In the early 1960's Leon Hess, founder of Hess Corporation, wanted to provide a high quality, affordable toy for
families during the holiday season. The first Hess Toy Truck was introduced in 1964 and, with a retail price of
$1.29 including batteries, was a great value that became an instant success. Every model features working
lights, the highest quality durability and craftsmanship, and unique and innovative designs. Because of these
amazing subtleties and original features, the Hess Toy Truck grew to be an exciting holiday tradition and a
collector's item for boys and girls of all ages, spanning generations. Here is a retrospective look at the Hess
Toy Truck models over the past fifty years.
1964-65 Hess Tanker Trailer
The first HESS Toy Truck, the HESS
TANKER TRAILER, is an authentically
styled miniature of the original Hess
tanker trailer. The truck is painted in the
company’s original colors and trimmed
with bright red accents.
1966 Hess Tanker Ship, The Hess Voyager
The HESS TANKER SHIP is
an exact replica of the HESS
VOYAGER ship that was built
in 1962. The HESS VOYAGER
has become one of the most
popular pieces in the HESS
toy collection.
1967 Hess Tanker Truck
The 1967 HESS TANKER
TRUCK, an 18-wheel fuel tanker,
is also known as “The Red
Velvet Box” tanker for its
unique red velvet-lined box.
1968-69 Hess Tanker Truck
1968 and 1969 brought back
the HESS TANKER TRUCK.
The difference is that the
“Red Velvet Box” was
replaced with a white bottom
box.
1970-71 Hess Toy Fire Truck
The 1970-71 HESS FIRE
TRUCK is a replica of a fire
engine once used at the
company’s Port Reading
Refinery. This brilliant red
truck is still considered one
of the best models.
1972-1974 Hess Tanker Truck
In 1972 and 1974, the
1968 HESS TANKER
TRUCK returned, with
subtle differences in the
detail of the trailer feet.
1975 Hess Box Trailer
The 1975 model, a newly
designed HESS BOX
TRAILER was the second toy
to come with accessories, a
set of three miniature oil
barrels.
1976 Hess Box Trailer
The 1976 truck is the same
as the 1975 HESS BOX
TRAILER, except the three
miniature oil barrels bear
the HESS logo.
1977 Hess Fuel Oil Tanker
The 1977 HESS FUEL OIL TANKER
has a modernized cab with a chrome
grill and headlight accents, and for the
first time the company’s name is
marked on the tires.
1978 Hess Fuel Oil Tanker
The distinguishing feature on
the 1978 version of the HESS
FUEL OIL TANKER is a wider
and bolder HESS logo on the
back.
1980 Hess Training Van
The 1980 HESS TRAINING VAN is a
bold departure from previous
designs. Representing an actual
Hess vehicle, this toy has been
referred to as a “work of art in
miniature" and is one of the most
popular Hess Toy Truck models.
1982-83 First Hess Truck
The “FIRST HESS TRUCK,”
considered one of the finest Hess
Toy Truck models, is a replica of
the second-hand truck founder
Leon Hess drove delivering fuel oil
to customers in 1933.
1984 Hess Fuel Oil Tanker with Bank
The HESS FUEL OIL TANKER
WITH BANK is the same
design as the 1977 tanker,
made into a bank, with a coin
slot on the rear of the tanker.
1985 Hess Truck Bank
The 1982-1983 “FIRST HESS
TRUCK" was brought back in
1985, converted into a bank.
1986 Hess Fire Truck Bank
The vivid red HESS FIRE
TRUCK BANK has
outstanding detailing,
featuring a three section
extendable aerial ladder that
completely swivels.
1987 Hess 18-Wheeler Bank
The HESS 18-WHEELER
BANK model started the
tradition of the HESS Toy
Truck being detailed in
white and green.
1988 Hess Toy Truck and Racer
The 1988 HESS TOY TRUCK
AND RACER features, for the
first time, two toys in one. This
also marks the first time the
model year was added to the
license plate.
1989 Hess Fire Truck Bank
The 1989 HESS FIRE TRUCK
BANK, a white and green
version of the 1986 toy truck,
included a new and exciting
feature: a unique dual sound
siren.
1990 Hess Tanker Truck
The 1990 HESS TANKER
TRUCK truly glows in the
dark with internally
illuminated lights. Its
realistic sounding horn and
backup alerts are a first for
Hess tanker trucks.
1991 Hess Truck and Racer
The HESS TRUCK AND
RACER, though similar
to the 1988 model,
featured a restyled racer
and truck.
1992 Hess 18-Wheeler and Racer
The HESS 18-WHEELER AND RACER
features a tractor trailer truck with
loading ramp transporting a frictionpowered race car, with several
illuminated HESS logos.
1993 Hess Patrol Car
In 1993, the company featured a
car for the very first time. The
HESS PATROL CAR incorporates
an advanced lighting system for its
emergency flashers and flashing
headlights, along with internally
illuminated Hess logos.
