mini-cars were released first by Fun4All and then by Basic Fun with little rings molded on to make them into keychains. These were released blindpacked by Takara in Japan with all-black variants.

• Bumblebee
• Cliffjumper
• Windcharger
• Brawn

Expanded Universe

• Glyph — Archaeometrist
• Tap-Out — Bodyguard

Universe

• Rook — Journalist

Fiction

Generation 1 cartoon

Alright, either one of them's been doing steroids, or one of them shrunk in the washer.

The concept of "Mini Vehicles" was not directly addressed fictionally, but the Mini Vehicle characters were consistently drawn to a smaller scale than other Autobots.

Audiobooks

Cliffjumper identifies himself as a Minicar to Dr. Heath Blaisedale. Sun Raid

Notes

• The first wave of Mini Vehicles were the only Generation 1 toys released in Venezuela by the company Rubiplas.
• Since the Mini Vehicle concept is primarily toy-based with limited acknowledgement in fiction, it isn't possible to say with certainty whether certain fiction-only characters are Mini Vehicles or not. Those characters are:
  • Wipe-Out, Fastback and Rest-Q, whose bodies are based on the Mini Vehicle toys of other characters.
  • Some Tailgate lookalike, who looks like, uh, the Mini Vehicle Tailgate. Unlike the three above, his resemblance is a coincidence.
  • Scrounge, Subsea, Flattop, who are as small as Mini Vehicles and originated in stories that placed them in Mini Vehicle context.
• A team of beings from another universe was altered to match the specifications of several Mini Vehicle Transformers. Whether this actually makes them Mini Vehicles is unclear.
• Transformers Animated features Autobots with the 65356-9292-346 body-type, which is based on the Minicar concept.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Minibot (ミニボット Minibotto)