The WLTOYS 104001 Review, Run & Diff Dismantle. Watch Before You Buy (A TOTAL BARGAIN OR TOTAL BUST)

[@alistairmunro]

Just FYI; to race at a BRCA sanctioned event or one running to those rules, the minimum weight is 1588 grams for a 4WD car.

[@tripyramidpictures9224]

I absolutely LOVE this car! I also have the 124019, it’s smaller brother, and it too is AMAZING! The body and everything is styled so nice! WLToys, you did a GREAT job!!!

[@michaelqendro9825]

You found one of the biggest complaints with WLToys buggys, no grease in the diffs. You need to check them when you buy one. As far as the pig iron spur gear, they should have drilled/machined lightening holes in it to reduce weight. You could do that if you have access to a drill press.

[@ryanlivingston8119]

And the plastic is to hard to grip the balls 🤣🤣🤣

[@tahustvedt]

I haven't held one in my own hands, the seller cancelled my order, but the complaints about the flex are strange to me. It probably won't matter if the chassis can flex along the lateral axis like that. People who buy this car wouldn't know the difference in feel when driving between if the chassis was dead stiff or flexible. The minimum weight for racing 4WD 1/10 is ~1600 g so you can't race anything lighter officially without adding ballast. There are also dimension limitations that would probably exclude a 1/14 buggy for that.

[@RCKickschannel]

1600g with battery, this is without battery

[@NeoIsrafil]

Its a bargain and I love it. It takes associated b64 front cvas, so if you pop an axle dont panic or wait for China, just buy the full front cva kit from associated b64 and install it. I bet there's more parts that fit too to be discovered. Also...1680... THATS ROAR LEGAL!!! Oh... and I paid over 200 for mine while they were sold out (may) and I really wanted one for my birthday. I dont regret it even with them down to 119 here, its a great buggy and I'm upgrading her to the point shes gonna be racing in no time.

[@k1ortia]

Great review, i bought and modded the 14001 and im definitely going to give one of these a try, good value, good performance,Highly customizable and a good spares catalogue. What more could you ask for?

[@TheTruthHz]

I think if you're complaining about a 1/10 buggy that you got for a little over a hundred quid, as being a bit slow... you've got other problems. An all plastic Tamiya would be more and on a 540 motor and need the radio and servo, bearings etc. It's definitely brushless ready with all that metal.

[@ryanlivingston8119]

I was thinking the same thing.

[@michaeldorich4485]

Your review was very thorough and precise. For anyone interested you explained the good points and bad. They'll know what they're buying. Great work.

[@briana2137]

It's a very very very cheap and stripped down version of the LC Racing LC10B5. The LC10B5 is a pretty direct copy of an older generation X-ray XB4. It has good genes but wow did they strip it down. The LC buggy has carbon fiber everywhere and is a legit racing buggy that comes in kit form. Take a look at parts for the LC10B5 as they should fit. They have a center slipper and a center diff.

[@felixuokk]

This sounds to me more like a management problem from Wltoys. Obviously after all those successful models, their engineer team wants to make a mean tough RC car that can show case they can compete with the major brands. Everything in that chassis is over-engineered for a 1/10 car. Then here comes the manager asking for power train, electronics + battery and a cool shell , all these for under $60. The way I look at this is you pay $100 for the roller chassis. The crappy motor and electronics are just some freebies that you can throw into the trash can.

[@paulus842000]

Good honest video Gavin. One of the gripes I would have also is the aluminium parts, the chassis and uprights for the shocks are like butter. If you upgrade you risk bending the car.

[@pugs1377]

For a starter car I think it's a great car. Good looking grass!

[@markhinkle3234]

Thanks for the honesty. Very appreciated. I’m still loving the 144001. What a ripper!

[@ShelbyBanditNFS]

Thanks for the review of these WLToys. Really helped for a low buget guy like me who is starting back into RC. I haven't played with RC for years on end and would like to get into it.

[@momothemilkman]

It may have some shortfalls, but it really isnt a bad buggy for a beginner. My first RC was a Kyosho Raider. It was $80 with a MSC and a stock 540 motor...radio was extra. The 14 year old me would have loved this buggy.

