Hobby Products International
Encyclopedia
Radio-controlled car
Radio-controlled cars are self-powered model cars or trucks that can be controlled from a distance using a specialized transmitter...
s, both electric and nitromethane
Nitromethane
Nitromethane is an organic compound with the chemical formula . It is the simplest organic nitro compound. It is a slightly viscous, highly polar liquid commonly used as a solvent in a variety of industrial applications such as in extractions, as a reaction medium, and as a cleaning solvent...
powered.
Timeline
The company, originally an export firm, was founded in 1986 by Tatsuro Watanabe and a partner, each with a total investment of US$100 each. Their original office in Costa Mesa, California measured only 300 square feet (27.9 m²). A line of electric R/C motors called the Uno series were among the first products offered by HPI. Buoyed by the success of the Uno, HPI opened a small office in Japan that same year.1987 would see world champion driver Masami Hirosaka
Masami Hirosaka
is a Japanese radio controlled car driver who is considered to be the world's most successful of all with a record fourteen IFMAR World Championships in 1/12 scale electric, 1/10 scale Pan, 1/10 scale 2WD off road and 1/10 scale 4WD, all electric. He was considered to be one of the highest paid...
use an Uno in his first IFMAR
International Federation of Model Auto Racing
International Federation of Model Auto Racing is the world governing body of professional radio controlled racing.The organization was created in 1979 by professional racer and RC model entrepreneur Ted Longshaw. At that time, many different governing bodies operated under their own rules...
World Championship win in England.
By 1988, the burgeoning RC aftermarket proved to be a boon to HPI USA as they started exporting popular American-made R/C products to Japan, including such familiar brands as MIP, Peak Performance and Paragon.
One of HPI's perennial favorites was introduced in 1989 with the hiring of chief engineer Akira Kogawa from Kyosho
Kyosho
is a model car company based in Tokyo, Japan. The brand operates internationally under the name KYOSHO. The company's main office is located in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and the production headquarters are located in Atsugi, Kanagawa....
, he was responsible for a much of its notable race winning cars such as the Optima and Ultima. His line of Super Star wheels remains popular today. Akira also designed the Rush, Micro and Baja kits that have remained popular with RC hobbyists.
HPI moved to a larger building in nearby El Toro, California in 1990. "Large" is a relative term, since the new office was only 700 sq ft (65 m²). A popular line of graphite
Graphite
The mineral graphite is one of the allotropes of carbon. It was named by Abraham Gottlob Werner in 1789 from the Ancient Greek γράφω , "to draw/write", for its use in pencils, where it is commonly called lead . Unlike diamond , graphite is an electrical conductor, a semimetal...
parts for pan cars was released that year. Touring car
Touring car
A touring car, or tourer, is an open car seating five or more. Touring cars may have two or four doors. Often, the belt line is lowered in the front doors to give the car a more sportive character. They were often fitted with a folding roof and side curtains. Engines on early models were either in...
motors and offroad truck parts followed suit in 1991.
HPI's second designer, Ito, was hired in 1992 to design pan car parts. Ito would later be responsible for the "Super F1," HPI's first-ever car kit, and was the lead designer for many of HPI's successes, such as the Savage. Continued growth that year literally doubled the size of the facility after their move into a second building unit.
The then-new touring car class was in full swing by 1993, with HPI introducing a full line of parts for both electric and nitro cars. A major Southern California win at the Thunderdrome soon followed as did a major shakeup, when Watanabe bought out his original partner to become sole proprietor of HPI. He retired from day-to-day operations of the company in 2004, making Shawn Ireland company president.
In 1994, HPI took on another notable figure in RC car racing, Kent Clausen, who was an IFMAR and ROAR winning driver. Clausen manages the advertising and graphic design department
In 1995 the RS4 touring car was released to wide acclaim, solidifying HPI as one of the early proponents of the touring car racing fraternity. A "Pro" model followed in 1997, then the "Pro 2" in 1999, "Pro 3" in 2001, and finally the "Pro 4" in 2004.
