Here in Germany the Team C GT8LE is sold under the label of Absima.
There are two versions available, the RTR including motor, esc, body and radio, and a kit car without those parts. The pricetag is nearly the same for both shipping for around 425 Euro.
The parts in the kit are of a much better quality compared with the RTR version. Major parts are the chassis, machined arm mounts and shock towers, real CVD´s instead of simple dog bones and adjustable shocks.
For me that does make the kit a better deal.
Don´t know where the 500 $ tag in the US does come from. If there a body included with the kit ?