[@VestedUTuber]

On paper this car is one of the best deals you can get, but in practice it's a diamond in the rough. Here's the thing about it... it's a cheap clone of the IFMAR 2016 Championships winning XRAY XB4 2016. It'll handle very similarly to that car and people have even brought modified ones to trophy races and done pretty well. For the chassis fix, you don't actually need to make those extra brackets. Just replace the stock braces with the composite and carbon fiber ones from the XRAY XT4 (which are the same ones as the XB4 2016-2020). Alternatively you can literally just buy a chassis plate for the XB4 (part 361104), although that will run you a good $70 - still puts it way less than even a budget build for an XB4 itself, though. Honestly, the total cost of kitting out a 104001 for racing will be less than _just_ the cost of the kit for an XRAY XB4. Heck, even a Tekno EB410.2 will cost more to set up and that's the cheapest chassis kit in the class outside of spec classes. Even with all its issues, this is the budget race car that RC racing _needs_ just to survive.

[@RCKickschannel]

Some good points, thanks for the comment.

[@robertward5047]

I think by releasing this first you get more people buying it because of the price point. Also people that have been waiting for this will just snap it up AND a lot of those people will then buy the brushless when it's out. If you do it in reverse you are maybe pricing outside of the impulse purchase price bracket. All the die hard fans that have been waiting for it will buy it but then probably WON'T buy the cheaper inferior brushed when it's out. You get more sales doing it their way and that's what it's all about.

[@RCKickschannel]

Some good points Robert. 👍🏻

[@NeoIsrafil]

Also, dont listen to him, change the diff "fluid" (wax maybe?) with a good quality one like associated or losi diff grease. (I like 100k, but I like sliding. ;) Also... if you want to race, again don't listen to him. Getting the 12th or 14th scale versions means you've got no class to race in in your local track. Youre not gonna keep the brushed setup. 40 bucks gets you a full set of brushless electronics except RX by surpasshobby, another 40 gets you a dumborc transmitter, which means for under 200 you get a raceworthy starter buggy. I really need to start my channel and show you how great this thing can be, cuz its fast and nimble once you get to upgrading em.

[@Luke-en2tk]

You want sensored system for racing not something they may go up in flames 🔥

[@darkiee69]

A set of knobbly tyres is on the wish list too. Drill that spur gear to make it lighter.

[@extec101]

drilling or milling the gear would be one point that is needed.

[@TheMdavis07]

Loving you using the other wltoys buggy to serve the box into the frame that was Epic.

[@ragsixracing]

It would have been nice to see a harder durability test, some jumps and the like.

[@ryanlivingston8119]

I would like to see more of a track review as well. Running it around in your backyard in the grass doesn't show it's True handling ability. I think the review is kinda rubbish. It's made for the dirt.

[@JRthepyroguy]

I have one. Not a bad little r/c. Might leave it brush for a while. Thanks for the review.

[@MrMelton77]

Gavin, you might want to check the shock oil level if not already checked. Some are coming in a bit low on shock oil.

[@grahamaker1648]

Something of topic here, damn I miss that music that you used in 14:15... I really miss the music choice during your early day videos.

[@semperatis]

I wonder if RPM ball ends might make a decent upgrade Gavin.

[@davidrobinson9512]

Great video gav once again. I love my wltoys 124019 im going to put a brushless set up in it though when I find the time 😁

[@roadstar499]

I picked up one for $84...it definitely has potential in many areas..handles very well stock and built very well imo...

[@andrewlaw7476]

Great review, still prefer my 144001, it’s nimble and fast completely stock. Now starting to look for my next car 😁 this is how it begins 😂😂

[@nomusicrc]

It was a good video until the music started that's when you lost me

[@RCKickschannel]

LOL. I'm shocked going on your name being No music RC LOL. :)

[@problemchild1976]

Kilo grams ;) These wiltoys cars are grew starter cars and parts are easily replaceable Good vid Gav

[@josephplatania5593]

Dude you got 100 electric cars and a manual screwdriver ????

