Scalextric 1:32 Aston Martin DBR9 slot-car kit
Published:
April 13, 2011
Product: For seasoned 1:32 slot car enthusiasts hungering for more, Scalextric has prepared a buffet — the PRO Performance series Aston Martin DBR9 kit.
The Scalextric DBR9 is a model of British Aston Martin cars that compete in GT endurance racing, winning the 12-hour Sebring race and Le Mans. The Scalextric kit, and its PRO Performance NASCAR Chevrolet, Audi R8 LMS, and Lola Aston Martin siblings, comes packaged with three motors, five spur gears and pinion gears, ball bearings, and a pair of aluminum rear rims with high-grip silicone tires. The car is sold in analog version only. The car’s plastic body is intentionally unpainted to allow enthusiasts to build a car that can be customized on the outside as well as inside.
Performance: The Scalextric DBR9 accurately models the ground-hugging look of the full-size Aston Martin. Detail items such as headlight lenses, etched metal grilles, and the rear spoiler are packaged separately.
The chassis is designed for sidewinder motor placement (parallel to the rear axle) and includes a well-placed magnet, which, along with the silicone tires, allows the model to cling to Scalextric and other brands of 1:32 track. The three motors — in color-coded 20,000-; 25,000-; and 30,000-rpm variations — are interchangeable. Eight- through 12-tooth plastic pinion gears and 34- through 38-tooth plastic and metal spur gears, plus a pair of tiny rear-axle ball bearings, are supplied in the kit. The front-wheel rims are plastic. No soldering is required to swap motors, the aluminum rear rims and spur gears are attached using a supplied Allen wrench, and the plastic pinion gears can be slid on the motor shafts with fingertips and a little bit of muscle. All of these goodies have been available for separate purchase as part of Scalextric’s Sport Plus line of hop-up parts.
On my home Scalextric Sport track layout, the car easily met my expectations. I set it up with a 9-tooth pinion gear and a 37-tooth spur gear. The car simply screamed out of the corners, and was only a fraction of a second behind the two fastest unmodified cars in my garage, a pair of much lighter Scalextric Indycars.
Marketing: The Scalextric PRO Performance cars are designed for intermediate and advanced hobbyists primarily since Scalextric falls short when it comes to explaining how to use the performance parts contained in the kit. There is very little in the way of instructions other than a slip of paper showing how to replace worn braid plates, another sheet detailing installation of the windows and interior, and a basic exploded view of the chassis assembly printed on a cardboard box liner. As a comparison, SCX’s pro series slot cars come with bound instructional booklets.
Press-fitting the Aston Martin’s plastic-and-metal spur gears together, placing the ball bearings into plastic cups, securing rims and spur gears, and changing motors and wire leads are all left to the ingenuity of the purchaser. The same goes for gear selection (higher pinion and lower spur equal more speed; lower pinion and higher spur equal more torque).
Lastly, the kit comes with five 3mm-diameter axles, but only one is the proper length for the Aston Martin. The uncommon axle diameter means the PRO Performance parts aren’t interchangeable with standard Scalextric and many other brand 1:32 cars, which mostly use 3/32-inch (2.38mm) diameter axles. The endbell-drive motors, however, can be used in many other analog slot cars.
Paint, modeler’s masking tape, striping tape, and decals are absolute add-on sales to the Aston Martin DBR9 kit. Additional magnets for performance tweaking are another suggestion. The car comes in a square cardboard box, about twice the size of the typical clear-plastic slot-car case. The body and chassis are visible through a plastic window and images of the performance parts are clearly shown on the back panel of the box. Both make this slot car an attractive countertop display.
The Scalextric PRO Performance Aston Martin DBR9 kit, while light on instructions, is heavy on performance parts. And the value of the three motors alone exceeds the retail price of many other slot cars. With all of the extras included in this kit, it’s irresistible to slot-car enthusiasts who love to tinker.
VITAL STATS
Product: 1:32 PRO Performance Aston Martin DBR9 slot-car kit
Maker: Scalextric
Stock No.: C3082
MSRP: $69.95
Availability: Hornby America and other slot-car distributors
BOTTOM LINE
Lots of performance parts
Minimal assembly instructions
Best for veteran hobbyists
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