Losi 8ight-XE and Neo 4.0 good enough for racing?

[BuggyBRO]

Want to get into racing. Contacted a few different people to build me a kit buggy as I'm new and lack the confidence to build one correctly on my own and they both ghosted me. Was ready to pay in full for whatever they recommended for a beginner and went over some options and then they just sorta gave me the cold shoulder. So i figured it just wasn’t meant to happen. I was looking to pick up a Losi 8ight-XE RTR for my E buggy platform and possibly run my Kyosho Neo 3.0 or 4.0 nitro buggies. My question is will they be good enough? Are there any components that would be needed to upgrade before I did so? I already did a steel spur gear in my Neos. And I run J Concepts tires now. Is the KE .21 motor good enough/ fast enough for racing? Can I drop in a better nitro motor and get a starter box? Is it worth putting money into?

I was really wanting a Tekno NB48 2.2 build but I just can’t seem to find a builder serious about building me one unfortunately. I'm worried about getting parts for my Kyoshos now that the MP11 is out and my Neos are more based on the Mp7.5 and MP9 platform. So I figured maybe buy the Losi RTR e buggy and just race that to get my feet wet? If that’s a race ready buggy? Just really trying to get into some local races. Not sure what the best route is to go. I don’t mind spending the coin on a “professional” build if it’s that much better. I hear Tekno is pretty durable and I hear my Kyoshos can be a little more fragile if I take some bad flips during races which I know will happen.

Not really sure what to do here. Is the Losi a good route to go for some entry level E buggy racing? Is that a good place to start and ease into the Nitro racing? Looking for some good feedback as a newb. Thanks in advance yall.

 

[CertifiedMike]

Losi has killed their racing program entirely. I wouldn't race one if it was free.

You want to know if the Neo is good enough?

Good enough for what?
Both chassis are winning designs so yes, they are good enough to win a race.

Depending on what track and ckass you are racing in, the mods you want to make may not even be allowed.
Get to the tracks and start figuring out what class you like and what the rules are for it.

Since you are a noob, rather than trying to get as fast as you can go, focus on learning how to drive.
Learn how to tune your car, dial the suspension in.
Figure out diff tuning.
Once your car can make it around the track, then you need to learn how to drive it.

The size, surface type, number and size of jumps all play in to how you need to set up your car.

Its not just about the motor. Springs, tires, oil and a lot of practice time come into play before you start thinking about upgrading things for a track you've never driven on.

Before you car goes fast, it needs to be able to hook up, turn, stop and handle well. You are getting ahead of yourself.

No one starts racing by jumping into a top fuel dragster their first time out. There are reasons for that.

There is nothing wrong with being a noob, learning at your own pace and building your car, installing the hop ups that YOU need as you learn.
We were ALL noobs once too.

Building a track missle and not knowing how to control it is going to cause problems and be expensive to repair.

As far as durability goes, since you know you are going to be flipping and crashing, you'll want to do that at low speeds.
Once you can drive and your car is set up, you won't be crashing all the time.
Then put the fast motor in.

The Neos or Teknos or most other platforms are tough enough as long as you aren't WOT'ing into brick walls on the regular.

Get to the track and stop wondering, worrying if your car is good enough... get out there and just have fun.
You've already got yourself half talked out of your current RC and spending $1k+ to build a car you know nothing about, all before you've ever raced!
Way ahead of yourself.

If you are going to race your buggy, you are going to want to build it too. Don't pay someone else to do what you will eventually be doing on your own anyways.
Don't just throw money at your car. The most expensive car in the world with EVERY single gold plated hop up you can buy won't make you a better driver.
Being a good driver is what this whole thing boils down to.

If you are unsure of nitro or electric, start hanging out at the tracks. Ask ppl questions. Decide what does and does not appeal to you and make an informed decision based on what you see and enjoy.
Electric can be run indoors which is big for a
lot of ppl.

Most indoor carpet racing is 1/10 scale tho.

 

[BuggyBRO]

Losi has killed their racing program entirely. I wouldn't race one if it was free.

You want to know if the Neo is good enough?

Good enough for what?
Both chassis are winning designs so yes, they are good enough to win a race.

