Automotive

Street-legal, overgrown Tamiya R/C car will debut this summer

Street-legal, overgrown Tamiya R/C car will debut this summer
A replica of a famous 1980s R/C car, scaled up and fettled for street use and off-roading
A replica of a famous 1980s R/C car, scaled up and fettled for street use and off-roading
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A replica of a famous 1980s R/C car, scaled up and fettled for street use and off-roading
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A replica of a famous 1980s R/C car, scaled up and fettled for street use and off-roading
Five-inch digital screen and long-travel Bilstein suspension
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Five-inch digital screen and long-travel Bilstein suspension
The Tamiya Wild One was released way back in 1985, but soon you'll be able to hop in and drive one
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The Tamiya Wild One was released way back in 1985, but soon you'll be able to hop in and drive one
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One of the most gloriously silly projects in the automotive world is set to launch within the next few months. The Tamiya Wild One Max is a faithful replica of a hugely popular R/C toy from the '80s, upscaled to a two-seat, street-legal electric buggy.

Obviously this runs completely backwards compared to how things normally go; plenty of real-world dream cars have been miniaturized for kids to play with, but we're not aware of any other project designed to bring a car designed first and foremost as a kids' toy up to full size for the young at heart.

This wicked little buggy has grown about 10 cm (3.9 in) in both length and width since we first covered it in 2021, and will hit the road at 3.6-m long (141.7 in) and 1.9-m wide (74.8 in).

Mild off-road action is definitely on the menu, although with ground clearance of 270 mm (11 in) and an approach angle of 34.1°, the Wild One certainly doesn't aspire to be a rockhopper. Its 14-in rims, shod in Maxxis tires (smooth at the front, chunky Bighorns at the back), rise and fall on long-travel Bilstein suspension, and the open sides and back of the cabin, behind a basic, flat windscreen, will ensure it's a breezy ride.

Five-inch digital screen and long-travel Bilstein suspension
Five-inch digital screen and long-travel Bilstein suspension

It won't be a noisy one, though. No specs have dropped as yet on the electric rear wheel drive powertrain, but we do know it'll run eight removable battery packs for a total capacity of 14.4 kWh, making for a kerb weight around 500 kg (1,102 lb). Range isn't yet specified, but it ain't gonna be a tourer.

More importantly, the weight without batteries will be less than 450 kg (992 lb), meaning that with certain accoutrements it'll be street-legal as a class L7e quadricycle if you register it in the EU or UK. Don't expect too much of it on the road, though; it's rated for a top speed of just 60 mph (96.5 km/h), so it's better suited to swanning around near the beach than attempting any hard, fast driving.

Still, some 95% of people who'd already pre-ordered one of these giggle buckets told The Little Car Company (yep) they wanted their Tamiya to be street-legal, so street-legal it shall be, and all 100 launch edition cars will ship with a pack of appropriate mirrors, lights and whatever else is needed.

The Tamiya Wild One was released way back in 1985, but soon you'll be able to hop in and drive one
The Tamiya Wild One was released way back in 1985, but soon you'll be able to hop in and drive one

It's such a cute project, and so openly childish, that I can't help but grin at the idea. I look forward to seeing them in the wild, and sincerely hope they don't get eaten by dogs or lost down sewer drains like so many of the originals.

Speaking of the originals, here's a video from back in 1985 to reminisce with.

Tamiya Wild One official promo 1985

Source: The Little Car Company

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5 comments
5 comments
Chase
One of my dream projects is something like this but on steroids. Swap the drivetrain with that from a Tesla Model 3, a bit more ground clearance and suspension travel, and absolutely hoon it back and forth to work on the daily.
EUbrainwashing
Nice. I'll take the Arial Nomad however.
BlueOak
Seems odd to require a deposit when the price and range/performance specs not only at not finalized, but not even preliminarily estimated.
ljaques
Hard decisions! This or a Nomad? Both have pages of pros and just a few cons.
Sammykins
I reckon the 70mph Little Tikes Cozy Coupe is worth a mention as another childhood-inspired scaling up of a car. Shame it was a one-off :)
https://youtu.be/TvOSTwPdGAI