ScaleautoHSV10

12/03/2013

1/32nd Scale Scaleauto HSV-10 Super GT
Presentation Raybrig

Scaleauto delivers the Honda HSV-10 with all the looks of its 1:1 big brother as it was first debuted back in January 2010 at Suzuka. In the Super GT class, it made a first impression that had several folks shaking in their shoes. How does the little brother stack up to its pedigree sibling?.

Those of you that make Scaleauto cars part of your usual purchase list will find the same great product you are accustomed to. For the folks that have never purchased a Scaleauto slot car, I think you'll find this review helpful, though parts of it may be overwhelming. I'd encourage you to join in the discussion of this model in our Product Review forum. There are lots of folks to help answer your questions and make sure you get the most of your slot car hobby.

I won't go into all the historical background of this model, so if you'd like to find out more about Super GT racing and the machine that Honda brought to the arena, take a little trip around the internet and you'll find plenty of information. Here we'll concentrate on the slot car; it's looks, craftsmanship, an how it runs out of the box.

The attention to detail on this model is impressive. Each time I look at it I see something new. The 'carbon fiber' body, as well as all the sponsor logos are done well; clear and crisp. And with the mention of carbon fiber, I should tell you that this model has a lightweight body, which club racers will find beneficial. The interior is nicely detailed as well, but try as I might I could not get a good photo of it. I didn't really want to disassemble the body but I'll consider it for future reviews.

The antennae as well as mirrors are not break resistant, so if you plan to race this model hard, you may find them missing after some hard crashes.

The model does come with an "extra" front chin spoiler, complete with tow hook. I say extra, because the only way that you can install the detailed version is to remove the existing chin spoiler by breaking/cutting it off. The detailed spoiler, which is actually more durable, is then attached to the chassis with four small machine screws which are included. I did not attempt to install the detailed spoiler for this review.

As I mentioned earlier, the details and their execution are done well on this model, even on the rear of the car. Might as well give the guy behind you a nice view, right?.

The wheels look nice and show the brake caliper as well as the disc through the spokes. Little details like this are always a nice touch.

The tires are not printed with a brand, but the rear tires sport the "Scaleauto" name molded in as well as the tire size for easy reference. This model actually had the tires mounted with that detail to the inside, so I turned them around as the sidewall on the opposite side sports a mold teat and has a bit of an edge to it. The front tires have no size or name molded on them. The rear tires are 19mm x 10.5mm and the fronts are 18mm x 9mm.

Box Stock Testing

Veteran's Memorial Speedway (Roadcourse and Oval)

Parma 45Ohm Controller - Aftermarket Pyramid 26KX Power @ 12V

Taken from it's case, I adjusted the braids for proper contact with the track and put this car in the slot for a run. The car performed horribly. It bounced around like a low rider with an air bag problem. Upon taken a closer look, I found that both the rear tires were not fully seated on the wheels. It was at this point that I noted the tire detail I mentioned above. The wheels have a center rib that is very thin so getting the tires seated properly is a must. I typically will squeeze the tire between my thumb and forefinger, essentially pinching it, from front to back, which spread out the inner sidewalls of the tire and allows it to seat over the center rib properly. With that corrected, back on the track it went. Acceleration and braking are really good and the motor, at 20,000 RPM rating, has plenty of power. The tires didn't hold on long but that is easily remedied with aftermarket tires with better gripping qualities. The stock tires may work well for some, but on my track they don't.

The only flaw that I found with this model is that the guide is not long enough. The car wanted to come out of the slot in hard turns and turns with banking without little effort. An aftermarket guide with a deeper flag would fix this easily.

Looking Closer

Removing the 4 screws we see a very nice chassis, the RT3 LWB to be exact (more on that below). There are more adjustments here than you'll find at your chiropractor. This chassis comes with a solid front axle that sport plastic wheels, which will require very little, if any, truing. The model comes with two additional set screws for the top side axle adjustment. From the box, the front axle has lots of up and down travel. It's more movement than I like so I'll install the set screws to lessen that. The rear wheels are aluminum with set screws.

The wiring could be routed a little better, but as it is, it works fine. The friction of it against the front axle should be addressed.

The front guide fitment is okay but it does have more side to side play in it than I like And as I mentioned earlier, it's a shallow guide so you may want to replace it with a deeper one.

The Honda running gear is a 12 tooth plastic pinion that mates up to a 32 tooth plastic spur gear. The gear mesh is about as perfect as you can get. It's a little noisy, but that will go away with continued use, or if you are impatient like me, add a little rubbing compound/grease mixture and that will help to speed up the process.

As I mentioned earlier, the motor in this car is 20K RPM and for my smaller home track, it's a bit too much. It is controllable but you better bring your A game. On a larger commercial track, this car would be a nice mild mannered racer.

Braking is good in this car, stopping from full throttle at 12V in less than 18", which is the range I like my cars to stop in.

For the magnet racer, the chassis comes with a small bar magnet. Should you choose, there is plenty of room to add additional magnets.

You'll see below that the chassis is setup as a sidewinder, but it can be setup as an angle winder or inline. Yep, three motor/gear configurations in one chassis. While I'm not big into any one of them, I like the idea of having the three configurations in our hobby available in one chassis. You'll also see the many screws for adjusting the motor pod, ride height, body float, etc. To say this chassis is holey would be an understatement.

Final Thoughts

The cars performance is what I would expect from a model of this type. It's geared more toward the club racer and offers many options to optimize the cars handling and speed. Different than most cars in my collection, I found this car to be a nice performer out of the box. While I will put it through my usual tune up process, the car really doesn't need anything major to run well.

And for those of you that like to collect rather than race your slot cars, this livery is a limited edition of 1000, though the box nor the car have anything to indicate this. A card or something to designate it as a limited edition would have been a nice touch.

At a cost of $74.99, I feel you do get your moneys worth. While there are cars that will cost you less and perform just as good, you'll not find this model from any other manufacturer. We all enjoy the slot car hobby in our own way, and this model offers something to the crowd that likes to tune with the many aftermarket parts that are available, including those from Scaleauto. At the same time, if you are just getting into racing, this model would suit you well. With it's many setup options, and the popularity of the brand, you'll have no trouble finding the help you may need to adjust your model to its full potential.

This review model needs very little to run well. I'll add some aftermarket tires from Paul Gage Tires, swap out the guide and most likely replace the motor with something more mild for my home track and enjoy it for a long time.

Remember, this hobby is about FUN! Scaleauto has brought us a model that will bring many smiles around the race track.

- Jeremy

Contact ME about this review or the hobby in general.

Thank you to Powerslotcars.com for sponsoring this review.
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