Jalopnik: Slot Cars

What, No Bootlegger Turns? Dukes of Hazzard Racing Sets From Ideal

Murilee Martin — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 11:15:00 EST

You know what was missing from most slot-car racing sets? Jumps! Now, based on personal experience with slot cars, we'd say that the chance of a car making a jump and then landing back on the slot approach zero... but so what? It's Boss Hogg versus the Duke Boys!

Slot Car Wall Art: Where Functionality And Design Meet

Matt Hardigree — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 17:45:00 EST

Because we share a small apartment in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood, we've never quite had the space to install our own ultimate slot car track. In fact, we've yet to install any kind of slot car track in the apartment. We've got this guy to thank for providing a solution that meets our space requirements while also addresses the excess of whitespace on our walls. According to the creator, the Slot Car Wall Sculpture layouts are "practically infinite," which is funny considering his current version is a lemniscate.

Here's how he describes it:

Slot Car Wall Sculpture:
This is just a small example of the idea. Old HO Slot Cars and Track are easily found online. This set up [about half of the track I got] cost me around $100. Track layouts are practically infinite. Its just hanging there so I can take it down, plug it in and enjoy the excitement of Slot Car Racing *anytime.

This might interfere with posting. (Thanks to Dan for the tip) [x818]

Bust Out The Wah-Wah Pedal: Aurora 24 Hours of Le Mans Slot Cars!

Murilee Martin — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 11:00:00 EST

After seeing the '69 Torino ad the other day, we figured maybe all the ads of that era had music a thousand times lamer than the rock-und-roll those dope-addled freaks of the time were listening to. Oh, sure, we're not expecting the Mothers of Invention or the Stooges, but you'd think some buzz would maybe sneak in to a car-related ad soundtrack here or there. And it did! This 1970 24 Hours of Le Mans Aurora slot car set (with lights! and drifting!) ad gets the job done.

Holiday Gift Guide: Mario Kart Slot Cars

Matt Hardigree — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 14:30:00 EST

Though it doesn't quite have the realism or history of Gran Turismo 4, we've been addicted to the Mario Kart series for as long as we could chuck a red homing shell. We've spent countless hours unlocking tracks and cars on the digital version, which often leads to sore eyes. But what to do when you're taking a break? Why not play a slot car version of the same game? Wario v. Mario. It's a good way to keep your intricately detailed Le Mans replica track away from the kids. Chomp Chomps not included.

Product Information

The Carrera ""GO!!!"" is now available as a new starter set from Carrera in a scale of 1:43. "GO!!!" also sets new standards with regard to the speed. The turbo hand regulators included in all basic packages, all have an extra turbo key with enough power to enable you to manage 4 loops straight from the start! The track also underscores the fact that ""GO!!!"" is a perfect starter model: The completely new easy-to-fit system allows the track to be put up or taken down very easily.

Thanks to the new type of locking and support systems, the track can be constructed very quickly. Carrera fun with turbo power The new turbo hand controller is part of all basic packs and guarantees real fun. All sets come with ""Turbo speed controller"" with race boost. All sets include numerous action features like lap counter or loops. [Amazon]

James May And The Slot Car Land Speed Record

Davey G. Johnson — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 23:45:00 EDT

Wherein Captain Slow assembles a scale measured-mile and attempts to have slot-car racers break the late, great Don Vesco's 2001 wheel-driven land speed record of 458 mph. Can they break it? Who knows? Can we get enough James May? Never. – Davey G. Johnson

Related:
James May on Model Railroading [Internal]

Slotting it Up in the Modern Age

Davey G. Johnson — Fri, 18 May 2007 23:30:00 EDT

Growing up, we loved electric toys, especially slot cars and model trains. With train sets, the action was always rather zen. You painted scenery, planted fake plastic trees, figured out how to make your rocks more convincing and arranged your engines and railcars for maximum visual effect. Then, sometimes, you got bored and overcooked a turn just to watch a spectacular derailment. Slot-car racing, however, was another ball of wax. It was fierce, competitive, and required skill on the controller. One of Wired's blog types has just gotten back into the slots and he's got a nice little piece on how to get the ozone back in your nosecone, as well as an interesting (and true) baboon analogy on the avocation's psychological effects. – Davey G. Johnson

Slot Cars Revisted [Wired]

Related:
AFX Champ Cars Coming in Summer [Internal]

Race Caws! Stunt Caws! Super Loopa!

Mike Bumbeck — Wed, 14 Mar 2007 15:29:48 EDT

Thunderjet and AFX slot cars manufactured by the Aurora Plastics Corporation of West Hempstead, New York forever etched racing cars into the minds of impressionable youth. The company also made some forays into gravity powered Hot Wheels style racing toys. By the looks of this old commercial for their Speedline Stunt and Drag Set, it seems they went as far as three or four feet from the factory to recruit a couple of kids rooting through the dumpster for spare slot car parts as talent. Hey you kids get outta there! You wanna be in a commercial? Lookit da box! – Mike Bumbeck

Related:
Movie AFX: Slot-Car Cam [Internal]

AFX Champ Cars Coming in Summer

Davey G. Johnson — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 16:45:00 EST

