Team Losi Triple-XS Sport RTR

Radio Control Car Action, Apr 2003 by Vieira, Peter

track test 1/10-SCALE ELECTRIC

IT WASN'T TOO LONG AGO that the idea of Team Losi getting Into the ready-to-run scene was unthinkable: after all, everyone knows that Team Losi is all about high-performance competition car kits. But who says a ready-to-run car can't be a high-performance machine? Certainly not the Losi guys; they have gotten behind nitro-powered RTRs in a big way with the Triple-XNT Sport (which we named 2002 Truck of the Year), and are now looking for a piece of the RTR electric touring car action with the new Triple-XS Sport. The new car sticks close to the Losi RTR formula: it has all the important racing features of a kit Triple-XS, includes a JR Racing XR2 computer radio (no need to upgrade!), and the assembly is complete, right down to a finished and trimmed body and glued tires. What's the catch? I hope there isn't one, but I'll run the wheels off the Triple-XS Sport to find out.

KIT FEATURES

CHASSIS. If you had to build the Triple-XS yourself, you would have noticed that the chassis has fewer bolt-on parts than most other tourers. By incorporating the belt tunnel, front and rear pulley housings and shocktower bulkheads into a single molded part, the Triple-XS builds straight and stays straight, so a crash is less likely to "tweak" the car and alter its balanced handling. Most Sport owners will flip over the included battery hold-down that accommodates a stick pack (as I did), but if you prefer to use a "side-by-side" pack, the chassis is slotted to accept the cells, and the battery strap is scalloped to hold them tightly.

The chassis' belt tunnel is its most prominent feature. It's capped by a Lexan cover on top and a plastic plate below, and the motor mount is incorporated in the side of the tunnel. The motor is mounted on an aluminum cam plate; by rotating the plate, you can adjust the gear mesh. A sighting window makes it easy to see the mesh, and a rubber plug seals the window.

DRIVE TRAIN. Here's where you'll find the Triple-XS's signature feature, its single-belt drive train. The serpentine belt is spun directly by the spur gear, which is molded with the main drive pulley as a single part. The belt wraps around an adjustable tensioner and then makes the trip to the front and rear ball differentials, which use large-diameter pulleys to reduce the tension required to prevent belt slippage; this contributes greatly to the system's low-friction feel. The diffs are externally adjustable, so you can alter their tightness without removing them from the chassis. When you do need to take them out, you can easily access them by removing the "caps" on the ends of the chassis' belt tunnel. Removing six screws gets the job done.

Steel dogbones would be an acceptable cost-saving measure for an RTR sedan but not for a Losi RTR sedan; that's why you'll find genuine MIP Constant Velocity Drive Shafts (CVDs) spinning the wheels at both ends. As any RC guy will tell you, MIP's CVDs operate without chatter and with nearly zero backlash, and they last far longer than dogbones. Almost forgot! All the rotating parts spin on metal-shielded ball bearings.

SUSPENSION AND STEERING. Team Losi's hard-anodized aluminum shocks are well known for their plush damping and easy assembly. In this case, the ease of assembly is more of a benefit to the guys on the assembly line, but when it's time to rebuild the shocks, you'll appreciate how easy it is to fill and bleed them.

The shocks are squeezed by H-arms that include droop-screw pads and are ready to accept optional swaybars. C-carriers hold the steering arms with combination kingpin/ball studs, and steel turnbuckles are used for all the linkages, so you can adjust camber and toe without disassembly. The shock towers give additional adjustment opportunities; there are four holes for each shock and camber link.

BODY, WHEELS AND TIRES. Losi does all the gluing for you, so the Triple-XS Sport's treaded rubber tires and foam inserts will stay stuck on their dish wheels. Racers prefer dish wheels, but I'd like to see something sportier looking such as a set Of 5-spokes. No problem there; since the Sport uses industry-standard 12Mm hex hubs, any aftermarket wheels will fit.

The Sport's Stratus-style body combines screen-printed graphics of tear-away paint and flames with a sprayed-on primary color. In addition to the indigo blue of my tester, Losi offers the Sport in "graphite" (an anthracite gray) and "cherry" (bright red). By spraying on the main color, Losi can mask the windows so they stay clear; it's a much better look than blacked-out windows. A full decal sheet is supplied, and the decals are precut; just peel and stick.

INCLUDED

ELELCTRONICS & ACCESSORIES

JR RACING XR2 TRANSMITTER AND 8125 RECEIVER. JR's XR2 is a much better system than the bare-bones gear supplied with most RTRs. it uses an LCD display to indicate its settings, which include adjustable endpoints and subtrim for both channels, steering dual rate and 2-model memory. All the trim switches are digital and grip switches are provided for as-you-drive adjustment of the dual-rate and brake-throw settings. It will be a long time before you'll feel a need to upgrade to another radio-if ever.