Mardave R12 Mini

Intro The Mardave R12 kit is the cheapest form of R/C Car racing on the market today. The R12 is related in many ways to the V12 Mardave, but it is slightly cheaper. This is because the R12 chassis is slightly smaller, and there is no suspension. These cars are built for close indoor racing that is strictly regulated so that it is the driving skill, not the biggest budget, that wins the races. Cost The R12 kit costs £39.95, and a basic setup is in the region of £105 (This includes kit, one 4.8V 1800mAh battery, radio gear, charger) but for a racing setup it is more like £250 (Kit, 4x2000mAh batteries, decent fast charger, quality radio gear, Graupner Speed 500 motor and an electronic speed controller) Build The car goes together easily, as it is very simple in design. There are no tricky bits, and mess is greatly reduced due to the fact that there are no oil filled shocks to do battle with! The hardest bit by far is painting the bodyshell well, for a beginner this can be quite a challenge.           The instructions are good and clear, and their layout is easy to understand. Running The Mardave V- and R12 series are hard to set up properly if the track is a long way away, as more often than not the car performs differently on the carpet in your home than the carpet on the track. However, help is always on hand from more experianced racers and once the car is up and running it is easy to run and maintain. Another bonus is that spares are cheap. Likes Raceability Simple design Easy to Maintain Dislikes Cannot be run outside Foam tyres wear out quickly Heavy bodyshell (although lexan ones are available) Rating                                     4 stars