Red RC » P Off Road

November 7, 2010

WC Pattaya – New in the pits

Continuing on with finding new stuff in the bits, we sat down with World Champion Atsushi Hara, who showed us his new self developed cab forward body shell. He has test this new body extensively and found it to have lots of downforce, thanks to not only the front cab, but the ridges going up the side of the cab as well as the rear winglets. This space behind the cab allows cleaner air to reach the wing for better balance, which he has found using one from another manufacturer. The body is expected to be released next month.

View our full event coverage here.

November 6, 2010

Drivers start to arrive at RCP

Saturday has come and gone here at RCP in Pattaya, Thailand with little or no activity apart from a few racers dropping by to check out the track. People’s first impressions is one of awe, with all those visiting for the first time expecting it to be a very difficult track to conquer. With race registration beginning tomorrow we expect all competitors and manufacturers to be trackside so expect more in the line of updates then.

View our full event coverage here.

November 6, 2010

AKA Soft Buggy Insert

AKA have revealed the “last bullet in the clip” for their assault on the 2010 IFMAR World Championships in Pattaya, Thailand. To compliment the release of the Evo wheel and the Impact tire, the new soft red insert was designed to decrease the lateral deflection of the tire while at the same time increasing the vertical impact absorption therefore providing better handling in the bumps. Using softer foam or hollowing out the inner circumference like other companies do still leaves the car feeling squirmy and less accurate through the bumps, not to mention the loss of durability. Gil Losi and Mark Pavidis knew this compromise was not the solution. The solution they found was the addition of lateral grooves to the I.D. of AKA’s best in class closed cell inserts. The lateral grooves allow the insert to flex vertically to absorb the large impacts while still maintaining lateral stability and overall durability AKA inserts are known for. The result is a more predictable handling car in the harshest track conditions. A stiff wheel combined with a laterally stable, vertically compliant insert equals faster lap times.

Source: AKA [raceaka.com]

November 6, 2010

Reedy 121VR-ST Competition Nitro Engine

The long-awaited Reedy 121VR-ST Competition Nitro Engine has finally arrived. Extensively track-tested by Reedy factory drivers such as Ryan Maifield, Craig Drescher, Neil Cragg and Richard Saxton, the VR-ST incorporates state-of-the-art features in a proven package. The current 121VR engine has proven to be an economically priced, powerful race engine, but the 121VR-ST takes performance to an entirely new level with the addition of a balanced ADLC-coated crankshaft, ceramic rear bearing, lightweight piston and ADLC coated wrist pin. An ultra-lightweight heatsink head with ‘diamond cut’ fins improves cooling while lowering the center of gravity. Available in December, the 121VR-ST is a race-proven engine that is capable of producing world-class power and fuel economy with a driver-friendly linear power band.

View more details here

November 5, 2010

Team Durango ready for the Worlds in Pattaya

Sponsors of our live event coverage from Thailand, Durango sent us this report on their preparations for the big event. Even before the 1/8 Team Durango Worlds team went to the World Championship track in Pattaya, Thailand, in October, we knew that the track was hard. It is not only a hard track to drive, it is a hard track on cars. We knew from seeing how other teams’ cars suffered at the warm-up race that the chassis in particular came in for some real punishment. During our tests in October, Ryan Lutz, Hupo Honigl and Gerd Strenge were able to confirm quite how punishing the Pattaya track surface was.

Continue reading the report here

November 5, 2010

Pro-Line 1:10 closed cell rear inserts

Pro-Line are offering a limited availability pre production run of their 1:10 closed cell rear inserts. This new insert is perfect for use on those tracks that desire a firmer and longer lasting insert set-up.

Source: Pro Line [prolineracing.com]

November 4, 2010

Sweep Square Armor tire & Truggy dish wheel

With just days to go before the World Championships, Sweep Racing have released the Square Armor, a tire that would last longer and work better in various conditions. Taking on board what they have learnt in testing and listening to team drivers, they developed this tire which would fill that void in their tire line up. The tread size is the same as the Exagon but is 0.5mm thicker to prevent unexpected tire expansion under high revs. Supplied with the new V2 GRVD molded foam insert it fits on 81~83mm size wheels. Sweep have also released a new truggy dish wheel. Featuring an oversized diameter (100mm) for superior performance, it has a special cavity design that prevents the wheel nuts backing off and a rougher finish on the gluing surfaces for easier assembly. A gloss finish on the inside of the wheels for less mud build up and zero off-set, they are available in black, white and yellow.

View the truggy wheel here

November 4, 2010

Losi 8ight of Mike Truhe

Having shown you photos of Adam Drakes Losi 8ight yesterday, team mate and top qualifier at the 2008 Worlds Mike Truhe has posted photos of his WC ride on Facebook. We can’t see but presume he is running the new chassis with the steel tips, but more interestingly is the car’s rear chassis brace that has been replaced by a shock absorber from one of their 1/10th scale cars. Its travel has been limited as you would expect and is an interesting option giving a mid way point between a stiff chassis with brace installed and a flexy chassis without the brace.

View more images here