[@RCKickschannel]

Old School baby! Holding out for a tool sponsorship deal ;)

[@sy55legrc]

Why have i just found this channel? Excellent channel, looking forward to hammering through your vids. Great review i am also late to the party with this one, Like way late haha

[@RCKickschannel]

Hi and welcome. Well you have almost 500 RC videos on the channel. No clue why KZbin doesn't promote the videos more. I must be doing something wrong in the settings or tags or something.

[@garethsroberts]

Really informative vid and fantastic integrity on your part. Great work and keep up the great content. 👍

[@Mini-z1994]

Do you still have the wltoys 104001 around ? Seems too be a half-clone of the Xray XB-4 with some design changes to be cheaper too produce ofc, some have fitted the xb-4 slipper & spur There is a full carbon chassis kit for this available either in 2mm thickness or 5mm which makes it a bit lighter & more rigid. (Shaves off about 120 grams on the 2mm carbon kit which is pretty good.) Also solves the problem of the metal chassis bending so much you can pop out the center driveshafts. This video from a few months ago called " WLtoys 104001 Carbon Fibre Chassis Kit | Reduce Weight & Flex " by perth west oz shows how much the stock chassis bends. In terms of weight I'd compare it more too the Kyosho Dirt Hog which is around 1600 grams or for strictly Tamiya the TT02B chassis which I'd guess is close too that as well. The wltoys is more of a beginner friendly buggy with the low quality of the materials used & the low price rather then a full blown race chassis with that price tag. Like a modern top of the line race chassis is what 4 - 600 usd if not more for 1:10th these days ? i know HB's race kits are at like 1000 usd without electronics. Oh yeah feel free too try like a 23t 540 dirt tuned maybe with the original electrics as well as adjust the toe in & toe out of the chassis all around, might help with turn in on a grippy surface after you've switched electronics or if you did so.

[@rhynecars]

It looks so similar to the Sworkz and Team Associated 10th scale 4wd buggies. Thank you China for making a cheaper option. 😂

[@nickrobertson2450]

Interesting perspective! Still not done anything with mine yet. Maybe I just keep it in the box for 30 years, maybe it becomes a desirable rare cult item 🤔

[@andyp6699]

Great no nonesone vid Gav. Is there any way you can put old weight measures on the screen. It will save me some time personally converting from metric to good old English pounds and ounces. (yES I AM OLD AND SET IN MY WAYS ).

[@mechanicalmanny494]

Nobody told you to buy one😊

[@davidvoisin1925]

The VQS also comes with a cheap motor but costs much more money! Besides, the Tamiya has plastic shocks while this one has beautiful metal ones. Tempted to get one, fit a brushless system and a VQS body on it, for a fraction of the price. I say our allegiance to Tamiya is undeserved. There has to be something in between: the pedigree and character of Tamiya designs with cheaper prices (and more metal / less plastic).

[@EJ-74]

Will the ESC in this power a brushless motor ? and will it handle 3S I like it Some times heavier can be a good thing it makes the car a little more stable over bumps and jumps with the right shock set ups and it puts weight on the tires for more traction The steering linkages servo horn etc could probably be modified to get a better turn radius I modified my first hobby grade Rustler back in 2000 the turn radius was terrible lol Cool review mate appreciate your honesty 👍 Cheers from the USA ✌️

[@RCKickschannel]

Nope you will need a brushless ESC. As for 3S support it’s a bit hit and miss

[@MyRAMSEES]

Well thank you for the review but I saw the good side about all what you mentioned which is a powerful brushless upgrade 👍

[@RCKickschannel]

It’s coming soon out of the box

[@wendyon4517]

I'm with you on body looks. That style is fugly on ANY RC.

[@natep755]

This video was brought to you by Heinz Soups :) Hope you got some love from Heinz for promoting the soup range

[@DoubleClutchProductions]

My gripe is they simply don't perform compared to a similar option. They lack basic geometry you find on most modern RTRs and suck pretty much everywhere except on youtube speed run videos, am I missing something.

[@tripyramidpictures9224]

I so love the body style….! I think its looks real cool!

[@fencer39]

some guy is already making top deck bracing for it .....some where here on youtube !

[@grumpy_8186]

How do you think it compares to HSP 1/10 buggy 94107 brushed.

[@TheNewseven]

bonjour :) I have a little question. The weight 1680 grams , It is with the battery or without the battery ? I like your video .

