The 8.5 is (I.e. the FR2 Chassis) a lot smoother and more predictable than the H8 chassis. The H8 chassis is really 'nervous' by comparison.
The new chassis doesn't seem to sacrifice any of the H8's quick steering, and seems to allow you to rotate it better and hold a line better than the old chassis. It's also stiffer than the stock H8 chassis.
The 8.5 is basically a lot less 'twitchy' than the Hyper 8 package.
It is a great handling bug, and I've definitely knocked a few seconds off my average lap times with the 8.5 package versus the original package.
Please note that I don't exactly have a Hyper 8.5. I bought most of the upgrades that make up the 8.5 kit a few months prior to the 8.5's release. I didn't actually get to run my upgraded H8 until after the 8.5's release.
My Hyper 8 has the following:
FR2 Chassis
Center Diff Bracing
Longer Ho Bao Motor Mounts
8.5 Lightweight Clutch Bell and Flywheel
Standard CVDs (Not the new 8.5 lightened CVDs)
Carbon Fiber Brakes
Lightweight Spur Gear
Jammin' FTE Big Bore Shocks
Lunsford Titanium Turnbuckles and Steering Servo Linkage
Standard Hinge Pins
CNC Fr/Rear Hingpin Blocks
CNC Rear Uprights
Front Off-set Hubs (+1.5 I think)
Hitec 9000 series digital titanium servos
Futaba 3PM Rx/Tx running in HRS Mode
NovaRossi P5x (Near or over 8 gallons at least)
I'm usually running OFNA Tru-Lite Wheels and Panther Komodo IIs...
Losi's do not beat this buggy - especially in the rough or off the line. They do seem to get a little more length off the jumps than the Hypers, but that's basically it.
My buggy is only limited by my driving. My flying laps are just as fast as the other fast guys, sometimes faster. I'm just not so consistant yet - although the 8.5 upgrades have helped my consistancy out a bunch, as it is definitely easier to drive with the FR2 chassis, but still it still seems to prefer a finesse type of driving style like the Losi. It just doesn't seem to be as demanding as the Losi - I.e. it's more forgiving, especially with the Jammin' BBs.
My next upgrade will be the new Jammin' GBs (I call them Ginormous Bores, instead of Big Bores - I.e. the new 16mm shocks). Initial report of these mounted on a Hyper 8.5 is that they are 'more of a good thing' as compared to the last generation of Jammin' BBs on a Hyper 8.5...
