Not a bad deal if you like the translucent bodies. I picked up a few...

Check their web site.

I wish I wasn't so freaking broke!

I wish I wasn't so freaking broke!

yeah man!! i am in the same boat!!! sighhhhh

Wes

Wish they did First Lap cars in t-jets . . . I think a red t-jet chassis would be trick and look pretty sweet stuffed up under an Alfa or a Ferrari.

Wish they did First Lap cars in t-jets . . . I think a red t-jet chassis would be trick and look pretty sweet stuffed up under an Alfa or a Ferrari.

A red chassis stuffed under a clear dash Hotrod would be really cool, too!:thumbsup:

Are those Release 1 (RED) XTractions all come with red chassis? The descriptions I'm reading on eBay say they do, but the pics on the AW site look like grey/silver chassis.

Are those Release 1 (RED) XTractions all come with red chassis? The descriptions I'm reading on eBay say they do, but the pics on the AW site look like grey/silver chassis.

I got a set and yeah, they were all red. :)

I got a set and yeah, they were all red. :)

Crap. I don't care for the bodies at all, but the red chassis....

I just ordered 2 chargers. Ny brother can have the bodys i just wanted a couple red chassis. :D

Having not paid much attention to AW, I was just wondering how many different sets of First Lap cars were released. I know there was the release 1 (red) and 2 (blue) of the X-Tractions, which mirrored the release 1 and 2 regular cars. I see they have also listed a Super III First Lap set, and a set of 3 XT Ultra-G cars.

Was that the complete list?

Thanks...Joe

Yes, that's all of the First Laps.... I may have to spring for some blue and purple ones.

what color chassis comes with the red and blue cars ?
Thanks, Russell

release #1 - AUTO WORLD's First Lap Racers were created to mark the first release of new body castings. Featuring translucent "ghost" red bodies and special tire and chassis colors, the Release 1 First Lap Racers are truly unique! Limited to only 500 pieces, these are true collector cars. Clam packaging includes a bonus collectible retro Auto World embroidered cloth patch! Suitable for ages 14 and up

Release #2 - ALL NEW BODIES! The second release from the very popular new X-Traction First Lap racers program is here! Featuring all new body castings, this group is ready to race or display! Each car has a "ghost ice blue" translucent body, silver tires and a silver chassis. Limited to only 500 sets. Clam packaging includes a bonus collectible retro Auto World embroidered cloth patch! Suitable for ages 14 and up.

Release #3 - AUTO WORLD introduces NEW SUPER III Competition Racers! Built on an all-new modern in-line chassis design, the new Super III platform delivers blazing speed and amazing handling. Super III cars are "pro-level" racers at an affordable price.

This is the complete set of Super III Release 1 FIRST LAP Racers! First Lap cars are special edition racers released to celebrate the first release of all-new body styles. All cars in this group feature translucent "Ghost Orange-Juice" bodies, silver tires and silver chassis. You get the 2005 Ford Mustang GT with white racing stripes, 1970 Boss Mustang, 2005 Chevy Monte Carlo Stock Car, 2005 Ford Taurus Stock Car, 2005 Dodge Charger Stock car, and a special 2005 Ford Mustang GT with custom hood and rear louvered backlight.Only 500 of each model produced! Jewel case packaging. Suitable for ages 14 and up.

Release #4 - Auto World introduces X-Traction Ultra/G Release First Lap Racers! This set of 3 ALL-NEW body castings includes the Dodge Viper Competition Coupe, 2004 Chevrolet Corvette C5R and the 2006 Dodge Charger SRT8. Each one is molded in translucent "Ghost" Purple and features silver tires and chassis. First Lap models celebrate the very first release of each new X-Traction body style. Only 500 of each are produced and come in color-matched jewel case packaging. (Cars are fully motorized.) Suitable for ages 14 and up.

Hope this helps to answer any questions.

Bob

The red chassis are nice looking. I wish the blue and purple versions had matching colored chassis instead of the silver ones. I've never really warmed up to the silver tires.

The bottom line for me was the fact that these First Laps are coming in for $10-$12 each with shipping amortized into the cost, which is not too bad. I actually like the translucent bodies though I usually use them on a black chassis and use the red and silver chassis on other cars. I also painted one of my red translucent cars silver on the inside of the body and it looks sharp.

For some reason, the First Laps have not been good sellers at all but I imagine that they will do better over time on the collectible side. I was never a fan of the Tyco Neon Blasters but they are now showing up at pretty decent prices.

I have a couple of thoughts regarding these cars.. First off, The concept of the different color chassis will fit right into my plans of designated chassis for my kids. Since they always favor a certain car because it runs better, I can assign a couple of chassis to each and leave the bodies off all the cars. Can't be any arguments over who's chassis is who's if they are different colors. Secondly, for the customizers out there who wonder why AW doesnt make unpainted bodies, this is about as close as you can get.. other than the delorean and the blown vett. Stripping detail is way easier than the whole body. Just a couple ideas...

The red chassis are nice looking. I wish the blue and purple versions had matching colored chassis instead of the silver ones. I've never really warmed up to the silver tires.

The bottom line for me was the fact that these First Laps are coming in for $10-$12 each with shipping amortized into the cost, which is not too bad. I actually like the translucent bodies though I usually use them on a black chassis and use the red and silver chassis on other cars. I also painted one of my red translucent cars silver on the inside of the body and it looks sharp.

For some reason, the First Laps have not been good sellers at all but I imagine that they will do better over time on the collectible side. I was never a fan of the Tyco Neon Blasters but they are now showing up at pretty decent prices.


