The later 03RWD is a decent way to go if you don't want to travel down the rabbit hole of brushless. No mini Z works well on hardwood floors. The tires that are soft enough to get a grip will pick up things not even visible to the naked eye. In minutes the car will look like it has cat paws. Equally poor performance on even the smoothest asphalt. it is a ground clearance issue more than anything else but a grain of sand in the gears can be catastrophic. Although not a big fan of off road in general you might have some success with one of the little Z buggies. Lots of aftermarket bits that can add to durability.
As far as Bruckner is concerned, you might want to visit and observe the people and proceedings a time or two before committing to their program.