Cancer has taken another legend from the automotive community. Ryu Asada, who has designed cars for both Hot Wheels and Matchbox, has died at the age of 42 of colorectal cancer.
The announcement came via Asada’s Instagram. He had been battling stage IV colorectal cancer for almost five years, undergoing various treatments while maintaining miniature design equipment. He died on March 23, 2021 with his longtime partner, Hazel Diaz Asada, by his side.
Asada was born and raised in Japan and later moved to the United States to pursue higher education. He graduated from ArtCenter College of Design in 2004, at which time he immediately began working at Mattel as a Matchbox vehicle designer. There, he estimated that he had created more than 150 different miniature designs.
He moved to the Hot Wheels team as a guest designer, his first design being the Gearonimo in 2009. He joined the Hot Wheels team full time, where he was estimated to have created from 20 to 30 models 1:64 a year. He took control of the $ 1 lineup in 2012. You can find a full list of his designs here.
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But some of his bright design stars have been the cars of his native Japan. Asada helped fuel JDM’s fashion through her passion for her designs. Since then, people have fallen for their Honda S2000 NSX designs, their FC Mazda RX-7 and their Lancia Delta Integrale HF.
Two of Asada’s latest designs have been part of the J-Imports mini collection, which included several different Japanese classics. He was responsible for the 1970 Honda N600 and the 1999 Honda Civic Type-R.
Miniature collectors around the world have been sharing kind messages about Asada, a man many of whom were deeply respected.
Asada’s loved ones are our thoughts right now. Cancer sucks.