[@RCKickschannel]

With I think it was

[@felicianoabe]

What is that unimog behind you? Is that a wltoys too? I am guessing it's a tamiya...????

[@MrGallotole]

Hello, could you tell me the wheelbase? Thank you

[@letzvisit1661]

Can you give a link to a good quick cheap charger for this car and the 019 Thanks very much

[@rhynecars]

It weighs less than the Team Associated RC10B74.1 which is 1,770 grams and has many carbon fiber parts. Heavy at 1,680?

[@felicianoabe]

They should make these wltoys car's as diy.yes they are cheap but it would still be fun assembling one

[@imrannaqvi83]

Hi, I am newbie to rc toys, want to buy it for my 10 yo boy. I have few questions, 1. Does acceleration have analog control? Mean can we run the motor on whatever speed or it is like cheap cars which only turn on/off? 2. Does the steering have analogue control? Can we steer it half not fully?

[@fitchyyboi]

Analogue as you describe it is properly called proportional. Yes, this has both proportional steering and throttle.

[@albertdelbosco9686]

This is a remade xray xb4 2019 so it's a great buggy for the price. I believe the flex is coming from The bendy plastic bottom brace

[@Luke-en2tk]

It really isn't, the layout might be but that's about it

[@albertdelbosco9686]

@@Luke-en2tk it is LC racing took over the 2019 xray wltoys changed the arms a little because lc racing arms fit. I can be wrong but there's a guy on u tube that put a lc racing whole front on the wl toys

[@Luke-en2tk]

@@albertdelbosco9686 so they copied all the dimensions of the car but made it with super cheap materials. In racing the materials used is as important if not more so than the geometry suspension etc...

[@danielanderson5364]

You should try to review the ftx vantage 2.0 edition

[@overbuiltautomotive1299]

i add moly grease to all new cars i like all metal stuff just add a 2s 3s brushless system 3665 motor or so

[@dudeman3986]

I hate sponsored reviews

[@johnmyall5548]

Since it's a copy of a modern looking 4wd buggy, from a racing point of view, it looks like it has the correct amount of flex in the chassis👍 Doesn't look a while lot different to my Xray XB4 '21 car.

[@RCKickschannel]

I should hope so lol, XRAY kits are top of the line stuff.

[@johnmyall5548]

@@RCKickschannel Indeed they are👍 The weight of the WLToys looks perfectly ok as well, once you throw out the rubbish electrics, you could probably make it a decent club level race car👍

[@letzvisit1661]

What’s the gps you use to measure the speed? Could I have a link to that also pls

[@RCKickschannel]

Get the newer Flysky speed app and dongle, it’s much better that the old GPS unit

[@letzvisit1661]

@@RCKickschannel ok thanks very much I’ll look into that then.

[@davidturner2365]

The old bendy chassis 😂😂😂

[@BenSuzi1980]

Hi RCKicks =) The XRAY XB4, which is the "original" of the wltoys 104001 weighs in at 850g. for the roller and 1650g. for a ready to run car. Why do u think 1680 is heavy? ;-))))))) it isnt =)) Besides that, good video mate

[@DPoner]

It’s still very cheap for rolling chassis. I just swap out the electronics and use the stock electronics in a vintage car

[@seanjis007]

I like the cab. Similar to the LC racing body. I don't like the body's of 124017 or 19 and the 144001 or 10 and I own most of them

[@JeepsCafe]

Hahaha it turns like a bus lol, I love it!🤣🤣🤣

[@perfecthips]

Are they making a brushless version on this? If so whats the model?

[@RCKickschannel]

Yep it’s coming

[@perfecthips]

@@RCKickschannel would you happen to know the model number?

[@RCKickschannel]

Nope sorry not currently but as the brushless WLTOYS 019 became 017 it will not be that different from the brushed number

[@DPoner]

I’m sure you could find a spur gear to fit that thing. May be associated.

