treky11: I was going to ask about how easy it is to clean the car, but I guess you've all ready answered that!
I know while I was cleaning my Reflex, I had to duck and peek into all sorts of holes and spots to get the car completely clean. It was a real bear to get that tank clean since it couldn't be removed. And the pack really got dirty since it was right between the tank and engine block. Yukkk! At least I could pull the pack out easy to clean it. I would supposed that with the enclosed battery box on the R40, that the battery doesn't get very dirty.
As for being a fan of HPI. I owned one once. It was a micro that was a ball to assemble and play with. I just hope the R40 goes together as well as that HPI kit did.
The only thing that concerns me is the centax style clutch. This will be the first I've built. I have calipers and all so that I can do the proper measurements, but I've seen so many people struggle to get these things built right the first time out, that I'm a little apprehensive about that part of building the kit.