The First Upgrades You Should Consider For Your New RC Vehicle

Paul Onorato December 31, 2024 Stories

PRO-LINE BASH ARMOR CHASSIS PROTECTOR—#PRO639606

One of the newest performance upgrades from Pro-Line are the Pro-Line Bash Armor Chassis Protectors. There are a few different versions available and this one is for Arrma 3S vehicles with the short wheelbase. It is a fantastic way to boost durability and the style of your rig thanks to the use of high strength Nylon which can take a beating. The protector mounts on top of the stock chassis of 3S/Boost Granite or Vorteks vehicles thus adding an extra layer of protection. Installing them is a breeze with the use of a few screws and you have a choice of three different colors. Pro-Line blue, Arrma red or classic stone gray are the options so you can pick the one that works with your specific paint scheme. Swapping out the protector is easy when it gets too worn or you want a color change.

PRO-LINE CARBON FIBER SHOCK TOWER BRACES ARRMA (3S & MEGA)—#PRO639300 (FRONT) / PRO639400 (REAR)

The First Upgrades You Should Consider For Your New RC Vehicle

If your new vehicle is intended for bashing, upgrading the suspension to make it more bulletproof is a great decision. When driving a vehicle extra hard, especially an off-road vehicle, the shock towers face a tremendous amount of stress and can become a weak link and break. A fantastic solution to remedy this issue are with these Carbon Fiber Shock Tower Braces made by aftermarket parts specialist Pro-Line.

These specific Carbon Fiber Shock Towers were designed and built for Arrma 3S and Mega vehicles. The brace is bolted up against the stock shock tower which in turn further strengthens it and adds rigidity and performance to the Arrma 3S powered off-road vehicles. The shock tower braces are sold individually because they are unique for either the front or rear shock tower.

SPEKTRUM FIRMA 2-IN-1 BRUSHLESS CRAWLER MOTOR/ESC—#SPMXSEM1040A

Yes this is not a cheap upgrade, however it is 100-percent worth it once you start using it. Spektrum specifically engineered the Firma 2-in-1 Brushless System to be used with 1/10-scale rock crawlers and scale trucks. And if your new vehicle is powered by a brushed motor system, the change in overall performance will be even more drastic. The key benefits to this Firma motor system is its compact setup that proves ideal for scale builds where space is limited, it offers terrific slow speed driving along with exceptional drag brake performance and is designed with industry leading waterproofing and dustproofing to allow you worry-free running in water, snow, sand and mud.

Typically, brushless motor systems are sold with the motor and electronic speed control as two separate units which obviously take up more space on a chassis. The Spektrum Firma 2-in-1 Brushless Crawler Motor/ESC system bestows builders the capability to reduce clutter and components, giving you the most room for scale accessories and customization. Even with the ESC integrated with the brushless motor it is similar to the size of a 550 motor thus making it an easy drop-in option for most 1/10-scale trucks. Spektrum spec’d a low speed 1400Kv motor for this particular Firma 2-in-1 Brushless Crawler Motor/ESC system, which will give your rig extreme slow speed and high angle of attack performance.

PRO-LINE 6” ULTRA-SLIM LED LIGHT BAR KIT—#PRO635203

Don’t let your new car or truck get caught in the dark and pick up the Pro-Line 6” Ultra-Slim LED Light Bar Kit. Pro-Line has offered LED light bars for numerous years and shown here is one of its next generation of LED light bars. They are available in four different sizes to suit a huge variety of vehicles. The 2″ bar is perfect for mounting on 1/10 scale grilles and bumpers or can be used on the roof of mini and micro vehicles like the Axial SCX24. Choose a 4″ Straight, 5″ Curved, or 6″ Curved for your 1/10-, 1/8-, or even 1/6-scale crawlers, monster trucks, trail trucks and street machines.

You can see by the photos the Ultra-Slim light bars feature a low-profile, highly detailed injection-molded housing. Inside is a super-bright strip of LEDs that run off 5-12V power and come ready to use with plug & play industry-standard receiver plugs. The lens on the light bars feature a dual focus combo: a spot pattern in the middle section and a diffused flood pattern towards the outer edges. There is a 12″ lead that you can choose to plug directly into your receiver or wire directly to a 2S or 3S battery pack. Installing the light bar is simplified with Pro-Line’s universal mounting kit that includes three different styles of mounts. The standard mounts and low-profile mounts allow you to fasten the light bar to your roof or other body panels, while the tube clamp mounts allow for mounting to a cage or tube-style bumper.