Depending on what track and ckass you are racing in, the mods you want to make may not even be allowed.
Get to the tracks and start figuring out what class you like and what the rules are for it.

Since you are a noob, rather than trying to get as fast as you can go, focus on learning how to drive.
Learn how to tune your car, dial the suspension in.
Figure out diff tuning.
Once your car can make it around the track, then you need to learn how to drive it.

The size, surface type, number and size of jumps all play in to how you need to set up your car.

Its not just about the motor. Springs, tires, oil and a lot of practice time come into play before you start thinking about upgrading things for a track you've never driven on.

Before you car goes fast, it needs to be able to hook up, turn, stop and handle well. You are getting ahead of yourself.

No one starts racing by jumping into a top fuel dragster their first time out. There are reasons for that.

There is nothing wrong with being a noob, learning at your own pace and building your car, installing the hop ups that YOU need as you learn.
We were ALL noobs once too.

Building a track missle and not knowing how to control it is going to cause problems and be expensive to repair.

As far as durability goes, since you know you are going to be flipping and crashing, you'll want to do that at low speeds.
Once you can drive and your car is set up, you won't be crashing all the time.
Then put the fast motor in.

The Neos or Teknos or most other platforms are tough enough as long as you aren't WOT'ing into brick walls on the regular.

Get to the track and stop wondering, worrying if your car is good enough... get out there and just have fun.
You've already got yourself half talked out of your current RC and spending $1k+ to build a car you know nothing about, all before you've ever raced!
Way ahead of yourself.

If you are going to race your buggy, you are going to want to build it too. Don't pay someone else to do what you will eventually be doing on your own anyways.
Don't just throw money at your car. The most expensive car in the world with EVERY single gold plated hop up you can buy won't make you a better driver.
Being a good driver is what this whole thing boils down to.

If you are unsure of nitro or electric, start hanging out at the tracks. Ask ppl questions. Decide what does and does not appeal to you and make an informed decision based on what you see and enjoy.
Electric can be run indoors which is big for a
lot of ppl.

Most indoor carpet racing is 1/10 scale tho.

Thanks for the heads up with TLR wasn’t aware of that. Horizon seems to be making some poor decisions in this industry. kinda sucks to hear that.

Good advice. Run what you brung. Is there anything “weak” other than the spur gear in my neos that would be worth upgrading right now?

 

[CreepyQuarryCrawler]

...already

 

[RustyUs]

I'm sure you did maintenance on your current platforms, right? If yes, then I'd say you have enough talent for building a kit yourself... that's the fun part!
If I had a racing itch and my current buggy runs great, I'd be getting to the track for practice sessions. A couple of weeks and you'll be able to tell if your ride is up for the task of novice class racing. Hopefully the track has times during the week set aside for people to use the track.

 

[CertifiedMike]

The reality is, you WILL break parts. There WILL be othervdrivers who are faster and more experienced than you.
You will NOT be winning the Amain on your first day at the track.

Get to the track. Bring a friend to hang with and help out.

Talk to the ppl who race there. They can give you tips on what tires work and that sort of thing.
Find out what the rules are for the class you'd like to compete in.
Be sure your car is set up for it.

Other than that, practice practice practice!!!

Then you can tell US what you broke and how YOU fixed it.

 

[RustyUs]

If you are serious about letting someone else build it, maybe give Jared Tebo a shout out. A Tekno NB48 2.2 sent out to customer....

I couldn't imagine the price tag though. Just having the kit (no motor, no servos... no nothin') built is $1000.

 

[CreepyQuarryCrawler]

If you are serious about letting someone else build it, maybe give Jared Tebo a shout out. A Tekno NB48 2.2 sent out to customer....

I couldn't imagine the price tag though. Just having the kit (no motor, no servos... no nothin') built is $1000.

There's a name I haven't heard in a minute.
I watched a bunch of his stuff when I was racing my RB6 back in the day.

 

[ohsnap]

Before you car goes fast, it needs to be able to hook up, turn, stop and handle well. You are getting ahead of yourself.

I would add "and you need to be able to drive (control) it."

Don't be surprised to find guys with "obsolete" rigs lapping you.