Being men of a certain age who never quite got around to giving up being boys, Los Jalopniks are big fans of slot car racing. So excuse us for being a little geeked that we just found out that in July of this year, Tomy-owned AFX will launch a line of HO-scale slot cars resembling the current crop of Champ Cars. The cars will drop this summer, which gives us some time to get to work building our scale model of Downtown Long Beach. – Davey G. Johnson

Champ Car Slot Cars to be Produced [Paddock Talk]

Transformers Toys For Tots: Slot Cars And An Old And Busted Camaro Named Bumblebee

Ray Wert — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 11:02:34 EST

No, not our commenter — the Autobot named Bumblebee. Our fave fan site all about the 'formers hipped us to new pictures of a transformed 70's Camaro version of the yellow-n-black bot. I'm not yet thrilled as it's not the new concept Camaro version from later in the movie and we're actually curious as to where the rest of the car went post-transformation. But despite my lack of exuberance over this toy, there's some other news from TFW2005 that makes up for it. Unfortunately, it's only for olks over in the UK. We've heard they should be expecting to see:

"a Transformers Movie slot car racing set! UK slot car manufacturing company, Scalextric, is set to launch this product in June...the set will feature Transformers Bumblebee and Decepticon Barricade from the new movie and allow you to transform the cars to reveal the robots. Out early in June and costing 40, Scalextric is hoping to storm kids and adults bedrooms in time for the July 4 film release."

That means we'll finally be able to have a race between a Saleen Camaro and a Saleen Mustang. Oh joy of joys! Now if we can just drop a "Saleen" Challenger into the mix, we'll have ourselves some real muscle car wars...at 1:64 scale. But whatevs, beggars can't be choosers. Check out the full Bumblebee toy gallery below, and keep your eyes on our Transformers tag and gallery for any up-to-the-minute news on the new movie as we hear it. – Ray Wert

UK To Get Transformers Movie Racing Set in June [TFW2005]

Related:
All our Transformers coverage [internal]

Jalopnik Holiday Gift Guide: Vintage HO Slot Cars

Mike Bumbeck — Tue, 12 Dec 2006 16:24:30 EST

For those who have just about given up on ever owning a '68 Firebird comes vintage HO slot cars. The original HO slot cars were from England, and powered by some manner of electrically powered vibrating reed and gear system. They didn't work very well. Aurora Model Motoring racing sets featured the much improved Thunderjet series of cars, and coincided nicely with a boom in American HO Scale railroading in the '60s. As time went on the cars went faster and stuck to the track a bit better. These improvements eventually led to day-glo track and wall-climbing silliness as the great age of HO slot cars jumped the shark. The gift of vintage slot cars is easier to give than ever thanks to the miracle of computers. Around 10 dollars and up on eBay. Cars shown from the Jalopnik Collection. – Mike Bumbeck

Pre-1970; Post-1970 [eBay]

Related:
Jalopnik Holiday Gift Guide [Internal]

Jalopnik Holiday Gift Guide: SUPER SLOT CAR SET!

Mike Bumbeck — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 14:35:11 EST

While racing around in pixel-perfect versions of F1 cars via PS3 is all fine and good, nothing beats physically flipping your opponent's highly detailed, 1/32 scale model of a Ferrari — out of which a certain stoic German recently retired — right off the track. With a price tag just a shade over 120 clams for this starter set, sharing the gift of mowing over action figures or launching McLaren F1 cars nose first into the the fruit cake has never been easier. $124.99.

SUPER SLOT CAR SET [Target]; SCX

Related:
Jalopnik Holiday Gift Guide: Slot Cars [Internal]

Mini Slot Car A-Team Elvis Mayhem

Mike Bumbeck — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 12:47:25 EST

Before video games and remote control cars that run on nitromethane became commonplace under the old tree, a slot car set was the coolest thing a wee lad could expect to rip into on the most awesome of mornings. While racing tiny versions of the coolest cars around on the plastic track and pretending one was Jackie Stewart or Mario Andretti was the first order of business, it wasn't long before imagination got the best of convention. Something like a couple of Mini-Coopers mowing over an A-Team Hannibal action figure to an Elvis soundtrack was usually the end result. – Mike Bumbeck

[SCX]

Related: The Best Van Ever: The A-Team's GMC [Internal]

Ad Watch: Slide The Mazdaspeed3 Right In The Slot

Ray Wert — Wed, 13 Sep 2006 15:09:18 EDT

This is one funny-ass marketing idea. It's called "Awesome Adventures" and it's using slot car racers to demonstrate the speed of the slowly-hitting-the-market turbocharged Inline-4 Mazdaspeed3. We're not sure who did the creative on it but word to the marketing department — we doubt even a turbocharger would let it blow the doors of a Porsche, but we'll cut Mazda some slack on it cause so many of the new hot hatch 3-doors won't be sold as new after the whole Cougar Ace thing.

Hoon of the Day: Maaaaahmm, Maaaaaaaaah

Mike Spinelli — Thu, 05 Jan 2006 12:12:47 EST

If you were some sort of audio-mechanical engineering student raised on AFX and Tyco, what kind of thesis project would you come up with? Of course, you'd create a slot car track, but replace the rheostats with sensors that convert noise to voltage — actuated by volume. Of course, if you were also a Hoon, you'd don weird sound helmets and videotape yourself playing with it. Hint: Listen to the audio track alone for that institutional day-room sensibility.

Voice Activated Slot Cars [via DevilDucky]

Related:
More Hoons of the Day [internal]