VKTechnic

Whoo! What do I win?

Guessing AMRC stands for Aston Martin Race Car...maybe a Vantage GT3? Great work on the chassis so far, look forward to seeing more

I think the only part I'd change is the front grille. Everything else looks spot on, great work!

A nice solution for being purist, yes, but not so nice when you need grip

If it's purely decorative, that should be fine then

Interesting, if I had those pieces I'd definitely try it out. It all depends on how much load is going to be on it and how much other bracing you'll use. I can see the top section folding down and creating gear triangles, which wouldn't be desirable at all

To counteract the force of the spring, you could horizontally oppose two pumps (saw someone do this before). Otherwise removing the spring is a always an option....

Diff locks are strong, first time using the new driving rings for me. Tires are from RC4WD, although any 1.55" scale tires will fit those rims.

I need 1 motor for steering, 1 for winch, and 3 to control the pneumatic diff locks and transfer case. There will actually be a sixth motor for the compressor itself. It's not all that small (1:10 scale), but it's 5-10 studs shorter and 3 studs narrower than the Subarute, which was closer to 1:9.5 scale. I don't have to use 3rd party tires, since I'm building this to also fit Unimog tires. That tread pattern (and the blue axles) are taken from a modded Xterra that is the main inspiration for this build.

Beautiful model, instantly recognizable!

I've been out of town for a while, but this weekend I got to dedicate some time to building again. I've decided to go for 4-link suspension for the model, mostly to allow for proper off-road performance. I've also settled on mini LAs for the transfer case, while the axles will have pneumatic locking diffs. Anyways, the front and rear axles are done, and boy are they beefy. Nissan Xterra update! by VKTechnic, on Flickr Front and rear pneumatically locking differentials (used the old school diffs here), with portal axles and mounting points for the 4-link suspension. Just a couple tweaks on those left and they'll be all set! Nissan Xterra update! by VKTechnic, on Flickr The hard part will come with the chassis. I'll be cramming 5 M-motors, 2 XL-motors, 2 battery boxes, 3 receivers, and a fair bit of pneumatics into a body smaller than the Subarute. A sacrifice will have to be made somewhere, and I think the interior will be compromised here. Maybe I'll put in the top half of the seats, we'll see. I've already started work on the chassis, so look forward to an update later this week!

In general: For the 30.4mm diameter rim, any 1.0" scale (aka "Micro crawler") tire will fit (some examples) For the 43.2mm diameter rim, any 1.55" scale tire will fit (some examples) For the 56mm diameter rim, any 1.9" scale tire will fit (some examples) For the 62.3mm diameter rim (from the Porsche), any 2.2" scale tire will fit (some examples) (shoutout to @nerdsforprez for testing this one above) I haven't seen a lot of info on the tires @efferman and @FX6000 tested, hopefully there is a variety of tires out there with a consistent scale.

Not really the place to discuss this kind of stuff. In other news, Google is a wonderful place. You should check it out sometime

Looks good and quite cute, can't wait to see the video

Speaking of Mighty Car Mods, they posted this today: We did it boys by VKTechnic, on Flickr I made myself known, just waiting for a reply from them! Either way, this is pretty cool

Ditto on this. The project was abandoned/postponed for a later date.

A bit tall for my taste, but as usual, you've nailed the functions and the bodywork. Great model!

Thank you all for all the comments, positive and negative! There's a WIP thread Thanks for the remarks. I kinda agree with the axle point, but as of now, LEGO doesn't have a good solution for wheel hubs (at least, not when it comes to making realistic suspension geometries). I could go with something like the modified hubs Nicjasno uses, but I'm not sure I'm ready to jump that far...yet I also agree with the door point, and I think you're right...Subaru doors don't have a frame around the window. The roofline was probably the one part of the bodywork (aside from the wheel arches) that I wasn't entirely fond of. They are a softer compound I agree with you on the roof/doorline remarks for sure, could have been better. The CV joint issue I was having was that they would separate (the light bley part would pop out of the dark bley), and I couldn't secure it in the way you describe since I needed the axle to slide when the suspension compressed. If I learned anything from this model, it's to stay away from CV joints in the last bit of the driveline. Again, ditto on the doorline. Could have been better, and definitely room for improvement there. Thanks again everyone for the comments!

I feel bad for that truck Great model, if the judges allow it, it would be cool to see it in the competition!

I'm back with my latest model, a lifted bugeye Subaru chopped into a ute! Subarute by VKTechnic, on Flickr First off, the features: Remote control drive with 3-diff AWD, central differential lock through a lever in the cabin, and fake boxer 6 engine Remote control steering with linked steering wheel Opening air-shock hood, doors, and liftgate, all with latching mechanisms Headlights, foglights, and taillights, with an in-cabin switch for foglights Fully adjustable seats, with under-seat lever to move seat forward and back Front McPherson strut and rear trailing arm pneumatic suspension Custom flags representing Axial (maker of the Ripsaw 1.9 tires) and Mighty Car Mods (the main inspiration for the car) Subarute by VKTechnic, on Flickr This model was a fun one for me. After seeing what Mighty Car Mods could do to a 2002 Subaru WRX wagon in less than 3 days, I wanted to take my own spin on the Subaru ute concept. The first main challenge was suspension, as I had to design a McPherson strut with drive, and the rear trailing arm suspension was completely new to me. I did have to compromise -- using CV joints in the suspension meant I could get everything compact, but the off-road performance tanked. Definitely a little disappointing, but I think I made up for it with all the other fun features. Subarute by VKTechnic, on Flickr Every opening feature of the model has a latch on it. The hood has an air shock, and can be released from the driver's side footwell. Door handles were based off an old design by Nicjasno (aka LPEPower), which I managed to slim down to fit within 2 studs of the door panel. The tailgate latch is probably the least realistic since it's activated from the inside of the bed, but I mainly did this to keep the continuity of the bodywork. Subarute by VKTechnic, on Flickr The seats were also something new for me, and it's an area I've struggled with in past models. I did manage to make these seats fully adjustable, with a lever under the seat to slide them forward and backward. Aside from that, the cabin also has a lever to lock the central diff, and a switch for the front foglights. Subarute by VKTechnic, on Flickr Overall, I'm happy with how the model turned out. I think I captured the bugeye look fairly well, and all the manual functions were fun to try out. Of course, it is disappointing that the model didn't perform too well off-road, but I can say for sure that my next model will destroy everything off-road! P.S. I did make a video of the functions, thought it would be short but it turned out to be almost 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Hmm, I see how you're limited by space now. Couple other ideas come to mind, but I'd have to build the model to see how it'd all fit together. Anyways, great model again!

Have you tried something like this?

All of Blakbird's points are very true, I've got a couple to add myself: For pillar techniques, take a look at Nicjasno's E30 WIP photos. A lot of great techniques that made for a really strong unibody, and they're 99% legal Triangles are your friend! They're the strongest shape, and there are quite a few triangle geometries that work really nicely with LEGO. Ditto on Blakbird's "spreading out" point. Try to avoid just building a central beam connecting the two axles (making an I-shape), and try to avoid building a flat floor too. There's no such thing as too much bracing! Use cross blocks and such to reinforce structural beams along the length of the chassis. Hope this helps!

Great front end for sure! As for that clutch gear, that's an interesting idea. I've seen 3L axles with studs used in the same way before, it's a good pure-Lego alternative to what you have there. Sariel also made this alternative: Either way, very great model! :)

Have to disagree a bit here, the new 8t gears especially are perfectly fine in this application (given they are braced well). Much better :) In the future, you could also use pulley wheels with rubber bands to get a belt driven system.