New Product Preview: LRP S18 Touring Car

Here is a sneak peek at a new 1/18 scale touring car from LRP:





















Details released so far are:

• 1/18 scale touring car
• RTR kit including: LRP A.I. Micro Reverse speedo (waterproof), LRP Phaser Sport receiver 27MHz AM, micro battery stickpack, 220V charger, LRP A2-STX Sport transmitter incl. charge socket, full-size steering servo, 380 size Micro motor - 32.000 rpm
• Aluminium motor mount, adjustable for various pinion sizes
• Super efficient 4WD all-wheel drive with aluminium drive shaft
• 4-spider differential front and rear
• Fully equipped with low-friction ball bearings (15 pieces)
• 20-tooth steel pinion, 45-tooth spur gear
• Sealed gearbox
• Universal joints at front and rear
• Extra low center of gravity for optimal handling
• Fully adjustable pivot ball front suspension
• Double wishbone suspension front and rear
• Blue anodized oil filled thread shocks
• Blue anodized aluminium tuning shock towers front and rear with various mounting points
• 2 mounting points at the suspension arm
• Adjustable camber front and rear
• Front caster adjustment
• Aluminium suspension arms
• Front bumper
• Fully adjustable ride height
• Extra stiff chassis in tub design
• Black aluminium upper chassis strut at front with swaybar holder
• Standard hex. wheel mount (compatible with Xray)
• Glued High Grip Slick Tyres
• Racing Dish rims
• Decaled and pre-cut painted racing touring car bodyshell in airbrush design with chrome-metallic effect
• 2 different High Downforce rear wings
• Fully adjustable body posts
• Completely built model as RTR and Non RTR version

This car is available as a kit or as a RTR. The RTR package includes the LRP A.I. Micro Reverse waterproof speedo, LRP Phaser Sport 27MHz AM receiver, LRP A2-STX Sport transmitter incl. charge socket, full-size steering servo and high performance 380 size Micro motor, micro battery stick pack, and 220V charger.

For more information, check out LRP's official site.

New Product: Team Losi Speed-T

Team Losi recently released a very impressive and innovative product to the market; dubbed the "Speed-T". This is not your ordinary 1/10 scale truck. The Speed-T is a RTR (ready to run) truck designed for those who want to go fast......very, very fast.

What really makes this truck unique and sets it apart from others in the industry is that it comes equipped with a brushless system out of the box. The Losi XCelorin brushless system included with the kit includes a high-speed 4800KV motor and a programmable ESC that includes a Quick Programming Card. This provides the driver with selectable ESC settings that are preprogrammed, meaning you can change the truck's settings with the push of a button. Also important to note, the truck comes with a Losi MTX Pro Radio System with Spektrum 2.4GHz DSM Technology which is almost unheard of in Ready to Run kits.This is further evidence that the RC Car industry is one step closer to fully accepting and embracing brushless motor and Spektrum 2.4GHz DSM radio technologies. As more and more brushless systems enter the market, I predict the demand for nitro vehicles will decrease.

Depending on the type of battery pack you plug into this bad boy, you can be flying down the street at speeds in excess of 65+ MPH!! Just be sure to let everyone else know before doing so....that way we can all steer clear and avoid broken ankles. :)

The MSRP on this beast is $549.99, but don't let that scare you away. It is currently available for $329.99

You can find out more information about the Speed-T on Losi's official site.

The video below is a tad lengthy, but has plenty of information about the Speed-T:

Preview: Some New "Awesome-ness"

I've been driving various R/C's since I was a kid; first I had the original RC10 from Team Associated (with the gold chassis and a mechanical speed control), a few cars later, and more recently I got a 1/18 scale Losi mini Baja which is pretty much the same as their MiniT. The small scale is really great, you can drive for more than 20min on one charge, and in smaller spaces. Recently, though, I've had my eye on something a little bigger, and that would be the new EMAXX from Traxxas. The major new thing with this truck is that it has been mostly waterproofed - which means less dirt will get in, and you can drive anywhere. Here's a picture:

Time to start saving lunch money!

Batteries:

On the battery front there's been a couple new technologies that are worth having a look at as alternatives to NiMH that have come around in the last few years. One is the LiPoly batteries that look like small silver bricks. These have really good energy/weight density - meaning you get lots of speed and driving time in a light package. These are some of the highest performance batteries currently on the market, but you have to be really careful when charging/hadling since they can explode big time if mistreated.Here's a few:

The newest battery technology is from a company called a123 (a123systems.com) who invented a new type of battery called Lithium nanophospate. This battery has by far the best power, fastest charge, can really take abuse, and can last for many years. Its energy density (running time) is between NiMH and LiPoly. Currently the only cheap way to get these cells is to buy DEWALT 36V battery packs, and disassemble them for about 10 dollars a cell (each cell is 3.6V 2.3Ah) which means you typically only need 3 cells:

-Shtarbucks