Coldwaters

My only experience was owning a mp7.5 kanai for a few years but I bought someone's entire hobby. Spare motors, tires, servos controllers, you name it. I ran it as a toy and lost interest. This was all almost 20.years ago.

Now I am looking to try it out again w my son, just bashing or rsacing friends, nothing competitive. I want a solid electric platform that will be upgradable over time in 1/8 or 1/10 scale. Possibly even upgrading a chassis from 2wd to 4wd later, if that's even possible.

A kit would be fun but RTR might be more economical?

Is it possible to even consider this and be ALL in at $400 or less?

nielsm

EBuggy typically refers to 1/8 racing buggies running on electric vs nitro. That’s one of the most expensive classes to get into. Kits alone are typically >$600. You would still need all electronics, tires and sometimes wheels. While almost all 1/8 buggies are 4WD, it’s unusual for any car to be upgraded from 2WD to 4WD.

You didn’t mention if you were interested in racing or just bashing about, but ebuggy is typically racing. If you want something to get started in racing for the price point you mentioned, and you are willing to go down to 1/10 2WD buggy, you can get the Associated RB10 RTR for <$400. It’s based on an older version of their full team kit. There are versions with a battery and charger for about $350. It won’t be as competitive with current kit versions, but if getting started on a budget, it’s not bad. It has a rear motor mount, so it’s better suited to dirt than carpet racing. Associated just announced the new RC10 B7. The kit alone is $400 and like the e-buggies requires all electronics, wheels & tires. It wouldn’t be unusual to be about $1000 once you’ve added all the electronics. Schumacher recently released the LD3 2WD buggy and that kit can also be had for about $400. Losi also makes a kit, but it’s fairly old now and not as popular. All 3 brands also make 4WD buggies. Kits are generally about $100 more than a 2WD kit, with similar electronics costs. Xray is another brand, but much more expensive. Tekno also makes some great kits, especially in 1/8 but similar prices to those mentioned above.

If you are looking for bashing only, the options open up quite a bit for that price point. Arrma makes the typhon (1/8 4WD buggy) in both a 3S & 6S variant. While both are the same size, the 6S variant has more robust hardware to handle the higher speed the higher voltage battery means. A 3S RTR brushed version is about $250 & just needs battery & charger. A brushless version is about $330 and also needs battery & charger. The 6S RTR is about $500 and still requires battery & charger. The RB10 mentioned earlier can be a good basher and fits the price point. Other options like short course truck, monster truck and more are available as well.

Coldwaters

Thanks for the thoughtful reply. I am just looking to go bashing i guess, i wouldnt even know where to find a competitive track!

1/8 or 1/10 is fine size wise

I have looked at some of your recommendations already and will check the others out soon.

Thanks again

Cinnabun

iTrader: (39)

If youre going to be bashing but what a buggy or truggy kit that you can build I would highly recommend Tekno. for bashing and general running around the yard its hard to beat the Tekno ET48 2.0, you can usually find used ones for around $650 rtr or $350-400 for the chassis with body, wheels and tires.

billdelong

iTrader: (33)

Consider the PR Racing 401R-T which is a mini truggy that could get you pretty close to a $400 budget if you plan your electronics carefully:
https://shop.prracingusa.com/index.p...product_id=976

I have build thread on it here:

• PR Racing 401R-T

Lonestar

iTrader: (14)

Welcome back to the hobby

Most people will usually vouch for the brand they own - that's why they chose it in the first place

If you are a basher, I wouldn't consider 1/10th scale, the size of the tires mean that you have to limit yourself to rather smooth surfaces, unless you go MT, but then the leverage on the A-arms is too high and they become fragile.

I'd go 8th scale or possibly bigger if your budget allows, however $400 will buy you mostly used 8th scale. If you plan to bash "hardcore" with crazy jumps, cartwheels and all, I'm afraid a proper 8th scale race machine, similar to your MP7.5, will not be appropriate because these are still racecars design, and they work well on a track only, not a construction site, or in the woods, or the typical bashing playground.

