Tamiya Mini 4WD chassis types: FM-A, Super-II, MA, MS, AR, VS and VZ compared

Every Tamiya Mini 4WD kit sits on a named chassis. The body shells swap easily enough, so the chassis underneath is what decides which motor, gears and carbon plates fit your car.

Across the 823 kit versions in the Kit Finder, eight platforms account for most cars you will see on a track or shelf today: MS, VS, MA, Super-1, Super-II, AR, FM-A and VZ.

The first split: single-shaft vs double-shaft (PRO)

Before looking at bumpers or wheelbases, check the motor shaft:

• Single-shaft chassis (FM-A, Super-II, AR, VS, VZ, Super-1, Super X, Super XX): the motor sits at the front or the back with a pinion gear on one side. A metal propeller shaft carries drive to the other axle. These take standard single-shaft motors such as the Torque-Tuned 2 (15484).
• Double-shaft PRO chassis (MS and MA): the motor sits in the middle of the car with a pinion on both ends, driving the front and rear axles directly without a propeller shaft. These only take PRO double-shaft motors such as the Torque-Tuned 2 Motor PRO (15487).

A single-shaft motor will not work in an MS or MA chassis, and a PRO motor will not fit an FM-A or Super-II.

The main chassis in our catalogue

Front-motor: FM-A

The FM-A puts its single-shaft motor ahead of the front axle. Because the nose is already heavy, the car drops its front end first over jumps, which makes it forgiving on steep B-MAX slopes. Mach Frame (18714) is the best-known FM-A kit in the catalogue. Tamiya sells all five FM-A gear ratios (3.5:1, 3.7:1, 4:1, 4.2:1 and 5:1) in one box as the FM-A Chassis Setting Gear Set, 15516, using the orange G-2 crown gear.

Mach Frame8 versionsCar page › 15516FM-A Chassis Setting Gear SetPart page ›

Mid-motor PRO: MS and MA

The MS chassis splits into three snap-together sections (nose, mid and tail) and introduced the double-shaft PRO motor layout on cars like Avante Mk.II (18614). Racers who build open-class suspension cars still start from MS.

Avante Mk.II6 versionsCar page ›

The MA chassis keeps the same mid-motor PRO drivetrain in a single stiff monocoque tub with built-in side stays and six low-friction plastic rollers. Blast Arrow (18635) was the first MA kit. For B-MAX, MA is one of the easiest cars to build straight because the one-piece tub barely flexes.

Blast Arrow4 versionsCar page ›

Rear-motor single-shaft: Super-II, AR, VS and VZ

• Super-II: Tamiya's modernised version of the 1990s Super-1, adding two-point rear stay mounting holes and turn-switch covers. Classic Fully Cowled cars such as Victory Magnum (19434, Premium) run on Super-II, using the 3.5:1 Super Speed Gear Set, 15432, with the pink crown gear.
• AR: a stiff, aerodynamic rear-motor tub where the battery and motor can be swapped from underneath without taking the body off. Aero Avante (18701) introduced the AR platform.
• VS and VZ: light, short-wheelbase rear-motor chassis built for tight cornering. VS has 103 versions in the Kit Finder; VZ is its modern successor, launched with Neo-VQS (18094), featuring detachable bumpers and more flex than AR or MA.

How to check what fits yours

1. Open your car in the Cars directory to see which chassis each version uses, or start from your chassis in Cars by chassis.
2. In the Parts Finder, use the Chassis filter to narrow the 778 grade-up parts down to the ones Tamiya lists for your chassis.

In this post

15432Super Speed Gear Set (Super XX & Super-II)Part page ›15484GP.484 Torque-Tuned 2 Motor (Mini 4WD)Part page ›15487GP.487 Torque-Tuned 2 Motor PROPart page ›Victory Magnum8 versionsCar page ›Aero Avante14 versionsCar page ›Neo-VQS5 versionsCar page ›