If you can find the Transformers toys from the early 80’s, they were made of die-cast metal.
I have some transformers from McDonald’s from in the ‘80’s, and I recall the die-cast metal ones. A plane and a car, I think. Clever. But my son has them, or not, and I would hate to even check the price on ebay.
But this year, if the price is low enough, I’ll get Optimus. I wouldn’t mind having BumbleBee, either. I’m still searching for the YouTube clip of the guy dressed as BumbleBee who transforms at the mall. I had it, once, but don’t know where to look for it.