Midnight Pumpkin
Model Number: 58070
Released
9-Dec-87
Drive
2WD rear, gear differential
Suspension
Front swing arm & rear rolling rigid, friction shocks
Chassis Description
ABS Bathtub
Body Type
PS injection moulded
Motor
540
Original Price
11800 Yen
Width
290mm
Length
385mm
Height
260mm
Wheel Base
207mm
Tread Front
212mm
Tread Rear
216mm
Ground Clearance
38mm
Weight
2050g
Scale
1/12th
Tires
front:71/115mm
Rear:71/115mm
One of the longest running Tamiya kits. Massively popular in the USA Tamiya took the Lunchbox chassis and added a 50's Ford F100 body. A great looking truck and so much fun to drive with the original tail heavy wheelie design. A must have 'runner'.[acprc]
Reviews
MonsterYeti
Great classic car. It has as previously described many faults, rolls too easy, wheelies etc, but with the mechanical speed controller removed and an esc added a transformation of the truck occurs. Acceleration is smoother still quick but with less of a tendancy to wheelie, and the biggest bonus of an esc is that battery run times appear to increase. I have waterproofed the chassis by covering the holes in the tub chassis then sealing it with silicone, this enables wading in water up to 40mm. Not deep but it keeps the internals dry.
pauljmuk
Going to keep this one short. Great fun machine, if you dont mind rolling it over.
Out of the box - it's all pretty good stuff. Fairly bulletproof gearbox. Get some bearings for it. Friction shocks are laughable, but some people actually refrain from changing them, as those shocks actually help the car be so much fun.
It wheelies well, steering geometry and bump steer are laughable too, but that is what makes it so much fun to drive. 180 degree spins the lot.
I'd get one if you can find one - dont take it seriously at all, but some of the greatest laughs you'll get with a Tamiya. Classic!
bridggar
Judging by the number of these on this site, this sure is a popular kit! Presumably its longevity is a contributing factor!
I bought one from ebay as a runner to thrash round the garden, annoy my dog, and teach my 3 year old daughter. Please to say it happily forfills these requirements and more. Many will recognise the chassis and basic config from the original Mitsubishi Pajero. I was initially sceptical as, the high centre of gravity and location of the battery made handling a nightmare. (even with the gripless tyres) Thankfully, the battery is moved underneath on the Pumpkin reducing (but not eliminating) the shell scuffing inevitable rollovers. I have only run this on grass, so the damage is minimal.
The build process is typical simple tamiya. Being a hard body, the detailing is excellent and preparation and painting of this will probably take longer than the build itself. As with all these types of models, the gearboxes are almost bullet proof although I only run the stock 540.
Being a thrasher, foot high jumps are the norm. I’ve quickly realised that the standard suspension setup in conjunction with the bouncy tyres means some oil filled shock are a necessity. In the interim (I’ve not found anything suitable yet) I’ve used some fuel line tube to partially reduce the bounce!
Quiksilver
Good overall model (albeit a tad on the small side), easy to build in an evening and does not have any noticeable design flaws. Add a decent set of silver shock absorbers and some larger alloy style wheels and this truck will look great. Drives and handles well, pretty fast and nimble too - under hard acceleration it will wheelie, after the novelty of this ability wears off it becomes quite annoying as pulling away requires gentle acceleration, it also manages to tip the truck over here and there scratching the bodywork. Do the suspension, wheels and modify the rear to stop the wheelie effect and you have a good little truck.