Tamiya Mini 4WD cars are easy to assemble, fun, and a great entry point to racing. These small 1/32 scale snap together racers teach hobbyists the fundamentals of chassis balance as they can be set up in numerous ways to traverse different track layouts that are made from plastic.

Our customer service supervisor is no stranger to Mini 4WD racing as he has been involved in the hobby for many years. Most recently, he has taken the recent release of “The Grasshopper Jr.” (item 18105) and turned it into a winning race machine that was entered into the ADVANCED CLASS at a local Mini 4WD shop in Fullerton, CA. Dukwho Workshop

ADVANCE CLASS WINNER: Dukwho’s race program features many race class categories for its Thursday Night race program. The class in which Gary took top honors was the ADVANCE CLASS. In that class, racers are allowed to use ANY Tamiya performance part to improve the basic kits performance. There are two things that are not allowed, milling/cutting of the chassis and its attached parts, and “gimmicks”. Gimmicks are things that racers do to existing parts in the quest to get a competitive edge. The “gimmick” typically involves adding modified Tamiya parts to the chassis that were not designed by Tamiya to be used in that way. An example would be making the roller stays flap up and down using springs attached to the main chassis.

Winning Car Details

Base Kit: The Grasshopper Jr. (Item 18105) This kit is based on the VZ chassis. The VZ chassis is a compact and lightweight design that features reinforced designs for bumper, rear stay base and more ensuring that it has the durability and flexibility to withstand racing accidents. It is also a rather adaptable unit that lets its owner make numerous updates to the setup. Low friction 620 plastic bearings are molded in POM and maximize drive efficiency, while the chassis and A parts are molded in ABS.

Option Parts The performance parts listed below were used to make The Grasshopper Jr. zip around the track.

Front wheels: JR HG Aluminum Wheels 2pcs for LP Tires II/Reversible (item 95602) Aluminum wheels were used in the front while the rear used plastic wheels. This was done to change the weight balance of the car.
Front Tires: Low Friction Tires-JR Low Friction LP Tire Maroon / 2pcs TMAC 2020 (item 95545)
Rear wheels: Plastic multi-spoke wheels found in various Tamiya base kits.
Rear tires: JR LP Offset Tread Tires Hard/White Low Friction tires have the least amount of traction. Hard tires have the second least amount of traction. By using low friction tires in the front, it allows the car to glide through turns more easily compared to having a grippier tire that can lead to speed loss during turns.
Motor: JR Torque-Tuned 2 Motor (item 15484)
Rear Rollers: 17mm Alum Rollers w/Plastic Rings (item 15449) X4
Rear Roller Stay: JR HG Carbon Wide Rear Plate AR Chassis 1.5mm Asia Chall (item 95653)
Front Rollers: JR HG Alum Ball Race Rollers 17mm Ringless (item 15522)
Front Stabilizer: Item 15391 JR Stabilizer Head Set 11mm, 15mm
Front Roller Stay: The front FRP stay from (item 15526) JR Basic Tune Up Parts Set for VZ Chassis
Mass Dampers Front and Rear: Brass dampers from (item 15514) JR Basic Tune-Up Parts FM-A The brass mass dampers from this set were the perfect weight to use up front, the rear, and the middle of the car. One additional mass damper was used on the left and right middle/front section of the car to add center/front mass damper effect. (Item 15392)
Carbon Side Stays: HG Carbon Side Stays (Item 95601)
Front Brake Stay: JR HG Carbon Reinforcing Plate (Item 95600)
Rear Brake Stay: JR HG Rear Brake Stay 1.5mm
Rear Stabilizer Bar: JR FRP Front Plate (Item 15242)
Brake: JR Brake Sponge Set (Item 15512) This set includes blue brake pads which have the least amount of brake force/friction. The amount of brake friction can be fine-tuned by using Tamiya multi-purpose tape over the brake sponge in sections to reduce brake friction further.
Stabilizer Ball Caps: Stabilizer Ball Cap (Item 95575 ) were used for the rear screws holding the two attached mass dampers.
MISC: JR Countersunk Screw Set (Item 15510) These screws are helpful to use to keep the underside of the car as protrusion free as possible.
This concludes our overview of our resident guru’s Advance Class race winning machine!

See you on track!
Source: Tamiya USA