Craig Freeman will bring his 2016 Ford Ranger Hot Wheels truck to the 2022 Bathurst 1000

Three years ago, Craig Freeman set out on a journey that would see the transformation of his 2016 Ford Ranger into the "best car in the country" - a real-life Hot Wheels truck.

With a goal to be on the front cover of a magazine, the resident of Victoria Point, Queensland modified the car - ahead of its Hot Wheels transformation - in the hopes his dreams may be fulfilled, but unfortunately fell short.

"I originally built the car to get it on the front cover of a magazine. The big dream is a magazine, it's been the dream since I was 18 years old," Mr Freeman said.

"I spent a bit more time on this car and got to a point where everyone on social media was saying 'wow, this is amazing', so I approached magazines. I built it the way I wanted to get it in a magazine but I couldn't spend the money that I needed to make the cut.

"I'd had enough and thought 'oh well, that's the end; my dreams are going to be smashed now'."

A bump in the road to achieving his dream led Mr Freeman to an unexpected conversation with his children - Amelia, 7, and Hayden, 11 - who sparked the idea behind a build that people of all ages would love.

"I was just sitting in the lounge room with my kids and I said 'what could daddy do to his car to make it the best in the country?'. My little daughter, who was six at the time, jumped up with this little toy car in her hand and went 'Hot Wheels truck!'," Mr Freeman explained.

"I've looked at her and said 'are you sure?'. My son said 'yeah, it'll be awesome!'. They persisted to hound me for days and days."

After six weeks of time and persistence from his kids, Mr Freeman finally got to work and began making Hot Wheels-inspired modifications to his truck.

"I got little stickers on the back because I thought it was about time I did something with it. Driving it home, I literally got mauled by kids and my kids hadn't even seen it," he laughed.

"My kids thought it was awesome when they saw it, so I started to do bits and pieces. I put an 8K TV in the boot with a PlayStation so you can play Hot Wheels online in the car.

"I put the classic yellow/orange/red flames on it because every Hot Wheels car has got to have flames.

"If I go down the shops to get milk, which is like five minutes from my house, it takes me nearly two hours because the mums and dads and kids want photos with the car."

After missing rally champion Molly Taylor and motor racing presenter Greg Rust at the Hot Wheels Legends event in February, Mr Freeman discovered the pair would be at the Bathurst 1000 this year - "the only time in the year they're together, so I thought I'd go".

Flooded with adrenaline, he bought tickets to the annual event before he realised his wife's birthday was at the same time as he had planned to be 12 hours away in Bathurst.

"I bought the tickets and then realised, 'oh dear, the sixth of October is my wife's 40th birthday'. I am like 'oh God, how do I approach her and tell her?'," Mr Freeman said.

"It took me a couple of days to tell her, but she was okay with it. Everyone else tells me I'm mad, but she's letting me go so I can try and fulfil my dream."

Ahead of his cruise into Bathurst about 9am on October 4, Mr Freeman promised his attendance will be a crowd-pleaser.

"It is [the Hot Wheels truck] absolutely going to turn heads, just driving down there ... I've got to go wash it and then I'm going to go down William Street. It's going to turn some heads," he said.

"I'm extremely excited. I don't really get too nervous about stuff, I get more excited, and I know I've tried, I think I'm on the right track."

Mr Freeman and his Hot Wheels truck will be set up at the Mount Panorama Max Cameron B campground until October 10.

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