[rallyhub]

After checking the library here on SlotRacer Online, I discovered Scalextric produced their last proper rally slot car in 2016, now already 5 years ago!
Albeit they planned some rally stuff, I do not feel happy with their statement.

Imagine, for you as a race fan, Scalextric would produce 50 to 70 different versions of only rally slot cars every year for 5 years, without any race car in their program. Would you still believe that their planned race cars would be produced one day?
This clarifies how I feel, as a rally fan, about their planned rally stuff.

rallyhub

[mcreeder]

The 70-80s F1 cars are not DPR - they are just too small and detailed to do it without creating odd lumps and bumps in the model - even with the F1 C8516 plug. Some of the F1 cars are fiddly to convert with the C7005 retro fit chip, but none are impossible. And there are newer, smaller chips arriving - the Slot.it Type C is SSD compatible and both Scorpius and Dr_C have posted plans in our SlotRacer Digital Racing section here. 

To be honest, it’s one of the delights of ARC Pro - I run the delicate, difficult-to-chip stuff in analogue mode.

I am running ARC Pro as well, so not an issue, was just curious really

It is a shame the Lotus' don't have 'Turbo Flash'

I'm hoping in 2022 they expand this F1 area with the others they had in '90. I've had a 30 year gap in my Scalextric life. Managed to get hold on a new release Ford RS200 earlier this year, as I had the original back in 1990. Seems they are re-releasing a lot of cars from that time as also had the Sierra Cosworth set.

[woodcote]

Albeit they planned some rally stuff, I do not feel happy with their statement.

I agree with you Hub  

Especially when I see the highly-inflated prices on eBay for some of the Group B cars they did... yet I also see many retailers have unsold stock of the RS200s... Not that there aren't other un-loved Scalextric models that are gathering dust on retailers' shelves.

I know the current Scalextric team have heard what people are saying about the rally-sized hole in the catalogue and are looking at (unspecified) short-term options. And - of course - we are lucky to have the low-volume manufacturers like Team Slot, SRC and Avant Slot doing their thing so well - plus SCX re-releasing some of their popular rally models since the re-launch.

However, if Scalextric were going to look at rallying with a more long-term perspective, what cars do you think might work in their high-volume market model?

Thinking out loud, I suspect cars that have road / racing cross-over potential would be more attractive to Hornby. The Escort Mk1 and Mini are still working very well for them... And it's what BRM / TTS seem to be doing with their 1:24 Mini Saloons. I guess that would mean rally versions of various cars from the 50s through to the present, rather than more risky investment in a single-period rally range. Even though the big gap in 1:32 scale is modern-day WRC. Hmm, if only Elfyn Evans hadn't slid off that road...

[woodcote]

Here are a couple of updated pics for you...

       

That's the Mustang GT4 and the Drago Viola Edition of the Huayra. Both 3D renders.

I'm also expecting to post the 2021 offerings from Team Slot and - hopefully - Carrera over the next week or so.

   

There is a partial list of Carrera releases floating around, but it has not been given the official seal of approval... Carrera are understandably peed-off the list has been leaked by a retailer - and that's a reason why Hornby keep everything top secret until their big reveal. We shall be respectful and wait until Carrera publish their catalogue, like we did last year.

   

[rallyhub]

Especially when I see the highly-inflated prices on eBay for some of the Group B cars they did... yet I also see many retailers have unsold stock of the RS200s

I know the current Scalextric team have heard what people are saying about the rally-sized hole in the catalogue and are looking at (unspecified)  short-term options.

However, if Scalextric were going to look at rallying with a more long-term perspective, what cars do you think might work in their high-volume market model?

Their Group B rally cars had some quality issues and were already produced by several other manufacturers (SCX, MSC and TeamSlot), which didn't help either.

I am well aware that slot rallying only serves a limited market.
Therefore at the moment I would advise Scalextric to use only their existing moulds for new rally versions.
One or two rally versions each year would be enough.
Here is my proposal for Scalextric:

Ford Lotus Cortina:
-RAC Rally 1966 Jim Clark/Brian Melia, No.8, crashed out of the event. Reg.plates: NVW 241 C.
(Favourite for race- and rally fans; a must have).

