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Yes, as does everyone's. The 40th comes with FRP plates (as does the 45th) but at the same time they released the 40th they rere'd the carbon plate set (53195) so you could upgrade your FRP kit to carbon. They could/should/may have done the same this time, almost nobody needs the full conversion kit these days (although I might buy one anyway because I'm a Porsche TA02 freak 😂 - I have a spare beautiful boxart Starcard that could do with a double deck conversion before I sell it). I still have a NIB vintage FRP Conversion Set and like almost all my vintage stuff, Tamiya are apparently intent on undermining the value of it.

Yep, it seems we're in general agreement, thanks for the detailed info. Interesting, FYI the link you posed in the thread does require a FB login however, after this post I checked the link in your sig and that does not require a FB login. Weird. 🤷

@Mokei Kagaku - I don't do FB because it's a blight on humanity so I can't see your post there. Regardless, I think what you're saying is that Tamiya have upgraded the TA02 "FRP Chassis Conversion Set" to a "Carbon Chassis Conversion Set", is that correct? If that's the case it's terrible value for a 45th Anniversary (or a 40th for that matter) because it includes a whole bunch of redundant parts you already have. The smarter buy would be the chassis plates alone (e.g. 53195) although I have no idea on availability. It begs the question why Tamiya don't just include carbon decks in the kit, if the above is true then it's a di*k move by Tamiya. They rere'd the carbon plates with the 40th, surely they can do the same for the 45th at a lower cost than the full (unnecessary) conversion set. Of course it's great for those with tub TA02's that want to upgrade but really, how big is that market these days?

I'm not familiar with the TT02 chassis but before you pull out the parts shotgun (and wallet) do a few calculations, top speed is a science, not an art. Once you know what you need to reach your speed goal, then you can ask/decide what components you need to upgrade to support that accomplishment. Start with this calculator or this one for a general idea that's based on proper calculations. You probably need to aim for 55-60km/h in the calculators if you want to hit 50km/h (actual) because of all sorts of variables those calculators can't take into consideration. Obviously you'll need a GPS unit to give you a proper speed reading, you might be surprised at how poor humans are at determining speed, over dynamic distances, with our eyes alone. FWIW, I like the way you approached the community with your question, some new people wanting advice aren't actually willing to accept that advice. Nice work and welcome. 👍

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That's a full chassis conversion from plastic tub to double deck, you then need to add carbon plates as well. The 45th Anniversary car comes double deck already so you'll just need the chassis plates. Shock towers will be separate if they're even available in carbon.

Typically it's just the decks, not even the towers (for a TA02).

I agree that ball diffs are worth the effort and once you've got the knack it's much easier than tuning a gear diff with oil. I'd default to a gear diff up front, ball diff down back and a slipper. I'd run the gear diff dry on a loose surface first to see how the chassis behaved. The slipper would probably be harder to get perfect than the ball diff.

You can fit the battery? 😉

Wow, that's an expensive bit of kit back on the day, good on you for keeping it. Full disassemble and clean and then some good pics please. 🤩

I doubt I'll ever build this, I don't have the patience, particularly for the paintwork. I want one to match each of my 1:10's, I have a Jager en route but have yet to find a Vaillant for a reasonable price. And I'm a sucker for great boxart. #LockdownLife #EssentialProducts

Edit: sniped ^ ! As long as you can plug your battery into your ESC, forget about changing the connectors for the time being, that's a complication you don't need to worry about in the short term.

I only have good things to say about RC4WD, allowing us to reinterpret days well gone is gold IMHO.

If only their shipping was remotely reasonable, nearly 20 bucks (Canadian) to send an A4 envelope with some cardboard is crazy.

Gold. 💪👍 Thanks for putting the effort in, I enjoyed that, perfect music, script and voice too, well done.

In general terms, adding a nicely adjusted ball diff to the rear can make a considerable difference to turning circle, a rear gear diff will encourage push understeer and a wider turning circle, a correctly set up ball diff minimises this.

Jeepers, you were busy in the "noughties"! 💪😉

Possibly the least exciting post in this entire thread but hey, they did turn up today. Rears are also on the way but from a different supplier. There's not a lot of love for Tamiya's Star-Dish wheels but I actually rate them highly. It could be a nostalgic hangover from my Top Force/TFE days, who knows? I'm not sold on the Super Avante (yet?) but I think these blue wheels (although they look purple in my pic they're actually navy blue) would suit the boxart paint job far better than the terrible fluro yellow ones.

Don't get me wrong, RCMart have been my go-to for nearly two decades but their shipping shenanigans, no doubt influenced by Covid, aren't good at the moment. If they know their shipping calculator isn't calculating correctly they should fix it rather than taking money and having to subsequently cancel orders.

Just be careful with RCMart also at the moment, my last two orders they've taken my money and then contacted me later to say their shipping calculator is inaccurate and they wanted an additional US$19 for shipping each time. That took the shipping from "expensive" to "ridiculous" (although still not as bad as RCJaz). I've just put in a test order at HobbyLink Japan and their email customer service has been excellent. The goods haven't arrived yet so I'm not yet ready to recommend them. Check Stella Models also.

I don't remember that being a problem when I built mine. Did you install and tighten all of the grub screws? IIRC the joints themselves come assembled (and can't come apart) but they require two grub screws on each side to keep the output and drive shaft assembly together.

I was thinking of the front window sunshade 'Live to Rally' sticker actually, my painting skills aren't up to that! 😉 Any additional info you can provide in the fullness of time will be greatly appreciated.

Hmm, can you point me to such parts? Or brand/site I can search/browse? That may tickle my fancy even though I'm currently considering just the shell.

Hey folks, I have a beautiful boxart Sand Scorcher and I've fallen in love with the look of the MF-01X VW Beetle Rally. I was going to buy a MF kit however it seems like it's a fun chassis but a bit meh (and I have a bunch of M chassis vehicles anyway). I have a spare Scorcher shell and was wondering if I could use the Beetle Rally decals on that, does anyone know what the relative dimensions are and whether I have any chance of pulling this off? I think the critical ones would be windows and the stripes. Obviously I can trim but I can't grow! And because every thread deserves pics...

I have no idea, didn't look. I wasn't suggesting a 13T, indeed I mentioned that there were many options, just that it was a combo that I had experience with (mine was a 55T combo!). The point of my post was to highlight that you can get a good, matched, ESC and motor for not much money and it doesn't need to be a complex proposition. If I were just starting out a lot of the information in this thread, whilst provided with the best of intentions, would do my head in.