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You're right! I loved that game and spent way too much time playing it on SNES!!

The Levant also has metal gears, but is geared lower than the TB01 to accommodate the larger wheels. The first picture in this reply shows the difference in bevel gear size: Edit: you can see the Levant’s smaller gear with the crescent shaped hole as opposed to the splined hole on the TB01. Edit 2: I suppose it’s also worth mentioning that the Enzo version of the TB01 also used the larger gears, but in plastic with a crescent shaped hole. Yay consistency!!

@Juggular I quite like the idea of the front wheels pawing away at the dirt for traction! And who can't appreciate the legacy of the 2CV?! If you end up reconsidering the XV01, rcMart has 58528 for $160 (where I got mine), although shipping might be a deal breaker...

To answer the initial question, definitely run it! I never had a Hotshot growing up, but I had a single issue of Radio Control Car Action that featured the Hotshot II. I thought it was the coolest thing EVER. I didn't discover the re-release until 2011, but even then it was the sole reason for me getting back into the hobby. I've since picked up a few vintage Hotshots as well as that HSII I dreamed of as a child. If there's any love lost for the Hotshot, it definitely hasn't lost mine I think they're quite fun on loose dirt and small jumps, but then again I'm generally a "silver can" kind of guy

OP also mentions "very unsmooth" surfaces, which makes me question if a 1/10 rally car is best for the need or a good playmate for his SCTs. I have a 2WD Slash that will fly over mixed terrain, but none of the rally-prepped cars I have (TL01, TB01, XV01) can keep up. There's also a pretty significant difference in scale, so I never run them together as a crash would clearly favor the SCT.

No longer needed.

I had a similar feeling, but for a slightly different reason -- the manual really put me off from the start. For me, the RC10 is all about having a somewhat confusing manual with blurry black and white photos. The rendered graphics in the re-release manual stole away any sense of nostalgia. I really appreciate that Tamiya has been consistent in their very technical line-art drawings over time. My other gripe with the Classic was just how poorly it came together. Sure, vintage RC10s take a bit of fettling, but mine was a case of parts so far out of tolerance they would never run smoothly. Unfortunately, this just reinforced the whole "made in China" feeling about it... Good luck with whichever way you choose to go.

Tamico has had the Rock Socker on offer for €209.99 for a while now, and with DHL shipping this puts it around the £200 mark to the UK. Not sure about their US shipping rates, so this may or may not beat the rcMart price (USD to Euro conversion rate isn't too bad right now!). However, the Rock Socker is a bit of a "budget" CR-01, so it does not come with a full bearing set (will need some 1280s and 1050s), needs an ESC, and depending on your feelings on the Stadium Blitzer body, you may incur some costs there as well Like @87lc2 said, it is a capable truck in the right hands, but you will fight a little with the short wheelbase and high center of gravity. The cantilever suspension is cool, but a bit sloppy, and if you have not already seen it, @speedy_w_beans build thread is pretty epic has shows a couple of fixes: I personally find my SCX10 II more capable, but find it a little soulless compared to my CR-01. As they say, your mileage may vary

I'm not an expert on these models, but to my knowledge the main technical difference between the 2011 and Black Special is that the latter came with the racing steering and torque splitter hop-up options. These are fairly costly together, so explain some of the difference in price. As for visual differences, the Black Special came with different decals, pink wheels, and a motor with a unique sticker. Versus the Avante, the Egress has a longer wheelbase as well as some tweaks to the suspension and drivetrain, which improved performance. The Hi-cap dampers on the 2013 version are quite nice, and certainly better than what is on the 2011 or Black Special. I have not driven an Egress, but would guess that it would still drive better than a hopped-up 2011. Given your nostalgia for the car, you certainly wouldn't go wrong with the 2011. Or perhaps you could think of the Egress as the next thing you might have built with your father if the opportunity had availed. As far as necessary hop-ups for the Avante, Yeah Racing does an alloy set of front and rear hubs that take out some fragility inherent in the kit-standard plastic parts. The racing steering set was re-released again fairly recently, so it would be nice to have as well if you can find it for reasonable money. From what I've read, opinions are split on the torque splitter set, as its impact depends on your driving style and conditions. I've rambled way more than intended, so hopefully one of the Avante experts will step in and correct me if I've strayed anywhere!

Good news! I’ll be one of the first in line to buy some when they go up on Fibre Lyte. Btw, I think he goes by @qatmix on here...

The front shock tower on the TL01 is slightly wider than the rear. The overall dimensions of the front end are also slightly taller. If you were to align the “T” cutout on the Fibre Lyte piece with the TL01 front end, you will find it to be both too narrow and too short to align with the damper mounting holes.

The TL01 and M03 have the same dimensions at the rear, so the rear stiffener you have linked on Fibre Lyte will fit both vehicles. The fronts have different dimensions, so the way the front stiffener on Fibre Lyte is designed will not fit the TL01 -- it will be too tall. However, the distance between the the top shock mount holes is the same. If you're just looking for the upper part of the stiffener to put on the TL01, the M03 front stiffener could probably be easily redesigned to be more like the discontinued 3Racing part. I have considered talking to Fibre Lyte about doing this, but just don't have time to draw up the part.

For those in the UK, this page is worth a read: https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad/tax-and-duty My experience is that you are likely to get stung on anything with a declared value over £15. Chinese sellers are savvy to this, and typically declare an artificially low value. Almost everything I have received from the US or Japan over £15 has come with a ransom note.

I think this has been mentioned in other threads, but that just doesn’t seem to be Tamiya’s target market. Look how they’ve dialed back on TRF to focus more at the club level (at least in the US). Others have speculated that Tamiya has recently chosen to focus on the Japanese domestic market. Quirky cars that work well in a small area would seem to fit the assumption. Or maybe they think they can earn more by mixing up parts from the back catalogue rather than trying to penetrate a saturated premium marketplace. The piece I don’t understand is hardbody + high center of gravity + hard suspension. Hopefully they’ve added something to the equation that lands it on its feet more often than not.

If looking to buy new (and want to stick with Tamiya), it seems like the DN01 is good option. It comes with the TRF201 pedigree, and will be a solid buggy as others have stated. I would just worry about falling into the hop-up trap and the eventual costs of trying to bring it up to true TRF201 spec. Another thing you may want to consider is that the TRF201 and Associated B4 (or was it 4.1?) are practically the same buggy, and there may be some good deals on used B4s out there. I haven't looked at this listing closely, but there's a used RTR B4 available for £115 BIN right now: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Team-Associated-B4-RC-Radio-Controlled-Car-RTR/153395807179