-RAC Rally 1966 winner Bengt Söderström/ Gunnar Palm No.11. Reg. plates: NVW 239 C.
(Would be a very nice slot car, with its four red auxiliary lamp caps).

Ford Escort RS1600 MK1:
-Scottish Rally 1971 winner Chris Sclater/ John Davenport No.8. Reg. plates: XOO 354 F.
(Chris Sclater was the 1971 RAC British Rally Champion).

-Welsh Rally 1974 second overall Billy Coleman/ Donald O'sullivan No.9. Reg. plates: MEV 36 J.
(This car is nearly plain white, maybe less license fee for Scalextric).

Ford Sierra RS Cosworth:
-Tudor Webasto International Manx Rally 1989 winner Russell Brookes/ Neil Wilson No 12. Reg. plates: D 774 SVW.
(Striking "Andrews Heat for Hire" colour scheme that will sell well).

-RAC Rally 1987 Mark Lovell/ Roger Freeman No.20, delay. Reg. plates: D 370 TAR.
(Beautiful yellow Telecom Radiopaging sponsored Sierra).

For the purists, Scalextric could change the Cortina grill and the tailgate spioler of the Sierra.


For the long-term perspective, the Subaru Legacy 4WD Turbo is my favourite.
(Colin McRae, Richard Burns, Markku Alen, Per Eklund, "Possum" Bourne, Piero Liatti)
But the four door Ford Sierra Cosworth 4x4 would also be very nice, with lot of versions:
(Colin McRae, Russell Brookes, Francois Delecour, Pentti Airikkala, Alex Florio, Malcolm Wilson, etc.)

Let's hope Scalextric will now restart their slot rally car program for next year.

rallyhub

[woodcote]

That's a fabulous list of suggestions Hub! I shall do what I can to make sure it is seen.

In terms of what sells... a very obscure (but very tasty) Escort Mk1 makes this list of Top 10 best-selling pre-orders that Jadlam emailed out to customers 24 hours after the catalogue was released...

   

The Top 5 are certainly no surprise!

I’ve also pulled together the technical info on all the new 1:32 tooling...

• Batmobile – slim-can FF motor, inline. Digital Plug Ready (DPR).
  
• Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 – short-can motor, sidewinder, full interior. DPR.
  
• Corvette C8R – short-can motor, inline, tray interior. DPR.
  
• Formula E Spark Gen2 – slim-can FF motor, inline. DPR with C8516 F1 plug.
  
• Jaguar XJS – short-can motor, inline, tray interior. DPR.
  
• KITT – short-can motor, sidewinder. DPR.
  
• Lotus 97T Renault – slim-can FF motor, inline. Not DPR.
  
• Lotus 99T Honda – slim-can FF motor, inline. Not DPR.
  
• Lotus Esprit S1 / Lotus Esprit S2 – short-can motor, sidewinder. DPR.
  
• Mercedes AMG GT3 Evo – short-can motor, inline, tray interior. DPR.
  
• Pagani Huayra BC Roadster – short-can motor, inline, super-resistant. DPR.
  
• Plymouth Barracuda / Chrysler Hemicuda – short-can motor, sidewinder. DPR.
  
• Porsche 911 Carrera RSR 3.0 – short-can motor, inline, tray interior. DPR.
  

The slim-can motor is the FF-050 motor - standard in all single-seaters and other cars where room is tight.
The short-can motor is the Mabuchi FC130 S-can - standard in most new cars.

In attempt to encourage standardised racing classes - and similar levels of interior detail for collectors too - sidewinder motors (and full interiors) are kept in the 60s-70s Trans-Am / Muscle car range. Inline motors (and tray interiors) are standard in the modern GT and touring. Otherwise, it's more about what fits - the narrower Capri and XJS are, by necessity, in-line.

[rallyhub]

That's a fabulous list of suggestions Hub! I shall do what I can to make sure it is seen.

That would be great. Many thanks in advance, Andy.

Hub