Is the 22-4 still competitive

[ChrisCorbett]

I love my 22-2v1 mainly because it's easy to drive and bulletproof (I crash a lot..). Wanting a 4wd and can't help notice the bargain price for a 22-4 when other 4wd are £300-350. The kyosho which I really like the look of is £425!
Question is this 22-4 a bit outdated now or still a good car for indoor club racing.

[ChrisM]

It's TLR's current 4wd, came out just two years ago. Not outdated at all!

Cheers
Chris

[racingdwarf]

Hmm well, the 22-4 has always been a cheeper car than kyosho etc, TLR's always have been. The car is great dependant on surface, Mine is fantastic on bumpy grass and low grip dirt (My home tracks) but on big fast astro its just been a pain and very hard to get balanced and if the grip level is changing throughout the day.Even worse if you are swapping surfaces week to week, Most I have meet agree, but you will find the odd die hard fan. I have run mine since it was released in uk and I have finally had enough, all my results have suffered no matter what I try. Maybe just maybe there could be a new one on the way as it's looking like the worlds could be on astro And I know opinions differ but if I were traveling all that way I'd want a better car than whats offered at the min to stand a chance….but thats my opinion

Oh but on the plus side, its strong,the drive train is very reliable if built correctly, would I recommend you buy one….NO if your looking for a one word answer

[ChrisCorbett]

Mmm interesting thank you. I guess being 2 years old it's still current but I reckon a newer version will be out soon

[racingdwarf]

what I should add is most of the cars that I've seen look good have only been used at that club,so there setup has always been evolving to that surface/venue mine so far is unbeaten at my home club even when the regionals visited,TQ'ed every round and won all three legs of A, but its a very different story when I travel to astro tracks and since running the 22-4 I have slipped right down the regional ranks BUT if your only racing indoors at one club and on a tight budget it could be for you as it is quite a cheep car to run if your not constantly trying to conquer new venues

[bretts]

I've never driven a 22-4 but have watched a couple at my local club. (Indoor mixed carpet/slippy surface and jumps). They look at good as any.

As with all modern cars it all depends on setup and driver ability. As has been said above if you're looking for a car for your local club as you say indoor club racing then it will be ok. However if you're already having doubts about it being competitive that will always niggle away in the back of your mind. No car can stop you crashing even the best out there. I would look for one which is easy to drive out of the box, maybe the 22-4 is I don't know, this should in turn help you crash less & hopefully improve your race pace.

Hope this helps???

BTW: The 22-4 isn't the only cheaper than £300 4wd out there, have a look at the shop postings on here today.

[Dr Fly]

I still consider the 22-4 practically new. It was released to the masses just over 12 months ago. around feb 2014.

I race quite a few cars, and the 22-4 is by far my favorite. Granted, i am a losi fan, but the difference is, i know the 2wd 22 is a pain to get working compared to other cars, i just accept that. The 22-4 just seems to be a little easier to get going and is very competitive against all the other brands. I regularly out qualify other guys who would leave me standing in other classes. It needs a bit of tinkering to get it too your liking, but when its on form, it works. The disclaimer is that i don't tend to run it on astro, i stick to 2wd when i visit an astro track. My 22-4 is mostly run indoors and on grass in the summer.

Also some shops have discounted it to silly cheap, when you consider the retail on release was £360 or something like that.

[Balders]

Originally Posted by Dr Fly

I still consider the 22-4 practically new. It was released to the masses just over 12 months ago. around feb 2014.

I race quite a few cars, and the 22-4 is by far my favorite. Granted, i am a losi fan, but the difference is, i know the 2wd 22 is a pain to get working compared to other cars, i just accept that. The 22-4 just seems to be a little easier to get going and is very competitive against all the other brands. I regularly out qualify other guys who would leave me standing in other classes. It needs a bit of tinkering to get it too your liking, but when its on form, it works. The disclaimer is that i don't tend to run it on astro, i stick to 2wd when i visit an astro track. My 22-4 is mostly run indoors and on grass in the summer.

Also some shops have discounted it to silly cheap, when you consider the retail on release was £360 or something like that.

the shorty conversion and high roll centre mod made a huge difference to the car though didn't it?

[Dr Fly]

Originally Posted by Balders

the shorty conversion and high roll centre mod made a huge difference to the car though didn't it?

The shorty conversion made a massive difference on lower grip tracks. a little less so on the high grip.

[fletcher]

if your running high grip all the time then the saddles can be a better option for a safer car. Geometry or there abouts, the car sits on its arse a lot in saddle format, safe but not fast, go to shorty and the car comes alive. Also a 22 rear end (hubs and driveshafts with 1.6mm spacing behind the hub) works really well. Takes away it dumping the rear under load and makes it more stable. Another worthwhile part to get will be the new exotec rear camber block, most of us in the team run a mod to shorten and lower the rear link further. Were this new part does that for you.

the car is good with a bit of work. Year down the line and I'm still working to find the "sweet" spot but on high grip iv found really good speed with it (med to high grip that is)

hth

[lomar15]

Its a great car, Beautiful car to build, very good quality. Its my first 4wd buggy. I race local club races, and I started winning with it right away. indoor on carpet, wood jumps. Basic stock setup, lock out the clicker, 40w oil. 22sct black springs in front. 22 buggy orange in rear. Love it, feels like my 22 2wd, but faster, and pulls itself through corners.

[nicmo]

I sold mine after 3 months. Kept tearing up the front belts when running on astro. I had to run the 22's rear axles as i broke one of the universals in the first week, apparently they have a defect. Horizon UK told me to piss off so i got a HB D413 instead, thank you Horizon UK, i am very happy now

[AfroP]

Ryan Maifield doesnt seem to have an issue with his and seems to have improved greatly since moving to TLR

[rasher]

I have only really got back to racing in the last 4 months after a long break of 14 years. I finished racing with the XX4 last time round and have brought it back to life in some of the vintage meets. I have the 22-4 which I run when I can, which isn't too often at the moment. I've done the common mods on this car (Reverse shocks, 22 2.0 Rear Hub Carriers, 22 2.0 Rear Hex Drives and Rear Driveshafts, Shorty Lipo). I also fit a 3mm Stand-Off on the Inner Ball for the Rear Camber Links. I ran it stock on Carpet first out and loved the planted feel of the car but it was sluggish. After the mods and some additional setup changes, I love this car which has now dropped me into the Club 'A' Finals. With some Astro and Dirt to come this year, there will be more setup changes to come but for me this car is dialled and suits my style of driving. Considering I haven't done too many meetings since November last year with it, there wasn't too much time needed to find a great setup on the carpet with this car.

[JohnM]

Originally Posted by AfroP

Ryan Maifield doesnt seem to have an issue with his and seems to have improved greatly since moving to TLR

Ryan Maifield doesn't race on astro turf

[FrogPrince82]

Originally Posted by JohnM

Ryan Maifield doesn't race on astro turf

I think what AfroP is trying to say is that the car itself isn't inherently slow or old news.

It will be interesting to see what happens to the 22-4's reputation if Maifield, Phend and Evans storm the Worlds and all make the A Final this year on Astro and even one of them wins! There will then be 3 high level, high profile, proven set-ups to use as a base.

[toooldskool]

Originally Posted by JohnM

Ryan Maifield doesn't race on astro turf

he will do if he goes to the Worlds

[JohnM]

Originally Posted by toooldskool

he will do if he goes to the Worlds

Yep, and then he'll find out what many of us already have about the 22-4

[cmgreen]

Bet you they are practicing on astro now !