Would you be able to post up a pic of the silver chassis next to a regular chassis so we can see the color variance? I do not have any of the blue First Laps and have not spotted a pic of the chassis anywhere on the interweb.

for the customizers out there who wonder why AW doesnt make unpainted bodies,... Stripping detail is way easier than the whole body. Just a couple ideas...

Has anyone ever heard why a manufacturer doesn't offer this option as an alternative choice to their product line. Seems you'd be able to kick out an extra number of bods and pieces with out the color. I'd pay the same price as a painted body, just to avoid the stripping process. ;)

Can anyone at AW shed any light on why this doesn't happen more often. You've released a couple of bodies in kit form, why couldn't that be a standard part of any run? Thanks! :thumbsup::thumbsup: rr

Pure speculation here, but my best guess is they know we can do way better than they can, and they would end up selling the unfinished and wind up with a ton of finished bodies sitting in the warehouse..:rolleyes:

I got 'em in today but have not unpackaged them for pics. The chassis on the First Laps is a light gray color, regular XT style without the Ultra G magnet pocket. In my opinion, the first two rounds of First Laps, the reds and the blues, have the most impressive clamshell package that any slot car has ever had, bar none. I know the Cubists whined about the clams, but these are some mighty impressive looking clams.

I go the pair I ordered today too. Camaro and the '71 Charger. Red chassis. The Camaro body looks more orange than red. I didn't think I'd like the bodies, but they are not bad at all. Other than the red color, the chassis' are what I expected. One even ran out of the package. The other needed a motor brush put in the right hole. Both arms started trying to throw windings, so I just glued the windings on all three poles so I wouldn't have to do them later. The fast one has a hellva vibration. I had forgotten or wasn't paying attention that this was the series with the too small front axel in the too big hole. Both the bodies clear the front tires and the wheels and tires are round enough for my Tomy track. The tires look strange, but appear to have more grip than the black ones. I'm not pissed, but I'm not gonna order any more either. Oh, no spare guide pin, cheap bastards. :)

I was thinking of getting a "purple" 3 car set, but decided to wait on it...............I do like the red chassis though, they look great on some cars.

The purple ones have a gray XT UltraG chassis, with the extra magnet, and No-Slop (tm) front axle. They all ran very well right out of the package. I traded chassis and tires around, put the gray chassis with black tires under the silver cars from the regular XT UltraG release, and put the black chassis with black tires under the purple cars. The silver car/gray chassis combo looks great, and the translucent purple bodies look even better with black chassis and tires.

Both arms started trying to throw windings, so I just glued the windings on all three poles so I wouldn't have to do them later.

How do you detect this? And exactly what does "glued the windings" mean?

Thanks...Joe

The windings will start to creep away from their normally straight laced position when viewed from the top. They will exhibit a slightly parabolic appearance when viewed from above. Bad cases will look like untied shoes...LOL!

You'll note that armature builders, rewinders, experts will advise that no armature be free rev'ed, unloaded, to it's maximum RPM. Sluffing the windings is good reason to acknowledge their advice.

Ironically arms that really wing up good are notorious for sluffing the windings. A carefully calculated drop of glue spread across each pole will act as a saftey belt and help hold things together. I use one good drop on a toothpick; using the pick to help spread the drop evenly. Of course this can throw things out of ballance so one might have to address this as well.

Sometimes the glue fix will help indefinatly... sometimes the arm commits suicide inspite of your efforts.

What Bill said. :)

Additionally: When you run the car with the rear wheels off the track and vary the throttle, you can see the copper colored part of the spinning disc grow and shrink with the trigger action. I use thin CA glue after I coax the windings back in place with a toothpick the best I can.

You can check the windings with a toothpick and a gentle touch w/o running the chassis too. Loose windings are not difficult to spot.

The caveat with finding them is that you gotta fix 'em because they will eventually self-destruct. I'd re-balance one if I had one that didn't have a comm plate that could double as a concave mirror on the Hubble. They are fine for running on the 4x8 with the kids the way they are.

Well,

Wandered over to the sale again over the weekend and saw that virtually everything was still in stock. I pulled the trigger on the red Daytona (mainly for the chassis) and full sets of the blue and purple cars. The blue Ford GT and the Nomad were only available as part of the set. The blue cars sport the loose front axles and the front tires rub the Ford GT body :( Does the GTX look as bad on the track as it does in the package? Three miles high with the rear end jacked up on air shocks like a High School junior's crapbox mopar in 1979? I had planned on running that one too before I saw it in person. The rest of the sedans all look to be perched needlessly high on the chassis. In the meantime, the H2 fits perfectly with just a hint of the bottom of the chassis showing fron the side. What the??

On a positive note: the purple car I tried runs very well. The Viper came unbanded so I decided to try that one first. The front axel fit is MUCH better and the arm appears to be keeping all the windings. The tires are silver coated white that feel very soft and grip very well when the coating starts wearing off. The extra traction magnet was slowing the car down in the straights and it ran much better once I removed it. The best out of the box XTraction chassis I've had to date once I canned the extra magnet. The bodies fit the chassis much better than the other two series too. None on them are a particular fave of mine, but I like the way they fit. A shot of silver or pearl base on the inside of these might look cool. The Ultra/G version of the XTraction appears to finally address the major problems with the XTraction chassis. The blue cars only need the front axels replaced with something that fits the holes and the chassis will be on par the a magnetless Ultra/G. The red chassis will need that and the white compound tires.

My (r2) red chassis gtx is my only AW or j.l that ran out of clam! had many that the brushes(and springs) were pushed in the chassis! is this problem common?