Carisma MSA-1E Coyote Pup

The kind of vehicle the maker sells it as. It sets what the car is built to do and which cars it is fair to compare it with.

• Crawlers are built for slow, controlled climbing over rocks: very low gearing, flexible suspension and locked axles.

All four wheels are driven. That gives more grip under power, especially on loose ground.

• The cost is more parts to maintain.
• A crawler needs every wheel pulling to climb.

A brushed motor carries current through carbon brushes that rub on the commutator.

• It is cheaper and smooth at low speed.
• The brushes wear and the motor loses power over time.
• That low-speed smoothness is why so many crawlers use one.

Ready to run: built at the factory with the electronics installed.

• Some come without a battery or charger; the maker's box contents say which.

The maker's nominal size compared with a full-size vehicle. It works more as a class label than a measurement.

• A 1/10 monster truck is far bigger than a 1/10 touring car, so compare length and weight for real size.
• This one is 217 mm long.

The maker's product number for this exact version.

• A V2, a new color, or a kit instead of an RTR usually has a different number, and parts can differ between them.
• Check it against your box or receipt before ordering parts.

The small gear on the motor shaft. Fewer teeth gear the car shorter: quicker acceleration, lower top speed and a cooler motor. More teeth do the opposite.

• It depends on the motor you fit, so the maker does not list one.

The large gear the pinion drives. A bigger spur with the same pinion gears the car shorter.

• Pinion and spur must have the same pitch, or tooth size, to mesh.

Every reduction after the spur, multiplied together: transmission, transfer case and axle gears.

• That chain is why a crawler's figure is much higher than other classes'.
• It is fixed by the design; the gearing you change is the pinion and spur.

How many times the motor turns for one turn of the wheels. A higher number is shorter gearing: more acceleration and pulling power, less top speed.

• Crawlers run far higher ratios than other classes, so the truck can creep and hold on a climb.

The outside diameter of the mounted tire, tread to tread. A taller tire covers more ground each turn, which gears the car taller.

• Crawler wheels are named by rim size, such as 1.9 or 2.2 inches; that is the wheel, not this tire diameter.

Brushed motors are commonly described by can size and turns. No motor KV is published for this vehicle; turns alone cannot supply an exact value.

The highest LiPo cell count the maker rates the electronics for.

• The maker does not publish it.

No motor KV is published for this model, so the stock specification does not calculate top speed. Compare gearing by rollout, or use a labeled motor reference in the calculator.

Overall length as the maker states it, usually with the body fitted.

• Useful for comparing real size, since scale labels are loose.

Overall width as the maker states it, usually with the body fitted.

• A wider car is more stable in corners and harder to roll over.

Overall height as the maker states it, usually with the body fitted.

• Useful when checking it fits a shelf, a bag or a car trunk.

The distance between the front and rear axle centers. A longer wheelbase is steadier at speed and over bumps; a shorter one turns more tightly.

• On a crawler it also decides how well the truck clears a ledge without the chassis catching.