RC car racing fans, the new Mazdaspeed RX-8 from HPI is out...

For those who aren't radio-control car fans but are curious, here's a quick summary:

* This new product is just the plastic shell, not the complete car.
* The car is roughly 1/10 scale. "Roughly" because it is designed to fit one of two standard chassis dimensions. The RX-8 proportions are somewhat distorted to make everything fit.
* The shell comes as one piece of clear Lexan plastic and a masking sheet for the windows. You apply the masks then paint the inside however you like, as long as you use a paint that can stick to the Lexan surface.
* All remaining details like the headlights are merely stickers on the Lexan surface.

About the 1/10 scale chassis market:
* These cars are about the same size as the Jada Toys RX-8 remote control car, but the chassis dynamics are much more complex.
* The "190mm" and "200mm" sizes refer to the track (width) of the chassis. Most electric motor chassis have a 190mm track, and most 200mm chassis are powered by a single-piston engine.
* If you want one, your local hobby shop will be able to help. Just tell them you want a car with the RX-8 HPI body.
* How fast do they go? Speed is money. How fast can you afford? :) The setups used in the posted picture are at least a few hundred bucks. Some people spend many thousands of dollars on this hobby. On the other hand, that's small beans compared to what some people have already spent on accessories for their real-life RX-8.

* Sorry, nobody makes a rotary engine for this type of chassis. There's a single-rotor engine for RC aircraft, but you'll need a machine shop to adapt that engine to a 1/10 car and I don't know if anybody's done it.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'll have to dig up my old abused Associated TC3 chassis so I can put this RX-8 body on it.

Every hobby store that I shop in the DFW area don't have the new RX-8 bodies yet. Has anyone recieved one?

--DeBug

www.towerhobbies.com will get them in towards the end of the month.

I've been trying to justify buying another RC after 20 years of retirement from racing RCs. It's an expensive hobby and the fun of it IMO is in competing. Racing against other drivers on a road course is a thrill you have to experience and once you do, you get hooked. It requires a great deal of eye/hand coordination and you'd be amazed at the precision that is required to become a top driver.

Luckily I live in an area where RC is dying and there are no electric touring sedan clubs so that kind of helped me make up my mind that I better stay retired. But I still feel like I'd like one just to mess with in the house and tinker with. Just not quite sure I want a $500 RC sitting on my shelf just yet.

Of course getting the RX-8 body is the motivating factor. Maybe I should just get the body w/out the car :p

Originally posted by Doug DeBug
Every hobby store that I shop in the DFW area don't have the new RX-8 bodies yet. Has anyone recieved one?

--DeBug

Don't expect many hobby stores to keep them in stock, there's really only a few bodies that racers will use for actual racing due to aerodynamics (Stratus, Mazda 6, Alfa). The RX-8 is not and will not be one of them so you will most likely have to order it online or get your hobbyshop to order it for you.

Ike

Originally posted by IkeWRX
Don't expect many hobby stores to keep them in stock, there's really only a few bodies that racers will use for actual racing due to aerodynamics (Stratus, Mazda 6, Alfa). The RX-8 is not and will not be one of them so you will most likely have to order it online or get your hobbyshop to order it for you.

Ike

Ike is absolutely correct. Back in my racing days it was the TOJ body. Does't matter what it looks like, it worked the best so everyone used it. You get guys here and there that use what they like because they like the way it looks but for the most part RC racers use what works. I used the Corvette body because I liked the way it looked, then I realized that I wasn't competitive so I switched to the TOJ which all the best drivers were using. And when I still wasn't competitive with the TOJ I realized that I just sucked :p