Kyosho Dnano Micro Radio Controlled Race Cars – Perfect For A Tabletop GP

When I was a kid, if you wanted automotive entertainment you were stuck with either sliding Hot Wheels around on plastic tracks or if you were super lucky, you had a slot car track. Slot car tracks were great, cars stuck running a single line that you could make go slower or faster. Yeah, no steering, no strategy, just faster or slower, it was the equivalent of an automotive true or false test.

Kids today have it better, as do immature adults. Kyosho, the company you remember from your teenage years for making sweet 1/10th scale RC cars, is now making fully functional 1/43rd scale RC cars. These aren’t those ten-dollar micro RC cars they sell in electronics stores that barely work. These are proportionally controlled hobby quality vehicles. You can turn a little or lot, you can accelerate hard or just cruise or anywhere in between for that matter. Dnano cars will be sold as complete kits with the controller and everything you need to race. Cars will also be sold separately as will the bodies that are collectible by themselves as models.

Kyosho plans on rolling out a series of tracks at hobby shops around the country where enthusiasts can race each other in spec and modified classes. Eventually, all the tracks will be linked via the internet where drivers can compete nationally or even globally for best lap times. Every Dnano car has a micro transponder that will identify the car and the owner, so no matter what track you are at you can log data.

Unfortunately, on-road RC car racing has died out recently. Hopefully Dnano racing will start a new era of interest of road racing. Being able to race year around indoors and competing with drivers from around the world sounds exciting to us. The fact that these cars look so good, and Kyosho is offering such a huge variety of cars is also a big plus. Fans of vintage Porsche racecars can race alongside a brand new Skyline or Lamborghini. Thanks to the variability of the chassis, cars look and drive realistically. They can be set up as either mid or rear motor, wheelbase can be lengthened and track width is variable as well. A full range of modification parts will be available with everything from modified motors, to the smallest ball differential you have ever seen.

We expect prices to be well under 200 bucks for the entire package. Track time may vary by location as will availability of network competition. We drove prototypes a few months ago, and we had a blast. They are faster than you can control at first. The learning curve is steep and door to door racing is a real challenge. The track sare covered in carpet, which unfortunately means that traction rolls will happen before any sliding. We would like to eventually see some sort of smooth surface that will allow the cars to slide around a little. Run times were in the fifteen minute range and batteries are easily interchangeable if you don’t want to take breaks in between sessions. We hope these are the next trend in RC, they are fun affordable and most importantly, cool.

www.kyoshoamerica.com