Sunday January 23, 2005

The Carrera Ferrari 575

The Ferrari models by Carrera are really not new to many of you in the hobby. They have been only available overseas for quite some time and many of you could not wait and have already received your models months ago. However, these models will soon be available here through our local dealers and some of you who are just joining us might want a closer look at them.

There has already been reviews of these models, so most of you are fully aware of what this model has to offer. I can only echo here what many others have already stated about the over fit, finish and performance. In my opinion, Carrera has done an excellent job in the scale and detail department. It is simply becoming more commonplace that all models coming to us today are constantly improving in this area and I just don't have much to complain about. As usual though, I hope the photos do most of the talking for me.

I have to admit that aside from the NASCARS and few muscle cars, I have not really paid much attention to other models released by them. I have a few of the classics but for the most part it has been the American iron they keep producing that has my attention. When I fist learned of these models, I have to come clean and say that I was not really that excited.

That was until I visited Carrera in New York. Inside the showroom they had one of these models and I asked if I could see it. They gladly handed it to me and I was impressed with the overall fit and finish. Now I was interested and wanted to take her for a spin. I placed the car on the road course they had and began making a few laps. First thing I noticed was that the car was lighted and that they did a good job of it too. I did not have time to look at it closer then, but when it was to be available here I knew I wanted a pair just based on this quick little run.

The wheels and tires on this model kind of surprised me as they were slicks and actually hooked up rather well. Wheel detail is good enough for my tastes and they were also very round and true. The tires did show during the out of box test that they were going to need some sanding to get them even, but nothing major really. However, during testing a little surprise came my way. Another model arrived here right as I was testing this one. There was a clear difference in the performance of these models out of the box and turning the model over soon revealed the culprit.

Underneath we see the standard chassis design with both the rear bar magnet and variable magnet system. 4 screws mount the body to the chassis and were easily removed. However, up front is where I noticed a difference between this model and the one I just received. The front axle had black plastic spacers on it and the wheels were set apart slightly wider. Due to the close tolerances of the tire and body this could only result to one thing: Tire rub.

Sure enough here was my performance difference. I knew I could feel something holding that model back and this was it. The new model I have for review is void of these spacers and the wheels are set slightly inward allowing the front tires to clear without any issues. But the differences do not stop at the front. I also noticed on the model that had the spacers that the rear wheels were also set a little wider, and again causing a slight tire rub on the body. It isn't very much but it is present. A little tire sanding actually cured the problem rather quickly but adjusting both the front and rear wheels will be a better option in the future. I mention all of this as not all the models are like this and depending on which one you get will most likely determine your opinion on them right out of the box. The model for review was void of these issues and hopefully these are the models we see dominate your local dealers. I spoke with Carrera on this issue and I cannot confirm when this change was put into effect at the factory. I would highly suggest asking to have your models checked before purchasing them.

Inside we see a pretty full chassis laid out with all the wiring for the lights plus the polarity switch. The standard Carrera motor is in place equipped with a 9 tooth pinion that drives a 27 tooth crown gear. Things are kind of cramped in here to say the least and I did notice some of the rear light wiring rubbing on the axle, but all I needed to do was use some hot glue to secure them a little better on the chassis.

Out of the box this model ran very smoothly. The braking and acceleration are not as pronounced as on other models, but overall control is still very good, especially using better controller such as our PARMA 35 ohm models. Lap times out of the box were not record setting, but still not too bad with an average of 5.1 seconds. As I stated earlier, these rear tires were going to need some sanding due to the low center on them. Once I finished sanding them and getting a good contact patch things got a whole lot better. Lap times plummeted to around 4.6 seconds. Now this model had a very noticeable increase in handling and I liked the fact that although it has the 2 magnets, it still had a good amount of time to correct yourself in a spin.

I decided to see if I could make it a little better. Although the front guide is almost fully seated on the track and gives a decent tri-pod effect, I thought the front tires could at least use a little sanding to true them up as they do still have some support to them. After a good working over, this was just what it needed. This smoothed out the model a good amount and lap times fell slightly to an average of 4.4 seconds. For right now, this is just how I will leave the model.

Non-magnet racing with this car is also a challenge, but I found a little surprise when I first removed the magnets. Due to the extra circuit board and wiring, the chassis weighed in at 2.4 ounces without both magnets. Although this isn't a lot really, the model was very smooth and did not do too bad un-tuned at a time of 5.6 seconds as the average. Even though it is crowded inside the chassis, there is still a fair amount of room on the sides of the chassis for lead weight application. There is also room inside the variable magnet mount system and thin sheet lead can also find a home at various places on the underside of the chassis.

All in all I found this slot car to be fun just like a slot car should be. It is not the fastest model made today, but "magnet speed" is not always the most fun. In fact, with other companies loading up their models with more powerful magnets and motors, slot cars like this one are a refreshing alternative. I realize some of you love the aspect of heavy magnet and motor racing, however some of us like models that are more of a challenge to drive. This model delivers this in my opinion and should please most of you Ferrari fans who have waited for this series.

I think what I liked best about this model is simply the potential it has for our home racing. 4 of these models are going to be available right away which means we can create a new series on our 4 lane track immediately. 3 racing liveries plus one solid red model will be enough to get us started. This may not important to some of you, but for those who have started clubs and/or have at least 4 lanes, having enough models to fill the field is very convenient for me to say the least.

- Harry

As always feel free to contact me about this article or just the hobby in general at harry@homeracingworld.com, or better yet drop into our Message Forum and share your thoughts with other enthusiasts!

Thanks go to SLOT CAR WORLD for providing us with this new model.