101 Vintage Tamiya r/c models for the radio controlled car collector

Tamiya's next generation of tarmac racers started of with the Mercedes C11. Like the early originals that spawned the Countach's, Celica LB Turbo, Ligeier Matra's, Ferrari etc etc with some modifications to the chassis so the cars where some what different, this generation of sports chassis was to be one single tub base with a plethora of body choices of which some went on to other chassis like the Nissan 300 ZX and the Ferrari F40 becoming part of a limited edition much later in its life.

Small coils over pivot shafts in the steering upright controlled the front suspension while the back was controlled with a flexible mount and a single CVA shock. Hardly revolutionary but at least with this generation you got some form of damping. Also in the box was a ball diff so corners could now be done with a bit more speed and less tail twitching which was nice as Tamiya also threw in the Sport Tuned motor. A hot little number with zero service and unrivalled reliability.

As for driving these cars there was little else apart from driving skill that could help you against the opposition. Fitting faster motors only encouraged the rear end to break away and that would be from rest if one wasn't easy on the go stick. And loosening up the exposed ball diff was not the best option. Rapid shim wear and the sound of metallic screaming where not pleasant.

With regards to looks the best out of the bunch was the Mercedes. It's 2 piece polycarbonate shell + wing was easy to build and yet had that added extra of involvement. The front lights had their own pods and needed to be cut out and screwed in adding to the realism. A simple car to paint with one coat of silver and just a handful of decals it was nothing outlandish like the Jaguar. This also meant that there was less to scrub off when you hit the crash barriers, thus keeping the car looking good when in truth it had been around the block a bit.

Today there is little to recommend them with regards to nostalgia running or racing ability. If it's a classic you want then your going to go for the early originals and if it's something serious your going to be shopping for a modern car from Tamiya. While prices are cheap, it's finding one which is becoming the hardest part so buy now if you really do want one.