Irene wrote in :

the ones at Target are Take-Along Thomas and they are diecast metal. very
sturdy, plus there is no right or wrong way on the magnets.

Aah, my mistake. Since we don't have any, I just looked at how shiny
they were and assumed plastic. The magnet thing is interesting - for
a few weeks, ds was very, very frustrated that he had to turn the cars
around to make them stick together sometimes! By now, he's figured it
out, though.

FWIW, in the UK there is a die-cast range that uses hooks to connect the
trains together. IIRC, it is made by ERTL.

--
Penny Gaines
UK mum to three