Best first 4wd 1/10 racing buggy
 

I am exploring different classes of off-road racing this winter to decide what I like the most. I currently have the funds to add another vehicle to my stable and want to figure this out before I come to my senses and put the money in my savings account. When considering support-ability and ease of getting parts what is the best 4wd 1/10 scale buggy to start racing with? Then if you do not consider ease of getting parts and ease of maintenance what is the best one out there?

In my area Losi, Associated and Tekno; kits and parts are readily available so will most likely go with one of those but I know there are other manufactures so if you believe the best buggy to own is by say serpent or x=ray what makes it so special?

Xray all day, arguably the most refined, most durable, easiest to work on, best quality, best value out of the box with the ability to to the car for any track conditions. Yes parts may be more expensive but you'll rarely need anything. Grab a pair of hinge pins, front a arms a,d rear bubs and you'll be goof for a season with the car. I just retired my XB4 16 and it has been the best rc car I've owned up to this day and the car is still in great shape. I've literally only broken 1 a arm and 1 rear hub in 2 years with it.

And its the reigning 4wd IFMAR champ and ROAR national champ, and it looks like it has a great shot to win worlds again.

The Xray XB4, very durable, dependable, easy to work on and easy to setup and drive. The car is a tank and flat out performs.
Like mentioned parts might cost a little more, but the quality is amazing and if your a racer you should plan to carry your own spares anyways, I never rely on hoping there's a shop near by with parts.

I'm going to suggest the Associated B64d (without having ever owned one). It's a close copy of the Xray, parts are way cheaper, and much more likely to be available at your track, where you'll need them if you break the car.

Xray is the easiest to work on, some are close but not on the same level. The manual is top notch on the xray. If you build the xray the way the manual says, the car will treat you great. W/ xray there's no shimming, no dremmeling, no stuffing o-rings in out drives, no stuiped clips holding driveshafts on. 1 front arm and 1 front hinge pin is all I've broke in 1 year. Pettit rc has tons of set up sheets for the xb4 if your into that kind of stuff. Chop shops on ebay for spare parts.

I owned and ran a 22-4 1.0 for 2 seasons, also my son ran one and I did the maintenance on both. It was an easy to drive tough buggy, hardly broke... but the maintenance on the pulleys (specifically the front rear belt pulley) was a pain with the enclosed belt covers (and we had the cover mod done!) etc. it was surgery whenever you needed to check and replace that pulley. The belts lasted a long time and we ran in mod.

We now own the eb410 but its sitting in a box ready for next season so while I only got to run one for one race night I am impressed so far, but don't have enough real data to suggest either way.

I wouldn't hesitate on the b64d (again haven't owned one same as Davidka!) but parts and help are easy to come by anywhere. We run AE in 2wd and I wouldn't hesitate on their 4wd platform.

You mention tlr, AE and tekno... from a parts / maintenance I would suggest the eb410 or b64d ... 22-4 is a close 3rd only because of the maintenance aspect. All have parts and help available with the slight edge to AE there just because they are the biggest. As always though, check what is run at your track !

PR Racing SB401 all the way...

I have never driven a 10th scale 4wd untill 5 weeks ago. I picked up an xray xb4 17 and race on a small indoor clay track once a week. This car is incredible. Its like you can feel what it's doing, does everything you want, and likes to be pushed. I have crashed my fare share and haven't broken anything. I was mid B in the first race and now up to 3rd in the A after 5 outings. I have not driven anything else to compare with. Thats just my 2 cents. :)

EB410. New platform, Is tough (is a tekno). I tried already hitting a steel rail at full throttle (not intentional) and only bent a hinge pin. Now try that with a b64 LOL. Price is right at $399 retail. And last but not least, the car performs right out of the box (box setup). Just my two cents.

could depend on the size of the track . hate to derail but I always see folks say tekno is built like a tank and doesnt break like a lightweight associated. I alway thought you wanted a lightweight vehicle for racing. Hitting stuff like metals post is not racing. I have both tekno and associated.

In terms of performance can someone explain the benefits of the XB4 over the B64D? These are the two I am stuck between. The XB4 18 seems to be the superior buggy, or at least has more win's then that B64D. Is it worth the extra money though? Would a new racer like me really benefit from driving this buggy, instead of learning on another one and eventually getting an XB so I truly appreciate the benefits of the buggy? I would be racing mostly on Clay surfaces if that makes a different.

Quality and durability makes the XB4 better than B64d. Then the performance is the other thing that separates them. You don't have to be a great driver to make the xb4 fast.

My one suggestion is if you are racing at a track figure out what they sell and support. The worst thing is that say you by and Xray or Serpent and the only person you can get support from is from AMain and you have to wait a week to get the parts to fix.

Now if they have parts for Losi, Associated, Tekno or something else and you break something you can get parts the same night and be up racing again.

Me personally my track has parts for Losi, AE and Tekno so I have a few to choose from. Me I chose the Tekno and I like my purchase.

Another thing you can do is go to the track and ask them there if they have cars that you can try to help make your decision. If you are buying one from them it would make sense to let you test to better your decision.

And racers like to talk about their stuff, so walking around and talking/looking at stuff on race day is a good idea. Just keeps your hands in you pockets,lol We can be a little paranoid with our stuff too.

That is the key right there, local support is the single most important factor... ALL brands of 1/10 buggies will break, see this happen every day... of those 3 to choose from I'd say Tekno is a no brainer.

I started with an In-Tech ER-14 and it was great for a season, then I switched to a Schumacher CAT K2 and it was a pinch faster, but Shuey parts are kinda pricey. I recently switched to the Tekno EB410 and it's a big improvement in performance and durability. Not saying it's bulletproof, I've seen 1 local driver beat the snot out of his Tekno and he's had a couple breaks, but the vast majority of Tekno owners are extremely happy to where I'd say it's overall the most durable brand I see on the track. I've had dozens of wall taps and hard hits that would've crumbled parts on my Shuey, and knock on wood, I haven't broken anything on my Tekno yet other than a stripped spur gear. I'm thinking it wouldn't hurt to reset the mesh after a hard hit or two, I had lots of hard hits sending the car into violent cartwheels before I finally lost the mesh. The single biggest improvement with the Tekno over the other 2 brands I ran is that the Tekno jumps/lands the best... I can push the car harder into awkward jump angles that would cause the other brands to traction roll where Tekno soaks up the abrasive conditions far better than I ever would've imagined.