Dale Earnhardt played a critical role in helping to solidify the hobby of NASCAR diecast collecting, and many of his cars will likely never be matched for their massive production figures. Still, some of The Intimidator’s diecasts are extremely hard to come by, and August seemed to be a month in which many of the rarer Earnhardt 1/24s came up for sale. This includes the ultimate grail in NASCAR diecast collecting, Earnhardt’s 1998 Brooks & Dunn prototype.

Four of the top-five sales of August belong to Earnhardt, though plenty of sought-after diecasts from other drivers were listed for impressive figures. Highlights include an autographed Chase Elliott 2018 Mountain Dew Baja Blast Elite, a door number of Jeff Gordon’s 2015 Pepsi Chevy 1/24 in Pearl Finish, a Jeff Gordon store exclusive, and three examples of Kyle Larson’s first win from Michigan in 2016. All of these diecasts were sold via best offer. Also in August, a Jeff Gordon Grail, his 2006 Sonoma Raced Win that was offered exclusively to Dupont employees, was offered for $1,249.99 but was de-listed.

Although there is an online resource to view the supposed final sale price of these cars, Diecast Mag is unable to verify the legitimacy of the actual selling price. But there were still plenty of Earnhardt 1/24s that commanded impressive, verifiable figures.  

Two such cars were only offered to GM employees.

Just missing the top-five with a sale price of $710 is the GM employee exclusive Dale Earnhardt 1998 Service Plus Gold 1/24. This version was given to GM employees at its 1998 national sales meeting and limited to just 500 units. A letter shown with diecast, written to a GM employee at the time who apparently could not attend, outlines the car was, “presented as a memento at the meeting…intended to represent the new gold standard of automotive service embodied in the Goodwrench Service Plus process.”

With its exclusive offering and limit of 500 units, a low figure for any car with the Earnhardt name, the Gold version of The Intimidator’s 1998 ride garnered 28 bids. However, that sale still didn’t quite crack the top-five, though another GM employee exclusive diecast from 1998 did.

GM executives met for the company’s leadership conference in May 1998 in Toronto, and attendees were given Action’s Platinum Series “Team Up to Win” Dale Earnhardt/Earnhardt Jr. Chevy Monte Carlo 1/24.

The car, featuring Earnhardt’s No. 3 on one side and Junior’s AC Delco Busch Series scheme on the other, replete with the date and location of the leadership conference on the hood and decklid, was limited to 624 units, and only to GM employees. The hard-to-find dual-Earnhardt commemorative diecast earned 32 bids and sold for $750 on Aug. 22, earning the No. 4 spot for August.

Splitting the two Earnhardt exclusives, and landing at No. 5 for August, is the first 2025 car to earn a spot on the most expensive eBay sales of the month list. An Elite Gold, Raced Win example of Chase Elliott’s 2025 Clash-winning NAPA No. 9, limited to 48 units, sold Aug. 27 for $749.99.

The No. 3 highest sale for August is an autographed example of Earnhardt’s 1996 Atlanta Olympics game one-off scheme run in the 1996 Winston. The Action 1/24, signed by Earnhardt on the roof with authentication from a third-party company, sold for $790 on Aug. 29.

Another signed Earnhardt ride, an Elite version of Earnhardt’s 2000 test car in Brushed Metal finish, commanded an impressive $1,100 Aug. 15 for the No. 2 spot.

At No. 1 for August, and commanding the highest price of any diecast via eBay since Diecast Mag began tracking such sales in June 2024, is the ultimate Earnhardt Grail, his 1998 Brooks & Dunn prototype.

The car, which featured Brooks & Dunn lettering on the roof and hood, plus the band’s “longhorn” logo near the rear wheels, never appeared on track, reportedly due to licensing issues. However, six prototypes of the 1/24 were produced, and these half-dozen cars have remained the most sought-after Earnhardt diecasts for nearly three decades. As such, Earnhardt’s Brooks & Dunn prototype Elite prototype sold for an incredible $4,638.88 Aug. 30 with 14 bids entered.

According to Kelley Blue Book national average values, that $4,639 could buy two actual 1998 Chevy Monte Carlos.

The Brooks and Dunn prototype easily takes the crown for highest eBay diecast sale of 2025, beating out another 1998 prototype, Jeff Gordon 1998 Chromalusian Elite Gold prototype, that sold for $3,000 in May.

Coincidentally, a 1998 Earnhardt car also earns a spot in the top 1/64 sales of August.

A signed, Action 1/64 of Earnhardt’s Bass Pro Shops No. 3, the car that replaced the Brooks & Dunn scheme, sold for $159.50 on Aug. 31, the runner-up for highest 1/64 scale in August. The unopened 1/64 includes Earnhardt’s signature on the packaging.

At No. 3 for August is a unique 1/64 NASCAR offering by Hot Wheels.

According to the listing, Hot Wheels offered Richard Petty’s 1969 Ford Torino Talladega in 2010 under its Vintage Racing Series line. The Hot Wheels version features a lowered suspension, and is missing several sponsors, but this NASCAR/Hot Wheels crossover was likely pursued by both fans of Hot Wheels and The King. A non-packaged version of Petty’s Torino Talladega garnered 11 bids and sold for $152.50 on Aug. 21.

Several other NASCAR rides were featured in Hot Wheels’ Vintage Racing Series, including Petty’s 1971 Plymouth GTX, his 1970 Superbird, Junior Johnson’s 1969 Ford Galaxie and Smokey Yunick’s 1967 Camaro

Of note, in 2006 Wix released a 1/24 version of Petty’s Torino Talladega marking The King’s 100^th career win. In 1999, Racing Champions released a 1/64 of the Torino Talladega as a part of its 5 Decades of Petty line.

Several 1/24 and 1/64 versions of Petty’s ’69 Torino Cobra were produced. In 2008, Lionel/Action released a commemorative Car of Tomorrow with the Torino Cobra scheme. 

Another Red Bull Racing 1/64 takes the top spot for the month. AJ Allmendinger’s 2007 No. 84 Toyota Camry sold Aug. 12, apparently, for $299. The car is shown without a box, and no box is mentioned in the listing. Additionally, another high-priced 1/64, Clint Bowyer’s 2007 DirecTV Chevy, was listed for $299 and was sold via best offer by the same seller of Allmendinger’s ride, bringing some question to the veracity of its sale price. But at least as is shown via eBay, Allmendinger’s 2007 Red Bull did command its eyebrow-raising price.