RC_Greg,
Quit sniffing those O'Donnell nitro fumes, dude.
I guess that is the way it is in your area but this is how it is in my area:
Mugen
very good performance
relatively higher priced
excellent parts availability
satisfactory website/support
Kyosho
very good performance
very expensive
poor to non-existent part availability
below average support
HPI
good performance
least expensive
good parts availability
good website/good support
Serpent
very good performance
next to least expensive
non-existent parts availability
decent website/non-existent support
Mugen, Serpent were the flavors of choice until Ron Atomic went Kyosho. Now it is Kyosho, Mugen, then Serpent with a sprinkle of HPI. But with the new Mugen, Kyosho cars here are starting to be posted for sale like it is no one's business.