One of the classic buggies I was really anxious to run is the Kyosho progress. To build a progress is to realize just how far 4wd buggy design has progressed!. The Progress is 4wd, 4wheel steering, and uses a 1 way front drive, to further enhance off throttle steering. Kyosho introduced a few great ideas on the progress. For instance, hinge pins captured by set screws instead of e clips, and of course the 1 way front drive. Both of those features are popular on newer touring cars. I built my progress using all ball bearings to make it as fast and efficient as possible. The car is powered by a Kyosho Lemans 240s motor. This motor was designed to run 4 minutes on 1200 mah cells. I have no idea how many turns, or winds it is. My newer competition stockers sound faster to listen to them unloaded. I figured this was an appropriate motor for the progress. None of my cars use a mechanical speed control, so this one is equipped with a novak dusterII sport. I was really surprized at how fast the progress is. First squeeze of the throttle resulted in wild wheel spin, 4 big rooster tails, and my dropped jaw! This car is impressive. Its fast enough to be quite fun. The gearbox is a bit noisy, but everything worked fine. I was a bit worried about the drive train holding up. Steering response is great. On power steering is super quick, and off power steering is just as good. The car changes direction very quickly when asked, even at full throttle. It was difficult to make the car spin out of control. The 4 wheel steering makes it very responsive, but strangely, it just would not lose the tail. I can imagine that running the progress all the time would introduce weakness in the design. Im sure its maintenance intensive. The suspention does a good enough job of keeping tires in contact with the dirt. The rear trailing arm set up is great for soaking up bumps, and the front a arm keeps camber in check for great handling. The shocks are a bit weak. They are small. Not enough fluid in them to make much difference. Possibly kyosho short gold shocks would fit, and if so, would make a great improvement in suspention action. Stock shock springs are pretty stiff. Back then the buggies ran with full height, no sag, and the stock shocks and springs are perfect for this type set up. I have run the progress only a few times, and it always draws positive comments. People are amazed when I mention its from the mid eighties, as it puts on such an entertaining performance. The progress series were truly ahead of their time.
Reviews
oldfordguy
One of the classic buggies I was really anxious to run is the Kyosho progress. To build a progress is to realize just how far 4wd buggy design has progressed!. The Progress is 4wd, 4wheel steering, and uses a 1 way front drive, to further enhance off throttle steering. Kyosho introduced a few great ideas on the progress. For instance, hinge pins captured by set screws instead of e clips, and of course the 1 way front drive. Both of those features are popular on newer touring cars. I built my progress using all ball bearings to make it as fast and efficient as possible. The car is powered by a Kyosho Lemans 240s motor. This motor was designed to run 4 minutes on 1200 mah cells. I have no idea how many turns, or winds it is. My newer competition stockers sound faster to listen to them unloaded. I figured this was an appropriate motor for the progress. None of my cars use a mechanical speed control, so this one is equipped with a novak dusterII sport. I was really surprized at how fast the progress is. First squeeze of the throttle resulted in wild wheel spin, 4 big rooster tails, and my dropped jaw! This car is impressive. Its fast enough to be quite fun. The gearbox is a bit noisy, but everything worked fine. I was a bit worried about the drive train holding up. Steering response is great. On power steering is super quick, and off power steering is just as good. The car changes direction very quickly when asked, even at full throttle. It was difficult to make the car spin out of control. The 4 wheel steering makes it very responsive, but strangely, it just would not lose the tail. I can imagine that running the progress all the time would introduce weakness in the design. Im sure its maintenance intensive. The suspention does a good enough job of keeping tires in contact with the dirt. The rear trailing arm set up is great for soaking up bumps, and the front a arm keeps camber in check for great handling. The shocks are a bit weak. They are small. Not enough fluid in them to make much difference. Possibly kyosho short gold shocks would fit, and if so, would make a great improvement in suspention action. Stock shock springs are pretty stiff. Back then the buggies ran with full height, no sag, and the stock shocks and springs are perfect for this type set up. I have run the progress only a few times, and it always draws positive comments. People are amazed when I mention its from the mid eighties, as it puts on such an entertaining performance. The progress series were truly ahead of their time.