Tamiya Wild One Max: sports car based on the iconic radio-controlled model

Replicas of real cars are a fairly large and branched business that involves thousands of companies, but turning toys into real cars units are doing. The most recent example is the Tamiya Wild One Max electric buggy from Britain's The Little Car Company, made in collaboration with Japanese toymaker Tamiya.

Tamiya is well known to fans of radio-controlled models (RC models), in 1985 it released the very popular Tamiya Wild One RC buggy (article 58050) in 1:10 scale, for teenagers of that time it was one of the most desired toys. In 2012, Tamiya Wild One had an official re-release, but there is still no direct full-size analogue in 1: 1 scale — it was decided to make it a couple of years ago by the British The Little Car Company, which is engaged in small-scale production of expensive active scale copies of legendary cars.

The project of the full-sized Tamiya Wild One Max with a 4 kW (5.5 hp) electric motor was first presented by the British company in April 2021, then it literally quoted the toy in all details and was supposed to be delivered to customers in the form of a prefabricated model. Unfortunately or fortunately, due to the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, Tamiya Wild One Max was never released in its original form, and today The Little Car Company presented a radically updated project with a promise to begin production in 2024.

New Tamiya Wild One Max

The new Tamiya Wild One Max is larger than the previous one, overall length has increased from 3.5 to 3.6 m, width — from 1.8 to 1.9 m. Ground clearance — 270 mm, approach angle — 34.1 degrees, exit angle — 50.8 degrees, ramp angle — 28.4 degrees. The cab has been expanded, equipped with a windshield with wipers and now accommodates not only the driver, but also the passenger. Both Cobra sport buckets are equipped with 4-point harnesses. The 5″ electronic instrument cluster and several switches to the right and left of it are water resistant.

The front suspension has added upper wishbones for better kinematics, the design uses energy-intensive Bilstein shocks combined with Eibach springs, all wheels are equipped with Brembo disc brakes and are shod with Maxxis off-road tires. Electric motor power not specified, top speed 60 mph (96.56 km/h). The battery consists of eight removable blocks with a total capacity of 14.4 kWh. The curb weight of the buggy is about 500 kg.

New Tamiya Wild One Max

The Little Car Company will produce only 100 copies Tamiya Wild One Max in its debut Launch Edition, but other versions will follow. All machines will be delivered assembled, it was decided to refuse kits for self-assembly. The Tamiya Wild One Max will be certified as an L7e-class electric quad and will be able to travel on public roads. The price has not yet been announced, and to pre-order you need to transfer the company 100 pounds as a deposit. The 2021 Tamiya Wild One Max was slated to start at £6,000, with the new variant likely to be significantly more expensive.