Want to buy a car this summer

[shervin]

Howdy!
A few weeks back I asked some questions about the Traxxas Slayer...
Well I bought it and I LOVE it... I used to own electric cars in the 90s and finally returned to the hobby.. I truly love the engineering gone into these nitro models and I enjoy working on them for maintenance/repairs. My slayer just looks beautiful on the dirt/grass... the rear slides out perfectly while still maintaining some stability.
Now I want another nitro car for the asphalt track near my home.
I've been looking at a few models and so far I have this list

Kyosho Inferno GT2 Corvette
http://www.amainhobbies.com/product_info.php/products_id/27662


Nitro 4-tec 369.99
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXNCA8**&P=7

CEN CT5 269.99
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXSWN5&P=7


HPI Nitro RS4 EVO+ 309.99
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXRSH8**&P=7


OFNA ULTRA GTP 349.99
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXDPC2&P=7



I don't know much about the company "CEN"..... The only thing that is appealing is the price tag...
Now the 2 cars I am seriously considering are the Traxxas 4-Tec 3.3 and Kyosho inferno GT2.
The traxxas.... well the 3 hobby shops near me have tons of traxxas parts in stock so repairs and maintenance also upgrades would be quick and easy.
The Kyosho Inferno GT2 has my attention.... a lot of my attention!
The car is beautiful (I've seen a display model)... Its 1/8th size... It's kyosho!
The Inferno seems to be a popular model for racing at the track. The Traxxas nitro 4-tec seems nice too but I'm torn...
1 of the hobby shops near me told me to stay clear of the HPI RS4 Evo+, told me a customer has a lot of issues with the engine.
Anyone have any suggestions? And additional car not on the list? I dont want anything more expensive than 450 dollars.
Thanks!

 

[Lessen]

If they do a lot of GT racing (1/8 scale on-road cars based on 1/8 scale buggy chassis) near you I'd go with the Kyosho as well.

if you'd prefer to go 1/10 scale I'd opt for the Associated Nitro TC3.
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXGZJ4&P=ML

I don't know what parts support is like at your local hobby shop so you might want to take that into consideration.

 

[Candyman]

Like Lessen said, it depends on 2 big things. First, what scale do they race? No sense buying a car that you can't race if racing is your goal. Second, make sure there is parts support. You'll break something. And the less time it takes to repair it, the happier you'll be.

That being said, I concur 100% with his recommendations. If it's 1/10, you would be in good shape going with the Nitro TC3. If it's 1/8, the Kyosho would be a nice ride.

 

[ChucksCity]

if its 1/10 scale racing then you want the tc3 if you just wanna hit 70 between stop signs then the 4 tec is the car for you and traxxas also has excelent customer support and parts are readily available at every LHS

 

[shervin]

Thanks for the suggestions, I did see the associated car earlier and forgot to mention it. They race everything from 1/10, 1/8 to 1/5th. They do 1/5 F1 cars too.
http://www.301raceway.com/


Schumacher Fusion 28 is another model...
http://www.racing-cars.com/usa/products.asp?recnumber=49243
I like this model a lot because it has a 3 speed and a nice picco 4.5cc engine. Back in the day I used to hear a lot about Picco engines. Are they still good engines?

So far I'm stuck between the Kyosho and the Schumacher

 

[Lessen]

If it were me I'd try to race in the class with the largest turnout. That's why my first race rig was a 1:8 scale buggy, it was the largest off-road class at one of the local tracks and is generally the largest turout of all off-road classes.

 

[Macca Pacca]

Schumacher are extreamly reliable. The guy at my LHS thinks in his appinion that there the best nitro makers.9He even has 1)

 

[Crunkvilletx]

Dude I love my hpi evo+ I just finished my first gallon and I'm impressed by it. Very fast and drives great. Havnt had one issue besides a dog bone breaking but I just upgraded to cvd's so no worries. This was my first nitro and I'm glad I picked an hpi

O and the tc3 is belt driven I always here people complaning of broken belts

 

[ThunderTiger]

if your looking at 1/8 scale take a look aty the thunder tiger EB4 S2 Rallygame, or the Thunder Tiger ER1, or even The Thunder Tiger EB4 S3 Rally Game. All good rigs, every one of them.


The "Rally game" Eb4 S2 and EB4 S3 can also be switched back to Buggy mode for buggy racing, then back to "Rally Game" for on/off road rallying as they are but the same chassis and setup bar the front bumpers and rear wing mount/body mount.

2 Racing classes from one vehicle is a BIG PLUS in my book.

Also, The Thunder Tiger EK4 Monster truck is "Based" on the EB4 S2 buggy chassis, so that adds a third option aswell, so definately worth looking at.