[woodcote]

Digital is a whole different ballgame. Carrera did produce a D143 system compatible with its Carrera Go!!! track, but it was short-lived and rather limited. Realistically, the digital system with the smallest footprint is Scalextric, but you're talking about a space around 15 feet x 6 feet to build a track that offers you a fully-featured digital experience (Scalextric ARC Pro set here). Digital is expensive, complex to trouble-shoot and - in my opinion - is best for a group of 4-12 people getting together to race. And you need space to accommodate those extra people too.

Back to AFX - there will be new sets coming to Europe. Shipping from the US is an option, but you can end up paying as much in shipping and customs costs as the set itself. That's why most UK HO enthusiasts use the 80s-90s Tomy AFX sets available second-hand. There are good deals out there, plus some horribly over-priced offerings.

AutoWorld also produce HO sets for the US market and use a track system identical to AFX. Their cars are based on old Aurora AFX chassis. If you see these for sale in the UK, they are worth consideration. AutoWorld also produce a fabulous entry-level drag racing set-up.

The versatility of AFX means you can create a twelve-lane layout. The corner geometry is in 3-inch steps - starting with a 3-inch radius hairpin sitting inside a 6-inch corner, then up through 9, 12, 15 and finally 18-inch diameter corners. Straights come in 3, 6, 9 and 15-inch lengths. The AFX track is 3-inches wide.

   

Unless you are racing in a group, then two lanes is fine. What the different corners mean is that you can build a realistic track with slow, fast and compound corners. That's more of a challenge and more satisfying than just using one type of curve.

Loops? They are for kids. Even for kids, they lose their novelty value after a few laps. Keep them in the box.

Ghost cars? You don't need digital for this. What you have is a car controlled at a constant pace - limited by the slowest point of your circuit. If you're going to run ghost cars to race against, build a track with fast, open corners so the constant pace is challenging to race against. A track with tight, slow corners means the ghost car will crawl round. There are off the shelf ghost car controllers (the AFX one is of a 80s-90s vintage) or you can use a simple model railway controller.

Here is the AFX set with the Computer Control Center for running ghost cars at a good (ie under £50) price: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/168646456941

And a recent video of how it works...




Hope that helps.