tdeal823

iTrader: (30)

I would not buy any Sportworks or CEN buggy I have never owned them. But I have seen to many people show up at the track and smack a tube and they break the first time out. They are good for the price, But not good for racing is what I have seen.
The RC8 is very popular but its not a kit I don't know if you want to build the car or not but it only comes as a race roller.
Kyosho and mugen make great cars I do not have any experience with them to say one way or the other.
The LOSI 8ight and the Jammin X1-CR are 2 cars that I have owned and I love them both. The pro driver support is the best. Both of these companies have great cars. The jammin is very nutral and easy to drive. The 8ight takes more finess to drive like every one else says it is a "Drivers Buggy" I don't know your sons driving skill but the jammin might be the better of the 2 being it is more nutral and stable. the 8ight is not a run and gun car.


also look to see what other guys are running in your area. they will be able to help out with setup and misc. questions.

good luck

rabidsquirrel

iTrader: (2)

Tdeal,

I'd say that the Hyper 8.5 falls in between the Jammin' and the Losi. It is a compromise that brings the best traits of both buggy designs to the driver.

It is very forgiving and favors a finesse style. Highly durable. Cheap parts everywhere. You can practically rebuild the buggy with brand new parts for ~$150 when you get the parts from Ebay.

The buggy also handles extremely well in all conditions, and it excels, especially, in rough and rutted conditions. Highly tuneable chassis, but also easy to tune in terms of getting a baseline setup that works well everywhere.

Oh, I almost forgot... This buggy out accelerates everything else! No other buggy will beat a H8.5 off the line or out of a corner as long as the motor is in decent shape. You can put an average motor in it with average tune and it'll still out accelerate the competition.

It is just an awesome all around buggy design that does everything extremely well.

You can get one for around $420 shipped from www.nitrohouse.com

Rocket42

+1 rabidsquirrel

rltanner

iTrader: (2)

VTX B1

zardoz

I would say go with the RC8 personally. It handles like it's on rails, and is extremely quick. The only downside right now is parts availability. Not many LHS' have parts for it yet.

josh35

iTrader: (1)

My son read the mazigenes and he likes the RC8 but I think it is to new.
I like the CEN because of price but there is no parts here for them, same for the sportwerks. It will be between the WP777, Mugen, And the RC8. Tell me what you think.

petevette

iTrader: (13)

Kids pick this hobby up pretty quick. I would get him the best car that you can afford. I went from a prospec/Mugen 5R to a RC8 and liked both cars. The prospec, was bullet proof but a little heavy and didn't react as quick. The RC8 is blistering quick and has exceptional steering. Also reacts very well to changes in setup. The RC8 is new on the market, but parts are available online and more and more parts are becoming available at the local hobby stores. I am with your son who apparently has done his research. I would go the RC8 as I am sure he will quickly grow into the car instead of growing out of a car. Good luck!

Jason Halvorson

iTrader: (22)

well at this point the 777 and the MBX5 will be undergoing some changes with new models expected out sometime next season, and the RC8 is very new, but seems to be a very good buggy...if it were me making this investment i would go with the Mugen, but that might be a bit of a bias call being thats what i run...however the mugen is bullet proof and very stable to drive, but with a good setup any of those buggies can be very fast in the hands of a skillful driver, but when it comes to a beginner the mugen IMHO would be the strongest with a good stable driving platform to build from...now for the RC8 this is the buggy at the moment taking the rc world by storm...now i would like to suggest another buggy a lil the Hyper 8.5, its a very nice buggy with tons of handling and stablilty at a very good price, just a lil over $400 IMHO its the best bang for the buck buggy on the market...if i were to make a change from mugen that would be the buggy i would be running...

jbrow1

iTrader: (28)

Above I said I'd go with the mugen..
I just raced my RC8 yesterday for the first time and I can't say enough about what an awesome buggy it is. Basically box stock setup with a few tweaks and the thing handled better the first time I drove it than any of my previous buggies. And it didn't have a single problem all day. I guess if your son likes the rc8 I would probably go with that buggy. Just a dream to pilot that car around. Made driving seem really easy.

DOMIT

iTrader: (1)

My reaction when I drove the Losi for the first time was exactly what you just said. I've owned an MBX5, have buds with an MBX5R, Kyosho SPII, Losi, and RC8. The Mugen and Kyosho guys drove my car and are switching now. The Mugen is the most forgiving, but he'll outgrow it. The Losi is a little edgier, but nobody will outgrow it anytime soon. The RC8 guys love those cars and say they are like the Losi, maybe a little edgier even. I think for a youngster (with the quick reactions developed by video games! LOL) either of those would be good.

Jack Smash

iTrader: (35)

Yup, Xray is trying to do to offroad what they have done to on-road. New car every year. Except the car matters less in offroad than it does in onroad so it will be a tough sell.

Dr. Lightspeed

I would never buy a CEN anything for one reason before XMAS I was in the market for a new buggy. I do not use my credit card on line ever. PayPal or nothing which is good CEN advertises PayPal support. I emailed CEN Dec17,2007 about the email I should send the PayPal to and to this day no reply. I also sent them another email the following day asking if I should buy anything else from them still no reply. I was surprised they advertise great support "Or it is free" somehow I don't think there is a Pro Matrix on its way to me. On a side note my wife put a Sportwerks Turmoil under the tree. I havn't got it painted yet but I have done the motor break in and so far I am liking it in a big way.

playboy

get the buggy that your lhs carries the most parts to
it will help u a lot

good luck

luisv

I think you need to consider what your LHS carries and which parts they carry in stock. I had a Losi 8ight B and loved it; however, my LHS didn't have any of the parts on hand so I was forced to pick up spares on-line. I've seen racers wait 7-10 days for the LHS to get something in, so make sure you can get spares locally. Purchasing on-line is great, but in a bind you want to make sure if you can get it locally.

All of the buggies you mentioned would do very well and all are proven winners. It's simply a matter of preference. I sold the 8ight B to pick up an 8ight T as I can transplant all of my mods and upgrades over.

crazy4wdracer

iTrader: (25)

From what I have seen the rc8 is the best out overall. It is very durable, parts are cheap and almost every shop carries associated parts. The jammin x1 cr is another great buggy. And don't forget about hot bodies, they have a great buggy at a price lower than probably any other competiton buggy out.