In 1998, the new RS4 Rally was introduced in May. It was the first sedan-chassis that took advantage of long-stroke shock,springs, and an interior polycarbonate
Polycarbonate
PolycarbonatePhysical PropertiesDensity 1.20–1.22 g/cm3Abbe number 34.0Refractive index 1.584–1.586FlammabilityV0-V2Limiting oxygen index25–27%Water absorption – Equilibrium0.16–0.35%Water absorption – over 24 hours0.1%...
underbody set that increased its utility on off-road surfaces.
Hobby Products International currently operates from a 45000 square feet (4,180.6 m²) facility in Foothill Ranch, California and oversees manufacturing operations there as well as in Japan and Taiwan. HPI also maintains an office in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
that provides distribution facilities and market feedback for Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
(including Australia) and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
/Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. The location in California sends products to distributors across North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
and is considered the headquarters of the HPI group.
In 2005 HPI merged with Hot Bodies, another company owned by Mr. Watanabe, which initially began manufacturing RC car bodies before being purchased by Mr. Watanabe. After its sale, Hot Bodies started producing upgrade parts for HPI models such as the RS4 Pro 3 and Nitro RS4 line of cars. Today, Hot Bodies produces a full racing range of radio control cars, trucks and buggies, plus accessories. Many of the plastic suspension pieces for the Hot Bodies Cyclone, their top-level electric touring car, come from HPI's Pro 4.
List of RC Kit Releases
This is a list of HPI kit releases, in approximate chronological order:- Super F1
- Road Star 10 (1/10 scale racing pan car)
- Street Machine (1/10 scale 'road' pan car)
- RS4 (touring car)
- Nitro RS4
- RS4 Pro
- RS4 Sport
- Nitro RS4 Mini
- RS4 MT (4WD truck)
- RS4 Mini
- RS4 Mini Pro
- Nitro RS4 Racer (a version of the Nitro RS4 with upgraded racing parts)
- RS4 Rally (RS4 Sport with off-road suspension and tires)
- RTR Nitro RS4
- Super Nitro RS4 (essentially a larger scale Nitro RS4)
- RS4 Pro 2
- RTR Nitro RS4 2
- Proceed (1/8 scale race car)
- Nitro RS4 MT
- Nitro RS4 Racer 2
- RS4 Sport 2
- Nitro Rush (an all-new 2WD truck design)
- RTR Nitro RS4 MT
- Nitro RS4 MT Racer
- RTR Nitro Rush
- Super Nitro RS4 Rally
- RS4 Pro 3
- RS4 Pro 3 Spec S
- RS4 Pro 3 Spec V
- Micro RS4 (a 1/18th scale, single-belt drive car)
- RTR Super Nitro RS4
- RTR Nitro RS4 3
- Dash (toy-level RC car)
- SavageHPI SavageHPI Savage is a line of 1/8 scale radio controlled monster trucks manufactured in Japan by Hobby Products International of Foothill Ranch, California USA....
21 (RTR monster truck) - R40 (on-road Nitro touring car)
- SavageHPI SavageHPI Savage is a line of 1/8 scale radio controlled monster trucks manufactured in Japan by Hobby Products International of Foothill Ranch, California USA....
SS (a kit version of the Savage, but with upgraded parts) - SavageHPI SavageHPI Savage is a line of 1/8 scale radio controlled monster trucks manufactured in Japan by Hobby Products International of Foothill Ranch, California USA....
25 - Pro 4
- RTR Nitro RS4 3 Evo
- RTR Rush Evo
- RTR Nitro MT 2
- Sprint (replaced the RS4 Sport 2)
- Super RS4 (same size as Super Nitro RS4, essentially a larger scale Sport 2)
- Savage 4.6 SS
- Nitro RS4 3 18SS (a kit version of the RTR Nitro RS4 3, but with upgraded parts)
- Nitro RS4 MT 2 18SS (a kit version of the Nitro RS4 MT 2, but with upgraded parts)
- Pro 4 Atsushi HaraAtsushi Harais a Japanese professional radio-controlled car racer from Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture. He have won two IFMAR titles and a number of domestic ROAR and JMRCA titles.-IFMAR World Championship 1:8 IC Off Road:* 2008 in Charlotte, United States-External links:*...
Edition - R40 HaraAtsushi Harais a Japanese professional radio-controlled car racer from Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture. He have won two IFMAR titles and a number of domestic ROAR and JMRCA titles.-IFMAR World Championship 1:8 IC Off Road:* 2008 in Charlotte, United States-External links:*...