[@RCBirds]

At least they gave the car a name😉

[@camrowdrone6497]

Maybe only good for straight line speed runs with a big ass brushless motor and esc 👊🏻👍🏻

[@scalemodelsandrc9366]

1.680g thats not heavy i think your scales said 1,680g thats a big difference

[@StankoPerko]

Oldschool Maverick/HSP still around? Hard to beat me thinks;)

[@gamebosan5965]

hahaha. good idea using 124019 to push new brother

[@revee1000]

How wide is the body shell?

[@RCKickschannel]

Sorry I can't say as I have just sold it and it's packed ready for shipping. You should find it on the Banggood site.

[@tripyramidpictures9224]

You must not know a lot about cars and engineering…..The car is heavy, because it’s MORE stable, and impossible to tip over. Overall, its an AMAZING car. Sure, its better with a brushless, and a new servo, then it’s dynamite!

[@RCKickschannel]

😝🤔🤣

[@SuperBigdanno]

Coming from Tamiya you say the plastic is too hard?! LMAO

[@RCKickschannel]

Heheheh

[@josephplatania5593]

Why they wouldn't put a nice protective number on all their cars makes no sense. Unless the just want to sell parts and activate people

[@lcpeterbilt379]

i was out at phillips screwdriver.

[@jasonsfilmcameras1420]

BUT given the fact this costs JUST £75.00 in 2021 all in RTR its value for money .

[@chloeNlana]

Hello mate I'm sorry to burst your bubble but that car is from XK and NOT WL TOYS,not anywhere on the box does it say WL TOYS. EVERYONE is making this same mistake lol

[@RCKickschannel]

Really lol. I’ll go take a look.

[@techspeedrc]

It's not a mistake, XK is a "premium" brand name owned by WLToys, in the same way full size luxury cars are made by Toyota but they use the Lexus badge to market them.

[@Sean-vh8pm]

You "get this" at 23:27. But you don't mention what the name is, or a link to buy it? DOH!

[@rcwalt1625]

Content is good. Background music is awful. Like, really awful.

[@colinfairbairn8136]

gav have you seen the vid for the new avanti rc its on utube oh its a beauty

[@jacobcushman9153]

I'll just wait till they come out with something better.

[@strexttp]

Good review 👍

[@roryhaggerty7768]

Diffs need shimming. Shredded mine 1st go

[@KangoV]

So, a car that does not grip it's balls hard enough. Brilliant. A someone else said, it'll be nice to find out all the other parts that are interchangeable from other cars. I bet a lot of this is copied from others.

[@jaysonburns4423]

This car is cool but the electronics gotta go...brushless motor and better shocks and better tires and better gearing...

[@danielanderson5364]

It only just came out

[@conradloag7046]

$493 Canadian dollars are they insane???

[@outsidethepyramid]

gosh you gave that car both barrels.

[@michaelrees2976]

Lol looks good for spinning round and around. Think if it’s your first RC car fine, but I’d not waste my money on these cheap knock offs personally. Looks can be deceiving!

[@TheGuzo80]

Not all parts are available!Beware

[@rccarsandmusic2641]

You disassembled to much, 2 screws diff cover comes off, release the upper links for dog bones.

[@RCKickschannel]

Yep you are correct

[@AlexandrEdamenko]

WLtoys 104002 test this model

[@alangt4769]

Agree- it is amazing value alright. But it looks hideous!

[@josephplatania5593]

They are junk. They break so easy. It gets old fixing it all the time. Get 12429 instead. It's not as fast but way tougher.

[@craigjones2015]

Put diff fluid in it

[@RCKickschannel]

I sold it Craig

[@craigjones2015]

@@RCKickschannel I was going to buy one but $350+ naaah I'll pass. I just buy a tekno short course for $399

[@RCKickschannel]

@@craigjones2015 You can get this for $160USD

[@craigjones2015]

@@RCKickschannel where I looked on the websites it says over $350

[@craigjones2015]

@@RCKickschannel now is says $372 I clicked on your link for the car

[@mascogni5952]

Sorry guys, nothing like USA built car.

[@RCKickschannel]

I would change that to, “USA designed” car as most are manufactured a little further east these days but yep, we have seen some amazing stuff out of the US over the years for sure. Say what you will about Traxxas business antics, some of the cars are fantastic.

[@jasonice1584]

Lc racing slipper

[@alantaylor353]

Ftx Vantage..