HAIBOXING 2997A 1/12 Brushed RC Buggy with 2 Batteries

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I’ve had this RC Truck for two weeks. It was my birthday present and It is SO much fun and I’m a middle aged man. Of course, I watched the video of them running it through dirt, mud, water, flipping huge jumps off rocks, slamming the thing around and having a great time, living like an adult kid… so what did I do? Exactly that. Drifts through gravel, runs through the grass, chasing the dog (and running from her), jumping ditches, building a ramp and flipping it off tree trunks, off roading through the 2 acres next to us. Amazing!

A week later, I catch the ditch wrong and it cartwheels like 8 times… wow I feel like a kid again and mom would be so mad at me for what I just paid for it (so was my wife)! But dang, the spring popped off, lost some parts, now my wheel won’t stay on… it’s my fault for doing what it’s advertised to do right? I was upset with myself for breaking my new toy! I thought I was out my investment… but contacting Haiboxing and taking the time to RTFM, see they have a 90 day parts replacement, FREE!

Just received all new shock kits and the control arm parts needed. I’m really surprised by this… totally changed my frustration into delight and now I can go play again. If I break this thing after the warranty… it will be worth it. It’s super fast over 40 mph, can tolerate decent height grass situations (my cheaper $60 rc car can’t), and will perform just like the video shows.

There's a few things I would recommend doing with this if you're a tinkerer. First and foremost would be to relocate the ESC and cut out the separator in the battery side of the chassis. There's 3D printable models for it, but I just used an adhesive foam pad to stick it on top of the steering servo. The tray is just too small to run anything over a 2000mAh 3S. I added a foam pad and used that to hold down the velcro strap. I can now fit substantially larger batteries and it's way, way more flexible in terms of battery options and upgrades down the road.

Another is to buy different body clips. I lost all of them on the first pack as well as one of the foam dampeners. I tried pushing them further on and they just kept slipping through the body. You can buy them as well as some adhesive stiffening rings for the body. I didn't have any on hand but will be purchasing some to strengthen it as it's impossible to really shred it when they fall out.

I also removed all of the lighting as that's not really my thing and the cable is annoying to unplug. If that's your thing, the cable is coiled and makes it fairly easy to manage, but it's not for me.

Last thing would be the tires. They're too hard and they balloon like crazy so it lacks traction pretty much everywhere and most notably on pavement. In gravel it shoots rocks dangerously hard, so be wary of that and if you're going to run it in gravel and keep your car parked far away and WEAR EYEPRO. It's no joke.

I wouldn't call this thing anemic on a 2S, but it is notably slower. With that it still absolutely rips on a 2S. With a 3S it really comes alive and is very fast - the 45MPH rating is absolutely accurate. If you don't ease into the throttle on some surfaces it will light the tires up and lose control easily. If you're new, start with a 2S and work your way into it. This thing is not a toy and can seriously hurt someone if you're not careful with it.

I ran 4 packs through this thing and beat the hell out of it. Jumped curbs, ran it straight into massive obstacles, flipped it off of trees, landed it in awkward positions from heights and it never broke anything. It is very stout.

Parts are available everywhere and spares are included. HBX offers a warranty on parts so if you break something within that period, you're golden. I haven't had the chance to take it to the hobby shop to see what parts I can fit on it, but out of the box the ESC, receiver, servo and motor can be upgraded or replaced.

Overall, I absolutely love it and am beyond stoked to get back into the hobby. This thing was a radical wake up call to how much things have changed. I come from FPV mini quads so I am aware of the raw power of lipos, but seeing it in a truggy that the last time I ripped was using brushed motors an NiMH batteries is absolutely nuts how snappy and powerful these are. Speaking of lipos, watch some safety videos. If you mishandle these they can be super dangerous. They are safe if you know how to handle them. Don’t be afraid, but do be aware.

It is an outstanding value for what it is. A RTR run truggy that's 3S capable and includes two batteries with charges for this price is unbeatable. I would have paid much more. It's a real contender in the space and HBX is changing the game of cheap cars and trucks. I am beyond impressed.

I would give this 4 stars due to the battery situation, but it's so good that I can give the other star back.