Slot car action heads to Hibiscus Coast

An extensive collection of vinyl records and a room in his basement filled to capacity with a slot car track are evidence of Andrew Scott’s appreciation of all things retro.

Both the vinyl and the slot cars are back in vogue, and Andrew believes that the time is right to get a slot car club going on the Hibiscus Coast.

There are around 10 clubs active in NZ – the nearest is in Henderson – and Andrew says the resurgence in the sport came with more modern chassis designs, laser cut as precise scale models of racing cars such as Ferrari and Maclaren.

At a cost of around $100 for a basic chassis, gearbox, tyres and motor, the sport is affordable and Andrew says the other attraction is the challenging, close racing that ensues. NZ has had a number of world champion slot car racers, and annual national competitions draw good numbers.

Around six months ago Andrew constructed a 21m hardwood track in his Little Manly home and Thursday nights see a group of four or five friends gather to race. The track is almost large enough for club racing, but Andrew has his eyes on the far bigger tracks to be found at the Henderson and Wellington Clubs. This means locating space in an empty shop or warehouse locally, obtaining sponsors for materials and gathering an enthusiastic bunch of members to construct the track. Andrew estimates that an impressive track could be built for less than $2000.

Andrew says, like him, most slot car enthusiasts tend to also have an interest in drag racing or hot rodding. This makes the thrill of powering the 1:24 or 1:32 scale electric cars around the track at impressive speeds easy to understand.

“NZ never really lost its enthusiasm for slot cars,” Andrew says. “The best racers have good reaction times, enabling them to guide the cars around steep bends without losing too much speed. It’s nothing like model trains – this is all about the racing.”

The club will be for seniors only (18 years and over) initially and anyone interested in finding out more can email andrew@executivenetwork.co.nz or phone 424 8817.

Image: Slot car enthusiast Andrew Scott is hoping to build a new club on the Coast.