1994 Hess Rescue Truck
The HESS RESCUE
TRUCK is a tow truckstyled vehicle that comes
with exciting features: a
bright red aerial ladder,
emergency flashers, and
three types of sounds.
1995 Hess Toy Truck and Helicopter
The 1995 HESS TOY TRUCK &
HELICOPTER marks the first year
a flying vehicle was added to the
flock. Finely detailed and packed
with features, including a working
motor of the helicopter, it remains
one of the most popular models,
selling a record 600,000 trucks in
the first three days of sales.
1996 Hess Emergency Truck
The 1996 HESS EMERGENCY TRUCK with
hydraulic telescoping ladder and 360°
high beam search light was the first toy
with the company name as “Hess
Corporation”.
1997 Hess Toy Truck and Racers
This 1997 HESS TOY TRUCK AND
RACERS offered for the first time three
toys in one — a lighted box trailer with
two friction powered racers.
1998 Hess RV with Dune Buggy and Motorcycle
Remaining true to the
Hess tradition of fun,
quality toys is the HESS
RECREATION VAN with a
dune buggy and a
motorcycle that can
actually do ‘wheelies’.
1999 Hess Toy Truck and Space Shuttle with Satellite
The HESS TOY TRUCK AND SPACE
SHUTTLE WITH SATELLITE marked
the 35th anniversary of the HESS Toy
Truck and celebrated the arrival of
the 21st century.
2000 Hess Fire Truck
The 2000 HESS FIRE TRUCK, the
first tractor-drawn aerial ladder
truck, features two emergency
sirens and a horn synchronized
with the flashing lights.
2001 Hess Helicopter with Motorcycle and Cruiser
The HESS HELICOPTER WITH
MOTORCYCLE AND CRUISER features a
helicopter with two operating rotors and a
pivoting search light, and a lighted action
motorcycle and land cruiser.
2002 Hess Toy Truck and Airplane
The HESS TOY TRUCK AND AIRPLANE is
an 18-wheeler flatbed tractor trailer with a
motorized airplane. The trailer doubles as
a landing pad with a pull out ramp with
landing lights.
2003 Hess Toy Truck and Racecars
This massive, free-rolling 18-wheeler
HESS TOY TRUCK AND RACECARS
features an illuminated double-decker box
trailer with two sleek racecars that, for the
first time, are powered by reverse pull
friction motors.
2004 Hess Sport Utility Vehicle and Motorcycles
The 2004 HESS SPORT UTILITY
VEHICLE AND MOTORCYCLES
marked the 40th anniversary of the
HESS Toy Truck. This year marked
the first time two motorcycles were
included.
2005 Hess Emergency Truck with Rescue Vehicle
The 2005 HESS EMERGENCY TRUCK
WITH RESCUE VEHICLE includes an
emergency truck and a rugged offroad vehicle with a powerful friction
motor.
2006 Hess Toy Truck and Helicopter
The 2006 HESS TOY TRUCK AND
HELICOPTER features a large white and
green tractor, a flatbed trailer that
doubled as a landing pad, complete
equipped with sequencing landing lights
and a helicopter with a working rotor.
2007 Hess Monster Truck with Motorcycles
The 2007 HESS MONSTER TRUCK
WITH MOTORCYCLES, a rugged off
road vehicle with a raised chassis,
and two roaring monster truck
sounds and horn, carries two hefty
twin engine motorcycles.
2008 Hess Toy Truck and Front End Loader
The 2008 HESS TOY TRUCK AND
FRONT END LOADER is a heavy
duty hauler with a hydraulic lift and
front end loader with a working
motor for forward and reverse
motion, a first for any Hess vehicle.
2009 Race Car and Racer
The 2009 RACE CAR AND RACER is an
ingenious design of a smaller race car
nested in a touch release hidden
compartment of a large one.
2010 Hess Toy Truck and Jet Plane
The 2010 HESS TOY TRUCK AND JET
PLANE marks the first time a jet plane has
joined the fleet, and offers the most
sounds ever on a Hess toy.
2011 Flatbed Utility Truck and Race Car
The heavy duty, 2011 FLATBED UTILITY
TRUCK AND RACECAR includes a
stockcar style racecar featuring pullback
motor, working lights, and pushbuttonactivated four speed engine sounds.
2012 Hess Helicopter and Rescue SUV
The 2012 HESS
HELICOPTER features
motorized main and tail
rotors and three
authentic sounds, and
includes an SUV style
resource vehicle.
2013 Hess Toy Truck and Tractor
This heavy-duty Hess Truck includes a
fully motorized multi-terrain tractor with
forward and reverse moveable motion
and two loading buckets. It also debuts
a new embedded feature that interacts
with the “Hess Tractor Trek” virtual
game.
2014 Hess Toy Truck
The 2014 Hess Toy
Truck will be revealed
in October 2014.