SunkenMetal
Member
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- 1,395
- Location
- Houston Texas
This is my Review of the HPI Savage XL.
I have been out of the Savage world for about a year due to marriage and leaving the Military. So like an idiot I sell off my savage and keep my RS4 nitro 3 street car. The last Savage I owned was a Savage 25. So I am back in the Houston Texas area, I go into my local LHS and see this beast sitting there. I buy it; ****ed off the wife but oh well my couch is comfy. .
From my own personal research the Savage XL is a Savage X with longer TVP’s, longer rear dog bone, longer axels and of course the K5.9 Big block! But I am sure you all are aware of the specs. So the nice thing about this truck is unless you break any of the previously mentioned parts the XL uses the same parts as the Savage X.
The Motor is a K5.9 Big Block and it is a Beast, HPI specs it at 3.75 Horse power. That Power shows it has no problem lifting the front end off the ground on any surface. The Tuned two chamber polished aluminum Pipe is included so no need to up hop up needed there. If you like the rotostart2 system is part of package just like all other HPI RTR’s. I’m not a fan of the RotoStart so I installed a pull starter just my personal preference. If you want to convert to pull start it uses the same pull starter as the K4.6 Part# 15226.
The three speed transmission is nice, but second gear shifts way to late, and tuning it is a pain, you have to take the tranny apart to tune it. Witch if your out bashing and want to tune the sift point, you have to be careful to keep everything clean. But once everything is dilled in, the 3 speed tranny compliments the power of that Big Block motor. If you’re running on street it will try to pull the front end off the ground in all three gears! The Steel 52 Spur gear and three shoe clutch is a plus, no more melting the teeth off your nylon gear.
The electronics, Rechargeable batteries and charger are included. The SF5 Metal Geared Steering Servo is a lot better then the servo that came in my Savage 25. After Breaking in the motor, and a few bashing sessions I upgraded the steering with The HPI steering upgrade bearings Part# B045. Or any four of your Favorite brand of bearing size 6x10x3mm. The transmitter and receiver are the standard AM TF-3 setup. I upgraded the Receiver to work with my Futaba 3PM Radio. After upgrading the steering and radio gear, the response from the servo increased.
Chassis is pretty much standard Savage, just longer, about two inches aft of the motor. This extra room makes access to the motor a little bit easier. I’ve been playing around with a mid tank mod behind the motor, so if I get something worked out I’ll post it up.
The body is longer so after market bodies may be an issue and may not look quite right on the truck.
Over all the truck handles and jumps great.
Wrapping it all up things I like.
The motor it’s a monster with plenty of low end torque and the Three Speed transmission.
Tuned pipe, metal gear servo, and rechargeable batteries all included.
The things that I didn’t like.
The fuel tank it has the longer TVP’s and still the 160cc fuel tank. The big block drinks fuel like crazy, so why not a larger tank.
The Tires, I am not fond of the Tera Pin tires, they deform, and have way to much sidewall flex.
So in conclusion, I give the Savage XL an A+. But that is in comparison to my experience with the Savage25 RTR.
I have been out of the Savage world for about a year due to marriage and leaving the Military. So like an idiot I sell off my savage and keep my RS4 nitro 3 street car. The last Savage I owned was a Savage 25. So I am back in the Houston Texas area, I go into my local LHS and see this beast sitting there. I buy it; ****ed off the wife but oh well my couch is comfy. .
From my own personal research the Savage XL is a Savage X with longer TVP’s, longer rear dog bone, longer axels and of course the K5.9 Big block! But I am sure you all are aware of the specs. So the nice thing about this truck is unless you break any of the previously mentioned parts the XL uses the same parts as the Savage X.
The Motor is a K5.9 Big Block and it is a Beast, HPI specs it at 3.75 Horse power. That Power shows it has no problem lifting the front end off the ground on any surface. The Tuned two chamber polished aluminum Pipe is included so no need to up hop up needed there. If you like the rotostart2 system is part of package just like all other HPI RTR’s. I’m not a fan of the RotoStart so I installed a pull starter just my personal preference. If you want to convert to pull start it uses the same pull starter as the K4.6 Part# 15226.
The three speed transmission is nice, but second gear shifts way to late, and tuning it is a pain, you have to take the tranny apart to tune it. Witch if your out bashing and want to tune the sift point, you have to be careful to keep everything clean. But once everything is dilled in, the 3 speed tranny compliments the power of that Big Block motor. If you’re running on street it will try to pull the front end off the ground in all three gears! The Steel 52 Spur gear and three shoe clutch is a plus, no more melting the teeth off your nylon gear.
The electronics, Rechargeable batteries and charger are included. The SF5 Metal Geared Steering Servo is a lot better then the servo that came in my Savage 25. After Breaking in the motor, and a few bashing sessions I upgraded the steering with The HPI steering upgrade bearings Part# B045. Or any four of your Favorite brand of bearing size 6x10x3mm. The transmitter and receiver are the standard AM TF-3 setup. I upgraded the Receiver to work with my Futaba 3PM Radio. After upgrading the steering and radio gear, the response from the servo increased.
Chassis is pretty much standard Savage, just longer, about two inches aft of the motor. This extra room makes access to the motor a little bit easier. I’ve been playing around with a mid tank mod behind the motor, so if I get something worked out I’ll post it up.
The body is longer so after market bodies may be an issue and may not look quite right on the truck.
Over all the truck handles and jumps great.
Wrapping it all up things I like.
The motor it’s a monster with plenty of low end torque and the Three Speed transmission.
Tuned pipe, metal gear servo, and rechargeable batteries all included.
The things that I didn’t like.
The fuel tank it has the longer TVP’s and still the 160cc fuel tank. The big block drinks fuel like crazy, so why not a larger tank.
The Tires, I am not fond of the Tera Pin tires, they deform, and have way to much sidewall flex.
So in conclusion, I give the Savage XL an A+. But that is in comparison to my experience with the Savage25 RTR.
