Tamiya Toyota Hilux: Time For Tea?
If this doesn't make you want an RC car really badly then nothing will
From the outside advertising appears quite simple: show your product doing what it does best, describe its best features and therefore encourage people to buy one. Simple. Catchy music tends to help. This Tamiya Toyota Hilux advertorial does that almost immediately when 14 RC cars are seen pulling an actual Hilux.
Then it's to the sand dunes and canyons, where the Hilux can be seen testing its ability to climb 45-degree slopes and the making best use of the selectable 4WD. It tackles huge jumps unfazed, wades through axle deep water and continues to surmount all obstacles in its path. A bit like the real one in fact.
Even the technology is interesting. There are three gears selectable from your handheld transmitter, metal construction for durability and water resistant elements so you can continue to play in the rain. As a complete RC novice it makes a very convincing case for buying a remote controlled car. Right now. Maybe it's just the jazzy music.
See the video here.
A friend i used to race with back in the day has recently got back into it. The focus seems to have shifted from 4wd to 2wd now though. The technology has shifted so much its amazing to see, especially with batteries. Quite often back in my day you would gear it slightly wrong and you battery woukd 'dump' with 1 minute to go. Ah the good old days etc etc etc.
http://www.tamiya.com/english/rc/manuals.htm (big tyre models)
..and suspect it would be a £400 ornament.
A couple of years ago I picked up a Blitzer Beetle in v.good condition and then I bought a dog Wild Willy off Ebay and have just finished a ground-up restoration.
The Hi-Lux was the cream of the crop back in the day.
www.tamiyaclub.com is sheer porn for fans
Could not agree more with the chap who mentioned that article in this month's Octane and how Tamiya Kits probably did more to create a generation of mechanically-interested car nuts than anything else this side of Smokey and The Bandit, The Cannonball Run and William Wollard!
I might see if I can interest one of my daughters in getting one for Christmas - although I'm not holding my breath!
If you fancy treating yourself you're best ordering from www.stellamodels.net you will save loads over UK
Prices even after including p&p from Hong kong. I've spent well over a grand with them over the years and never had a single problem.
The last car I got from them was a rerelease Hotshot, this is it next to my original 80s one
At one point there was me building on the kitchen table, my brother-in-law and my nephew (3 yr old) playing with some of the bits, my father "supervising" and reading through the instructions with a pint in hand, and my retired uncle who used to be an RAF signals engineer, playing with the R/C setup in the corner of the table.
It was a very happy moment. Buying another one for this year, with the full intention of sharing the building, particularly with the little one as he gets a bit older and more interested.
Building the diff on the Wild Willy (despite being a Jeep it was only 2WD) was a completely absorbing experience. It also taught me about the issues of unsprung weight and live axles.
My second Tamiya was a Frog - so much more capable than the Willy. It had independent suspension all round, double wishbones at the front and trailing arms behind. And it had oil filled shocks on the rear suspension. Watching the way it dealt with bumpy terrain at speed so much better then the Willy was an education in itself.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff