Lionel NASCAR Collectables released its list of the best-selling die-cast cars of the year, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. holds “three of the top four die-casts this season, with his standard No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew Chevrolet out-selling all the rest,” according to Jeff Gluck of SBNATION.com. The “Dark Knight Rises” car he drove to vicotry lane in Michigan this June also was “eagerly snatched up by Junior Nation.” His race-used die-cast came in at No. 2, and the "standard version of his Michigan car was the No. 4 bestseller.” Lionel NASCAR Collectables VP & GM Howard Hitchcock said, "Dale Jr. is still the most influential personality in the sport, so we weren't surprised to see his Diet Mountain Dew car pop to the top of our bestsellers list. Plus, when Dale won in the ‘Dark Knight Rises’ car at Michigan, it really delivered a knockout punch from a sales perspective." Danica Patrick's No. 10 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet was No. 3 on the list. Gluck wrote Patrick “definitely has a strong fan base” (SBNATION.com, 12/20).
| TOP 10 DIE-CAST CARS OF '12 |
| RANK | DRIVER | CAR |
| 1 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew Chevrolet |
| 2 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew/"The Dark Knight Rises" Chevrolet (Michigan win car) |
| 3 | Danica Patrick | No. 10 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet |
| 4 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew/"The Dark Knight Rises" Chevrolet (standard car) |
| 5 | Jeff Gordon | No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet |
| 6 | Kasey Kahne | No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet |
| 7 | Jeff Gordon | No. 24 AARP/Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet |
| 8 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | No. 3 Goodwrench Chevrolet Monte Carlo |
| 9 | Kevin Harvick | No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet |
| 10 | Brad Keselowski | No. 2 Miller Lite/NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion Dodge |
