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In 1998 Kyosho unveiled a new 1/10 4wd Nitro on-road model, the MOONEYES Street Van. MOONEYES was opened by Dean Moon in 1950 and produced speed parts for the burgeoning hot rod market. The company was purchased by Dean's friend Shige Suganuma in 1992 who has operated MOONEYES USA and MOONEYES Yokohama ever since. The Street Van was a tribute to the custom vans being created by MOONEYES in Japan and was heavily based on Kyosho's Field Baja Beetle. An aluminum pan chassis with side rail kickups was specific to the MOONEYES van as were a number of other parts that made up its primarily plastic construction. These included the front and rear bulkheads, shock towers, upper deck, and steering plate, while the lower a-arm and fixed plastic camber link 4-wheel independent suspension, from the knuckles and hubs to the servo saver equipped twin bellcrank adjustable tie rod steering and oil-filled plastic bodied ring lock coilover shocks were sourced from the Field Baja Beetle. The 4wd system was a combination of 'Van and 'Beetle parts as Kyosha's QRC (Quick Reverse Clutch) transmission was laid down on its side to facilitate the Street Van's much lower ride height. The QRC was operated by a linkage from the throttle servo, a clutch mounted inside the transmission would slide between two gearsets (forward and reverse) allowing the van to change direction with a push or pull of the transmitter trigger. This allowed power to be transferred to the shaft driven 4wd system with bevel gear differentials in the front, rear, and center sealed gearcases. And as the clutch acted as a drag brake, a traditional braking system was not fitted. Dogbones for the driveshafts and axles turned Street Van specific white plastic wheels with spun aluminum Moon Disc style wheel covers and 76/36/60 Kyosho treaded rubber street tires tucked inside a clear lexan Chevrolet Astro van body. Chrome bumpers and side pipes, a large front bumper, sealed receiver box, flip-top gas tank, and GS-11X engine with muffler were included in the unassembled kit, sold less radio:

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For whatever reason, Mooneyes is huge in Japan. I think it's the aesthetics of the company they gravitate towards.

Lowgear wrote: ↑Sun Apr 06, 2025 5:38 pm For whatever reason, Mooneyes is huge in Japan. I think it's the aesthetics of the company they gravitate towards.

JDM is big here, USDM is big there... people want what they can't have??

I hadn't seen this one before. Very cool to see Kyosho recognizing Dean Moon!

Fun fact: Dean Moon had a hand in the very early Shelby Cobras. Shelby test fitted the small block Ford into an AC Ace chassis in Dean Moon's shop. After having raced with the best European teams, Shelby recognized that the hot rodders, like Dean Moon, had the same talent, passion, and mechanical ability as he had seen at Aston Martin and Maserati.