PRO-LINE 1/8 AXIS WING, BLACK—#PRO638203

Obviously aerodynamics are critical when racing whether it be a 1/10-scale touring car or a 1/8-scale off-road buggy. Highlighted here is the Pro-Line 1/8 Axis Wing that combines everything that serious 1/8-scale off-road racers are looking for including durability, style and most importantly, performance. This molded plastic wing has been tested extensively by Pro-Line’s factory team drivers. The testing revealed the wing provides increased forward traction, high-speed stability and a vehicle that is a more consistent jumper.

Included with the Pro-Line Axis wing is a wicker-bill that allows you to tune the performance of the wing to your liking. And if you are running in windy conditions, you can help combat this by drilling holes across the rear of the wing to reduce drag thanks to the aid of pre-marked dimples. Furthermore, IFMAR-spec endplates provide the ideal side bite in loose conditions. You have a choice of either picking of the Axis wing molded in white or black like is featured here. When it comes time to mount the wing on your truggy or buggy, it is made easy with markings for 40mm and 48mm wing mount widths and 5 fore/aft positions.

PRO-LINE PRO-SPEC SCALER SHOCKS—#PRO631601

Among the first upgrades you should consider for your new RC vehicle are aftermarket, high-quality aluminum shocks. For example these Pro-Line Pro-Spec Scaler Shocks can make your vehicle handle better on the surfaces it is running on. An added benefit with these shocks are that they are designed to stand out from the crowd with bright chrome and blue anodizing for a scale look. If these particular shocks do not work with your vehicle, Pro-Line offers a good variety of shocks for many types of vehicles.

Shown here are the Pro-Spec Scaler Shocks designed for rock crawlers. They are sold in pairs and come out of the box almost fully assembled with all you need to do is add the shock oil of your choice and install them onto the chassis. The shocks are made up of CNC machined aluminum shock caps, collars, bodies, and bottom caps. Notice that the caps collars and bottom caps have a great-looking blue anodized finish while the bodies are anodized a bright chrome color. In order to make the shocks operate as smoothly as possible with low friction and no leaks, Pro-Line manufactured the Pro-Spec shocks with exacting tolerances and utilized hard chrome coated steel shock shafts and X-Ring seals. Rounding out this shock package are realistic looking and performing dual rate springs.

PRO-LINE PRO-SERIES 32P TRANSMISSION—#PRO635000

Rounding out the first upgrades we recommend for a new vehicle is also one that is quite different than the rest. The Pro-Line PRO-Series 32P Transmission is intended specifically for Traxxas vehicles thus limiting how many people could utilize it. Installing this aftermarket tranny takes a good amount of effort yet you will be rewarded with awesome performance. It fits the Traxxas Slash 2WD, Stampede 2WD, Rustler 2WD and Bandit. This tranny is actually an updated version of the original Pro-Line transmission. The engineers at Pro-Line made this one stronger and even more capable so that it can handle the extreme motor systems that are currently available. At the same time, they made sure to carry over all the elements of the previous tranny that made it so well-loved. As an added advantage, the Pro-Line PRO-Series 32P transmission comes pre-built to make the install a bit easier.

Inside of the PRO-Series 32P transmission is a sealed differential that comes pre-filled with grease. If you need to change the type of oil used, it can be swapped with optional diff oil so that you can tune the transmission to your specific application. Along with tuning the diff, you can also tune the racing-style slipper system via an adjusting nut.

One of the big changes on the PRO-Series 32P tranny is the switch to a 32P 56-tooth spur gear which will help make stripped spur gears a thing of the past. You have the option of picking a 32P pinion gear between 10- and 18-tooth pinion gears for normal 540 sized motors. Diving further into the transmission housing, you will find all hardened steel internal gears. It is another welcome feature to give you the peace of mind that the tranny will handle serious power. Each of the gears spin on high-quality ball bearings including the differential that is supported by huge 10x16x5 bearings for outstanding load capability.

The case of the PRO-Series 32P transmission is built to be strong to handle more abuse and the aluminum motor mount is attached to the case with three screws. The motor plate is blue anodized complete with a laser-etched PL logo. At 3mm thick it acts as a giant motor heat sink to help keep temps in check. At the rear is a solid bumper with mounting holes that are in the same locations as the stock Traxxas ones so that you have near endless bumper and wheelie bar attachment options.