Egress
Model Number: 58079
Released
29-Jun-89
Drive
4WD
Suspension
Wishbone multilink
Chassis Description
Graphite plate
Body Type
Lexan polycarbonate
Motor
n/a
A evolutionary descendant of the sophisticated Avante, the Egress shares a simplified suspension & longer wheelbase arrangement as seen in Vanquish/Avante2001; Avante drivetrain is carried forward except with balldiffs F/R and one-way bearing in the middle. No expense is spared - as seen where Platinum hi-cap dampers are specified, as are a full set of blue-rubber-sealed bearings, graphite chassis plates & towers, alloy hardware and titanium screws.
Reviews
sunnyjai
Hi All,
Egress another remarkable machine from a collector's point of view. Other than the Avante I too longed for this one of a kind looking machine - a worthy successor to the Avante.
Despite Tamiya's attempt in improving the machine over the Avante, it was still fragile and parts were a very expensive affair. Items such as the front shock towers, the steering hubs, and the 3x42mm countersunk screw that holds the rear trailing arm were enough to cripple the machine should a sizable accident were to happen during racing. I have had this experience with my Avante 2001 and one small accident was enough to break it's front shock towers. On another occasion the 3x42mm countersunk screw bent pretty badly following a slight thump with a trackside curb!
Despite it's small but significant shortcomings it's another good looking design along side the Avante and Top Force Evolution and a timeless one at that! For its aggressive stance and stealth bombshell nothing comes close to an Egress!
Egress now commands high prices both in restored and NIB guises with prices second only to Avante. Parts in particular such as screw sets, are almost impossible to find so you'd have to buy them separately if you're having to beat the agonising wait to rebuild your pride and joy. Hi-Cap dampers are also expensive but good deals can still be had if you be patient and look around. However if you do stumble accross a cheap nasty beaten up Egress and one with broken chassis at that please steer away as replacement chassis are among the most expensive on this side of universe and will end up costing as much as an NIB thus in the end discouraging you big time! Bodysets are increasingly becoming dearer but not as expensive compared to Top Force Evo, Avante and Avante 2001 for prices. Other than that other parts are interchangeable with Vanquish and Avante 2001 and with the re release of the Vajra, and Avante Black Special, suspension arms, gearboxes, hubs, black lightweight wheels and tires are now a much cheaper proposition - If I only knew that a year ago I would have waited to restore mine! But then one can't be calculative over passion for one's dream kit!
A must have addition to one's collection and classic!
muratti
The Egress is my favourite model. When i first saw it in a Guide book i bought when i began to collect Vintage Tamiya buggies i thought this must be the ultimate Tamiya Buggy to have and to drive. I never thought i would own one but then i met a man that sold his whole Egress collection to me and told me about a club in the Internet where you have a huge amount of Tamiya info. The rest is history.
I first didn´t want to drive one of the Egress i bought from him but then found out that it wasn´t quite stock so i began to race it on my hometrack. It is very difficult to make a good adjustment on the Egress if track conditions change as fast as on my track. Soil s very loose on my track and can be sticky once there is a little humidity not like loam that is like concrete once it has been hardened and dried out. So i drove the Egress with Oval Block tires which is absolutely wrong on loose soil. I then tried some long pins from Schumacher similar to the Egress stock tires which would be perfect but simply to expensive and rare to race it on the track. Schuachers worked very well. Long pins are best for loose soil and with some adjustments on the gears (removing the one way) and some very positive camber on the Rear wheels to make it more stable on the Rear during cornering the Egress performs very well! I drove a Top Force Evolution for some years before i bought the Egress and first was diappointed about the handling characteristics of the Egress. Of course the Top Force Evo is a newer car and is easier to drive. I think this is because it so well balanced. No big adjustments must be made to make it easy to drive. The Egress needs a bit more attention on the setting but then is very much fun to drive.
Also it is great looking, the box with all the parts in the Blisters look fantastic, building the car is a pleasure and for me the construction of the Gearbox with the motor installed lengthwise is just a masterpiece of engineering. Although i heard about the fact that Front Uprights break very easy i never had that problem with the Egress Uprights. I broke Avante 1st Generation Front Uprights quite easy but they are much weaker than the ones from the Egress which have been increased on almost every area.
Also i love the looks of Carbon and Titanium and with the addition of sealed ball bearings, Ball diffs, Titanium screws and Aluminium nuts Tamiya put in every single Hop Up part that was available at the time exept for the Posi Joint Universals which where very expensive. Because of the price i never had the heart to open NIP Posi Joints to try them on my Egress Runner but for sure they look awesome!
Other Hop Ups if you want to be 100% sure you have all Options would be the Avante Inner Sponge for the Egress Rear tires and Mini and Short Hi Cap Spring Sets. I have them installed on my Runner and the don´t only look nice they also make the rear end more stable when cornering.
All in all the Egress is in my opinion although very expensive nowadays a must have for every Buggy collection!
kontemax
Considering this car the top of the line it has too much problems to solve in my opinion.
The first one is the extreme weakness of the front end. Front hubs and metal hub carriers go to breakage very easly. You cannot have a big crash with the Egress. Or you can have a big stock of spares!
The second problem is the weight. The car is heavy (1660 grams ready to run without torsion bars) and this not helps in case of crashes. Weight can be reduced but a car with titanium and carbon fiber would’nt need, in my opinion.
The third problem is the oversteering during accelerations. Rear end go where he want.
I resolved this problem keeping away both bars (saving 50 grams of weight), the center one way and tuning the dampers. I opted for a 3.5 rate spring on front, oil #40 and 3 holes and with a 2.0 rate spring in the rear with oil #40 end 4 holes. Frons camber is neutral and rear is a little bit negative. I kept rear ball diff as instructions and hardened the front ball diff with two 0.05 mm spacers more.
Not perfect, can be enhanced I think, but it’s a good point to start. With this configuration I find the car very balanced. With a minimum of understeering in entrance and a minimum oversteering in exit, it’s well balanced on the jumps too and funny to drive. Some minor modifications can be done according to drive style and track conditions.
At the end a fantastic car, fast and very reactive on the track. Chassis is interesting and is a state of the art. Rear gearbox remember me the rear of a gothic cathedral, don’t ask why, I don’t know. A real beauty with a great design, it moves on the track like a wild cat. A must have and a must drive.
Kontemax