The other flame tampographs have also been redesigned, his forehead crest is a more subtle colour to distance itself from the Energon Rodimus homage Hasbro introduced.

His left arm also hides a flip-out "comm unit" that is clearly supposed to be the buzzsaw he used for a brief period in the Movie. In the WWII flashback of The Last Knight, Hot Rod is shown to transform into a Steyr truck, but his robot-mode kibble is from an M8 armored car.While there are still plenty of paint apps on the figure for the additional detailing, the majority of the body's colour comes from the plastic itself which gives Hot Rod a really clean look and finish.

Hot Rod was re-released with his new Nebulan Targetmaster partner Firebolt a year after the original release. It featured no notable changes from the original Generation 1 release of the figure, but it did reinstate the rubber tires and metal feet that were phased out of the original toy's production run. Part of the second wave of Transformers Hero Mashers basic Action Figures, Rodimus is a non-transforming action figure with ratchet-joints, about six inches tall. Mostly infamously, the slot on the trailer into which the spoiler slips is extremely narrow as a consequence of its interior being painted; as a result, paint is invariably scraped off the inside and leaves disfiguring marks on the spoiler when the figure is transformed to Rodimus Prime vehicle mode.As the port is 5mm compatible, Hot Rod can mount with other smaller weapons with the same post size, making him an efficient weapon-towing vehicle. No forced gimmicks, no design deviations based on other versions, just a solid G1-inspired figure that could even rival the Masterpiece when it comes to accuracy. The second Kiss Players set released, Hot Rodimus is a retool and redeco of the Alternators Mirage toy, transforming into a 1:24- scale fully-licensed red Ford GT. Undocumented in the instructions is that the sword's handle can also plug onto the front end of the spoiler. His enhanced articulation includes opening hands that can grasp his Matrix and "butterfly" shoulder joints that aid him in assuming iconic poses from the film.

The set also includes a CD with episodes 11 through 20 of the Kiss Players radio drama and the exclusive 10-minute audio adventure, " Tonight's Big Catch!

Hot Rod can use the Siege Battle Master Firedrive (although you can't attach him on Hot Rod's vehicle engine) if one is okay with simultaneously having two Firedrives. In fact, the only things remaining the same are the chrome exhaust and the color of the rubber tires.