Carrera Aston Martin V12 - Home Racing World & The Slot Car Garage

10/30/2013

1/32nd Scale Digital Aston Martin Vantage V12 #30666

This is an all new effort by Carrera and it has been on my list since it was announced. My interest in modern GT cars is limited but I still wanted to see what Carrera had to offer.

*NOTE* This is a digital car. Conversion to analog is EASY by just pulling the trigger on your track 3 times.

Here is a quick video on converting digital to analog with the chipset still installed.

DIGITAL to ANALOG CONVERSION VIDEO

Why choose digital over analog? Because I think cars like this should have lights. It just adds to the scale appeal to me. Analog versions do not come with lights, so the choice was pretty easy. The car is also available in standard analog version if you do not care about lights or digital compatibility.

Data At A Glance

Length- 145.88 mm (With Wing)
Width - 61.25 mm (At widest section of rear fenders)
Height - 38.40 mm
Wheelbase - 83.50 mm
Total Weight - 100 grams

* Spare mirrors, braid & guide are located in the back of the case *

If lights mean something to you then you might want to think about going for this digital version. Unless you have all the parts and know what you are doing, adding a light kit is not as easy as it sounds and also not that easy on your budget.

If you are not up to speed on this car, take a look here and enjoy. Maybe you are like me and do not follow the GT3 series in the 1:1 world? I do look into it from time to time but it is not a series that peaks my interest. Yet the cars and the racing I have seen is pretty exciting. But to be honest it is the racing in scale I care about the most and Carrera has slowly taken over the series we run here.

For good reasons too. One of them is the detail level and overall finish of models like this. Looking through our great Internet you can find all sorts of reference photos. Here is just one that has some very nice photos and it should tell you that Carrera has done a very good job.

The rear wing supports are solid, which I feel is a smart move. Having fragile supports would just lead to breaking under hard racing conditions which is what the car is designed for. Does it detract from the appeal? For me? Not a chance. What about you?

So I feel Carrera's effort here is very well done. There are always fine scale enthusiasts who will nitpick any model released in our hobby. I usually ignore most of it as nothing is ever perfect. If a slot car manufacturer produces a model that is very close in appearance to the prototype so that there is no mistaking it, that is usually good enough for me.

I feel Carrera accomplished that and then some. Overall fit and finish is as good as it gets with excellent color and clean, crisp markings.

Wheels and tires are executed well enough for me. They seem round and true although you can tell that some sanding will be needed to get them just right.

The compound of these tires are better than I expected. Carrera has confirmed that they have changed compounds and what ever that blend is, it works better. Still, the racer will change them out to suit varied track conditions/personal preference.

I prefer using Urethane over silicones so I choose Paul Gage. The part# 21124 HERE fits the wheel nicely. Also the part# 21125. The inner rib of the wheel is 4.63mm so either the "4" or "5" designation shall work. That is the nice thing about these tires as they stretch to fit a wide variety of wheels. Then a little sanding is easily enough accomplished to get them true. You need to do some sanding, but that is what you have to do for any tire change/tuning.

Looking underneath we see a basic chassis design with inline configuration.

Newcomers need to note the polarity switch. This allows you to change direction of the car easily.

*NOTE* This acts as a polarity switch on analog tracks only. If you have a digital track, the switch simply changes the car from digital to analog and does NOT change the direction.

You can see the rear bar magnet and there is another magnet located in the center of the car. This only works while on a analog track though.

Removing the 3 screws that mount the body to the chassis we see the inner workings of the model. Digital chip and light boards, all with quick disconnects are present as expected. Gearing is standard with a 9 tooth pinion and 27 tooth crown gear that meshes smoothly. Crown gear is straight with no signs of wobble and wheels seemed very straight under testing. The motor is the standard E200 motor which I like just fine.

I like the chassis design Carrera uses as they are similar from car to car. For example, to see how to remove and adjust the magnets CLICK HERE for our BMW DTM review. It is the same for this model so I will not waste time repeating it here.

Track Test
MIDMO International Speedway
4x16 - 3 Lane MDF - Satin/Flat Latex Surface
SCC Braid/Flush Mount - Pyramid PS26KX Aftermarket Power @12 Volts
2 Types Of Control For Testing - Professor Motor 2110 Controllers/Parma 25 OHM

I have to say this car is rather impressive. Very smooth operation as usual but the car is just QUICK. It really gets through the corners nicely and lap times tell the truth. I posted an average of 3.9 seconds which is not bad for our track. And this was with NO modifications or tire change.

I sanded the stock tires and cleaned them by rolling them across masking tape. 3.7 seconds was now the new time. Changing to Paul Gage tires had the times only slightly faster at around 3.6. I will keep the PG tires in place for now but I am enjoying these newer tires. With some stock tires, once you sand and therefore heat them up, they seem to dry out faster over time. I really sanded these heavily and will see how long they last. I just know that for the average racer they have improved the end product and that is always welcome in our hobby.

The guide placement is still a little high in the chassis allowing the front wheels to support too much weight for my liking. Easily enough addressed with either smaller diameter tires, sanding the originals, or even moving the front axle further up which we have done in the past. I will likely just change to a B-Nova guide system as this really helps the overall performance.

The drive train is very straight and the wheels only needed light sanding to true them up. The performance of the model tells me I do not have much to tune. I do like converting to aftermarket guides on some models but that is just my own taste. When a car runs this smoothly on wood it usually means I have little to change and that makes me happy.

Final Thoughts

You can say what you want about Carrera, but for my hobby dollar they are the hardest brand to beat. And I think this car is going to be welcomed to just about any of you who choose it.

Advanced/Veteran Notes: You already know they are easily tuned. Don't like the motor? Change it. In fact you can easily outfit this car with all the aftermarket parts you wish. And admit it, that is what you do. I am guilty of it too. So in my opinion, if I am going to rebuild a slot car with all the higher end parts, why not start with a LOWER COST model as a platform?

Newcomer Notes: This is a nice slot car that will provide you with plenty of fun. Match this car with other GT models such as the Mercedes & BMW and you can expect some very close racing action. It runs well out of the box like they are supposed to and you cannot ask for much more. Magnets provide more than enough traction for most and can be adjusted slightly to increase it.

What I expected was a bland release of an older model. I was wrong. I did not realize this was an all new mold at first and that it was the newer V12 Vantage body. This is a nicely done effort and although I am not a die hard modern GT fan, I think those of you that are will welcome it.

- Harry

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Thanks Carrera of America for Sponsoring This Review!