Edition - Sprint Drift
- SavageHPI SavageHPI Savage is a line of 1/8 scale radio controlled monster trucks manufactured in Japan by Hobby Products International of Foothill Ranch, California USA....
Limited Edition - KFX 700 (Savage chassis with quad bike body and rider figure)
- Sprint 2
- Hellfire (an all-new 'truggy' design, in RTR format)
- SavageHPI SavageHPI Savage is a line of 1/8 scale radio controlled monster trucks manufactured in Japan by Hobby Products International of Foothill Ranch, California USA....
X - Baja 5B
- Hellfire SS (a kit version of the Hellfire)
- SavageHPI SavageHPI Savage is a line of 1/8 scale radio controlled monster trucks manufactured in Japan by Hobby Products International of Foothill Ranch, California USA....
X SS K4.6 (a kit version of the Savage X) - E-Savage (a 1/10 scale dual electric motor/battery Savage)
- Wheely King
- Firestorm 10T (1/10 scale 2WD truck)
- RTR Nitro MT2 G3.0
- Nitro RS4 MT 2 18SS+
- Wheely King 4X4
- SavageHPI SavageHPI Savage is a line of 1/8 scale radio controlled monster trucks manufactured in Japan by Hobby Products International of Foothill Ranch, California USA....
X 4.6 big block - E10 Touring/Drift
- E-Firestorm
- Baja SS (a kit version of the Baja 5B with upgraded parts)
- SavageHPI SavageHPI Savage is a line of 1/8 scale radio controlled monster trucks manufactured in Japan by Hobby Products International of Foothill Ranch, California USA....
X 4.6 (Big Block RTR w/reverse) - E-Firestorm Flux (Brushless)
- Savage XL K5.9 (.36)
- Trophy 3.5 (1/8 scale nitro buggy)
- Baja 5T RTR (a new Baja Truck)
- Brama 10B (beginner-level RTR electric 4WD buggy)
- SavageHPI SavageHPI Savage is a line of 1/8 scale radio controlled monster trucks manufactured in Japan by Hobby Products International of Foothill Ranch, California USA....
Flux HP (Savage monster truck with very large brushless motor) - Cyber 10B (electric 4WD buggy for sport-level off-road racers)
- Trophy Truggy 4.6 (Trophy buggy-based truck with larger engine)
- E10 Ford GT (an E10 chassis with Sony PlayStation Gran Turismo 4 replica Ford GT)
- Cup Racer (a 'True Ten' size meant to replicate a closely as possible vintage sports cars)
- HPI Racing Baja 5B 2.0 RTR 1/5 Scale Buggy (revised version of the Baja 5B RTR)
- HPI Racing 32 (RTR 1/32 Scale Car)
Diecast Car Models
In 2006, HPI released high-specification die-cast car models in 1:43 scale. The first line of models featured the 2004 Subaru ImprezaSubaru Impreza
Introduced in November 1993, the Impreza was offered in either front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive versions and as a four-door sedan/saloon or five-door station wagon/estate. According to a Motor Trend article written March 1992 on page 26, the name of Subaru's new compact was, initially, to be...
in various models, including official replicas of the World Rally Championship
World Rally Championship
The World Rally Championship is a rallying series organised by the FIA, culminating with a champion driver and manufacturer. The driver's world championship and manufacturer's world championship are separate championships, but based on the same point system. The series currently consists of 13...
Subaru Impreza WRX
Subaru Impreza WRX
The Subaru Impreza WRX is a turbocharged version of the Subaru Impreza, an all-wheel drive, four-door passenger vehicle. It is available as a sedan or wagon....
, an HPI-sponsored Subaru WRX endurance race car based in Japan, and two very limited (less than 50 worldwide) Impreza models, one white and one blue. Subsequent releases included 2006 versions of the Subaru Impreza, plus classic race cars including the Mazda 787B
Mazda 787B
The Mazda 787 and its derivative 787B were Group C sports prototype racing cars built by Mazda for use in the World Sportscar Championship, All Japan Sports Prototype Championship, as well as the 24 Hours of Le Mans from 1990 to 1991...
