About this deal
In the modern day, Hot Rod had become the primary confidant of the surviving Witwiccans, working closely with Edmund Burton and the father of University of Oxford professor Viviane Wembly. The arms have a disheartening tendency to spontaneously break at either pinned section of the shoulder joint, while the upper ratchet in the knee has a high likelihood of shattering, either rendering him only durable enough to transform a few scant times. In this case, it is the shot of Hot Rod about to open the Matrix as he stands within Unicron's innards.
Hot Rod (aka Rodimus and Rodimus Prime) is a brash and slightly arrogant Autobot protector working closely with Sir Edmund Burton.
His rear-mounted thruster engine becomes a hand-held weapon in robot mode, launching a spring-loaded missile, or can remain attached to his back to become some kind of jet pack.
The Transformers: The Movie is the source of inspiration for the rest of his additional gadgets and features, including a built-in version of the retractable visor from the Lookout Mountain scene, (dropped over the figure's eyes by rotating the circular "ears" on its helmet), the buzzsaw he used in battle on Quintessa, and the welding torch he used to repair Kup. Of course, there was no way to make the figure switch to burgundy for Rodimus mode, but in compensation, the front of the cab features the two tone coloration Rodimus Prime featured in the animation.
This version of the mold removes the pins in his arms and instead the arms stay in via very small pegs. Similarly, caution should be used when uniting and separating the painted silver pipes on the arms and legs during transformation, as the clips that connect the arm and leg pipes are small and prone to snapping. His smaller Deluxe-sized form is "Nemesis Hot Rod", and represents the character in a Unicron-corrupted state.