Given your skill level, your Neo should be an excellent platform to start racing.
It's one thing to go bashing in the wide open wild.
It's another thing to be in a tight lane going into a corner with your adrenalin pumping surrounded by a gaggle of others.

Odds are, a decked out Tekno (and I want one BTW), would be way too much for you at this stage.
Spectacular crashes often make for expensive repairs and downtime.

 

[BuggyBRO]

If you are serious about letting someone else build it, maybe give Jared Tebo a shout out. A Tekno NB48 2.2 sent out to customer....
View attachment 264023View attachment 264026View attachment 264025View attachment 264024
I couldn't imagine the price tag though. Just having the kit (no motor, no servos... no nothin') built is $1000.

Yeah I reached out to Jared. I don’t mind spending the money. Once my son was born I sold my 2 race motorcycles, my 3D archery setups, and my fishing Kayaks. Gave up a lot of my past hobbies to spend my days off with him. I don’t have hobbies anymore and gave up competitive shooting on the weekends because I can’t bring him due to the noise. No biggie, i can always go back to it again someday. So RC cars are kind of our thing we can do together and still gives me something to tinker with on my days off. He’s only 15 months but loves monster jam trucks and RC cars. Unfortunately I can’t just “go race” right now as my local tracks are closed for the season and here in PA we’re getting hammered with snow. They're talking another 17”+ this weekend. I did get a Micro T to run indoors till the outdoor tracks open back up. I was more or less just wondering if anyone knew of any quick upgradeable parts I could do to my Neos that would better take the abuse until i can figure out a new build. I'm a buy once cry once kinda guy. Being my only hobby now, i have the funds to throw at a nice build and don't care if I break stuff along the way. But if it’s just a waste of money I guess there’s no reason to spend the coin. My main concern is going to be finding parts for my Neos all spring/ summer as it seems the platform may be discontinued being based off the MP7.5 and MP9 platform. I hear teknos parts support is pretty incredible and guys speak highly of the durability of them. So I just figured it was worth jumping into a platform with better parts support. The Tekno FB groups also seem to be pretty solid. The Kyosho stuff seems to be a pretty niche group. Just trying to have a good baseline build to jump into this with.

 

[luke66]

A RTR would work well but not be as competitive as a kit build. If you have literally any experience building stuff, a kit will be easy. I think you could do it yourself no problem.

 

[CreepyQuarryCrawler]

As a father to a young one (going on 3) I understand time is a huge factor in these decisions.

So the tracks closed, is it possible to pull up old race information on your local scene? What classes are run, etc.

At this stage anything that is available to run at your track AND has local parts support should be no problem.

As I mentioned in your previous thread, I started with the cheapest thing I could buy and moved up.

You have 1:1 racing experience, right?

There is no replacement for wheel time.

Pick a class, 1/10th electric, buggy or stadium truck, heck even short course if you guys run it.

Or maybe 1/8th nitro like what you have.

Bottom line is right now you could buy the best kit and deck it out, but if that class doesn't run it was for nothing.

Or you lawn dart it on your first session and bend it in half.

No one is going to be able to say "Hey. Here, buy this end all be all RC product!"

It doesn't exist.

This is where you have to do your own research. And was previously mentioned, once you have something that needs assistance with, people can help you.

Building, tuning, questions, whatever.

You're just going to have to pick a path and go with it. IE, stock up on parts for you Kyosho, like I mentioned in your previous thread, a arms, pins, whatever breaks on there most often in crashes or bad landings.

Or pick something completely different, but YOU need to have a starting point here.

You're just like, what if I buy this car?
Okay. What if I buy this car?

It's going in circles.

 

[CertifiedMike]

I've read your concerns about Kyosho parts a few different times now. Can you explain to me why you think there is a problem?

I still buy parts for my Optima Mids built 40 years ago. MP7 parts are everywhere.

I am working on an MP6 thst IS difficult ti get parts for... not the same truck tho.

My main concern is going to be finding parts for my Neos all spring/ summer as it seems the platform may be discontinued being based off the MP7.5 and MP9 platform.

WHO IS TELLING YOU THIS???? ITS UTTER NONSENSE.