, Porsche 962
Porsche 962
The Porsche 962 was a sports-prototype racing car built by Porsche as a replacement for the 956 and designed mainly to comply with IMSA's GTP regulations, although it would later compete in the European Group C formula as the 956 had...
, Lancia Stratos
Lancia Stratos
The Lancia Stratos HF, widely and more simply known as Lancia Stratos, is a car made by Italian car manufacturer Lancia. The HF stands for High Fidelity...
and Lancia 037
Lancia 037
The Lancia Rally 037 was a mid-engine rally car built by Lancia in the early 1980s purely for the FIA Group B World Rally Championship. Driven by Markku Alén, Attilio Bettega, and Walter Röhrl, the car won Lancia the manufacturers' world championship in the 1983 season...
.
The line was vastly expanded in 2007 and 2008 to include more endurance racing sports cars such as the Porsche 962
Porsche 962
The Porsche 962 was a sports-prototype racing car built by Porsche as a replacement for the 956 and designed mainly to comply with IMSA's GTP regulations, although it would later compete in the European Group C formula as the 956 had...
, Sauber Mercedes C9 and the Jaguar XJR-9
Jaguar XJR-9
The Jaguar XJR-9 is a sports-prototype race car built by Jaguar for both Group C and IMSA Camel GTP, debuting in at the 1988 24 Hours of Daytona....
, all Le Mans-winning prototypes. The rally car line was extended with several more variations of the Lancia Stratos, the Lancia Delta S4
Lancia Delta S4
The Lancia Delta S4 is a Group B rally car that competed in the World Rally Championship in 1985 and 1986, until Group B cars were banned from competition by the FIA. The car replaced and was an evolution of the Lancia 037 Monte Carlo. The S4 took full advantage of the Group B regulations, and...
and Lancia Delta HF Integrale. New production lines included supercars such as the Orochi Mitsuoka
Mitsuoka Orochi
The Mitsuoka Orochi is a Japanese sports car designed and built by Mitsuoka Motors as a concept car in 2001, with updates and revisions to the design appearing in 2003 and 2005, before finally being put into production and offered for sale in late 2006 as a 2007 model. The car takes its name from...
and the Nissan GT-R
Nissan GT-R
The Nissan GT-R is a sports car produced by Nissan released in Japan on December 6, 2007, the United States on July 4, 2008, and the rest of the world in March 2009.-History:...
.
The supercar line was the first to feature resin-molded models, featuring increased detail around the body panel lines and authentic body paint from the full-scale manufacturers
In 2009 the touring car line has been expanded with the Alfa Romeo 155
Alfa Romeo 155
The Alfa Romeo 155 is a compact executive car produced under the Italian Alfa Romeo marque between 1992 and 1998.-Design:Built to replace the 75 and based on the parent Fiat Group's Type Three platform, the 155 was somewhat larger in dimension than the 75 but evolved its styling from that of its...
and a new series of road cars were released, featuring the Lexus IS-F and all-new Nissan Fairlady Z. The endurance racing line will also feature the Le Mans-winning Porsche 911 GT1 98 LM.
Robots
Late in 2005 HPI created a teaser website at www.hpirobot.com indicating they will release a humanoid robotHumanoid robot
A humanoid robot or an anthropomorphic robot is a robot with its overall appearance, based on that of the human body, allowing interaction with made-for-human tools or environments. In general humanoid robots have a torso with a head, two arms and two legs, although some forms of humanoid robots...
of some type. The robot was announced on several technical websites, such as Engadget, prior to its release in Japan. Thus far the robot has not been released outside of Asia. A second robot kit called the "G-Dog" was released in Japan in 2008.
Slot cars
At the 2008 and 2009 Nuremberg International Toy Fairs, HPI displayed prototypes of three 1/32 slot cars that they may produce in the near future (a Datsun 240Z, a Nissan GTR, and a Nissan Skyline GTR R32).Latest Releases
A new kit version of the Blitz is to be released in Spring 2010.The Savege XL and Savage Flux now include HPI's new 2.4 GHz radio system as standard equipment
The HPI Baja 2.0 has also been released, minor upgrades but still roughly the same as the HPI Baja which started the large scale craze
The HPI Vorza is another new release, and has HPI cashing in on the electric buggy scene.
There is also the HPI Switch and the Formula 10 cars as well in the latest lineup from HPI