The 2WD buggy that handily beat the RC10 in 1987

[TokyoProf]

I pulled the trigger on a vintage 1987 Ultima because of its unique place in racing history...I wanted to get under the hood of one. The Kyosho Ultima buggy did a 1,2,3 sweep at the 1987 2wd IFMAR world championships. This car made Team Associated what it is today to some degree. There is a nice write up here on its racing success. I believe the 2nd, and 3rd place winning Kyosho buggies looked more like the original kit. They all did well.

Take notes from the RC10 in 1985, and then throw a crap load of money at recruiting great drivers along with design and race prep. This was 1980s "bubble economy" Japan at its economic peak. Tokyo's imperial palace was worth more than the entire state of California. Japanese RC companies had loads of money to do great things like win an RC race . My first take is that this buggy is surprisingly heavy, sturdy you could say because of the chassis design. The plastics are strong, precise and look modern. The Valvoline and Bridgestone stickers are cool. The top plate has a crack, and not sure if it was a pressure point, but seems the whole sandwich design could have been improved slightly toward the front. The body and appearance take some getting used to (ugly) which is the reason for the beer.

I have the JJ winning replica model but it's missing the 80s spirit, that 80s dust and smell to go along with it. Here is my close-up with an original Ultima in decent condition.

[1911Colt]

The body and appearance take some getting used to (ugly) which is the reason for the beer.

That looks to be a very nice example. Congratulations! I never had an Ultima, but I always liked them. It would be cool to have a JJ Ultima to sit next to my Masami XLS.

I hoped the post I made about the new Kyosho Ultima worlds kit would get people talking about Ultimas again, but so far, crickets. To my untrained eye, it appears to be "in the ballpark" of the Turbo Ultima.

[XLR8]

Back in the mid to late 1980's, our local off-road track separated 2wd buggies into three classes; 540 (open to anything that wasn't an RC10, 27 turn, 6 cells), RC10 stock (27t, 6 cells), and RC10 modified (any motor, 7 cells). I wanted something to race in 540 so I bought an Ultima when they were first released. I ran the Ultima completely box-stock with a Race Prep motor and my lap times were nearly identical to my RC10 in stock class running the same motor. Racing against Frogs, Hornets and similar entry-level buggies, it was easy to win with the Ultima. On the track, the Ultima made me look like I knew what I was doing.