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4 out of 5 from Ye Gads
About the model Mid mounted 540 motor; 2WD front wheel drive Polycarbonate body Front wheel drive M03 Polycarbonate monocoque chassis with mid-mounted battery layout Silver plated large diameter wheels 130mm diameter lug pattern spike tyres 4-wheel independent double-wishbone suspension with friction dampers Tread pattern rubber tires with inner sponge Dimensions: Overall length=315mm mm, Overall width=167mm Electronic speed controller (ESC) Cost: around £80
This is a front wheel drive 1/10th scale radio control Mini Cooper depicting a rally cross vehicle as used in the early 1990s. The kit includes a standard Tamiya 540 motor and an Electronic Speed Controller. The 4-wheel independent double-wishbone suspension and chassis with mid-ship battery layout improves balance for superb control and consistent cornering.
What else you need to get it going
Radio: 2-Channel with 1 servo Battery: 6-cell flat with standard Tamiya connector Charger: for 6-cell battery Paint: Polycarbonate spray and acrylic paint
Review
This is a model that will appeal to both RC and Mini enthusiasts alike. The actual kit took me about 5 hours to put together, and was relatively easy when following the simple step by step instructions that are supplied with it.
Painting the shell on the other hand was far from easy, masking off the windows and the roof on such a curvy shell took some time and a lot of effort to get right. You could, of course, go for a single colour spray job, but the white roof is a must for any Cooper fan.
Once built, the car is without doubt a pocket rocket, offering superb performance and handling in its standard form. It is definitely a road only car as it has small wheels and low ground clearance, but on a local car park it can easily put other larger 4 wheel drive cars to shame.
There are a whole host of upgrades available for this popular chassis, I would recommend the following:
· Full ball race kit · Oil filled aluminium dampers · Tamiya sport tuned 540 motor · Tamiya Manta Ray limited slip ball diff
The ball race kit and sport tuned motor will improve the top end performance of the car dramatically. I would recommend that these are purchased at the same time as the kit, so that you do not have build the car twice, this is because the installation of the ball bearings required a complete strip of the car, including the gear box.
The aluminium dampers, will improve the handling of the car enabling improved cornering to go with the increased speed, and the ball diff will enable the car to put the increased power down more efficiently than the standard diff supplied with the kit.
In reality, this is more of beginner with some skill to intermediate model kit. However, there is a large following of the M class chassis cars, with many clubs and race series about the country so there’s quite a lot of information and support out there.
Whether you are planning on racing or just running the car at the local supermarket car park, this car is a great choice, and with a little imagination, money and skill it is amazing what you can do with this model……………. See pictures of mine below. : )   |