I would suggest to wait a bit more, save a bit more money, and go more towards the ARRMA/Traxxas kind of products which you can run pretty much everywhere, and have high enough ride height and soft enough plastics to be very robust at the expense of "track" performance. The "premium bashing" segment really has a lot of tailwind these days, which It didn't have a few years back, so there are some great products out there.

I wouldn't consider an "upgradeable" product from 2wd to 4wd - this would be full of compromises. Heck, I don't know if they evey do these anymore

Garet Jax

iTrader: (114)

Upgrading your platform is one thing. Keeping your platform current is another.

My experience is that buying upgraded parts is definitely doable - very expensive, but doable. However, upgrading a buggy from one version to another is almost certainly not worth the cost. Experience has been that it is far better to sell the platform you're using to buy the platform you want to get to. In the long run, it is far cheaper.

As an example, Tekno EB48 has a number of platforms:
48.3
48.4
48 2.0
48 2.1

If you own a 48.3, then it is generally not feasible to upgrade it to a 48.4 let alone a 48 2.1. Even if you have the 48 2.0, it is too expensive to upgrade it to 48 2.1. Tekno has a lot of parts that are interchangeable between the various versions of the buggys and even between buggys and truggys.

In general as the platforms age and becomes less and less current, it becomes more and more difficult to find replacement parts.

Mahjik

iTrader: (2)

RTR is always going to be lower costs.

I'm going to go a different route than the others who have put in comments. Look at Traxxas Slash or Bandit. They are cost effective, there are hop-ups, if you ever want to try your hand at racing, most tracks have a "Slash" group. Parts are readily available just about everywhere.

That being said, I don't own and never have owned a Traxxas myself. But I do see them as a good entry back into the hobby.

jauntyfedora

iTrader: (9)

If you are looking specifically for the cheapest entry into the 1/8 Ebuggy scene, there's a few options:

1. Used previous-gen race buggies like a Tekno EB48.3 or Associated RC8B4e
2. Arrma Typhon 3s starts at $330 RTR
3. Kyosho NEO 3.0 VE Readyset RTR $430
4. Serpent XRS8-e RTR $450

If you are looking for an outdoor basher, Arrma has a variety of other vehicles based on the same platforms as well, just with varying bodies/arms/wheels/shocks. Traxxas now has 4x4 brushless 2S models of the Slash, Stampede, Rustler, and Rally starting at $330, and their 3S VXL models at $400. Team Associated Pro4 SC10 and Rival MT10 are also highly-regarded durable bashers.

OffRoadJunkie

iTrader: (9)

Kyosho released their MP10e as an RTR. It's above your price range, but it will be really good starter.

Kyosho Inferno MP10e Readyset 1/8 4WD Brushless Electric Buggy (Green) [KYO34113T1] - AMain Hobbies

alana07

iTrader: (53)

Coming back to the hobby after so many years, do you still have preference for Kyosho buggies? If yes, then explore their Ready sets of ebuggy.
If you can stretch your budget a bit more, take a look at the MP9E Evo 2 Readyset, this may not be the latest one from Kyosho but it's a pretty decent platform for you to start your comeback. The MP10E Readyset is the latest platform but that's above your budget though.

8TNine

You got a lot of great, detailed responses to this. The one thing I’d emphasize for the price point you’re looking at is trying to find a used kit.

Lots of people and up selling their whole kit and caboodle with batteries, chargers, spare parts, transmitter, etc. If you buy a new kit, even RTR, there are a lot of hidden costs that can add up quickly.

OffRoadJunkie

iTrader: (9)

This is a good idea if you're on a budget. However, keep in mind, not all racers will be honest with the buggy they are selling. They will all tell you it only has a few race days on it, but what some might be meaning is "The buggy has a few race days on it, per week, for the past 10 months.

RazorRC

iTrader: (5)

The only thing I can think of that meets all of your requirements is an Arrma Vorteks/Senton/Granite Boost. 2wd, upgradeable to 4wd, $200 with a cheap battery and charger.

8TNine

Agreed there. Always use caution when purchasing used.