This is the second DF-02 chassis that I bought. This one came without body and a broken rear upright. Luckily they started selling the Gravel hound body again and the other parts are reasonable available here in Japan. I also took this one completely apart and build it up again. I made a video of this rebuild but i still have to edit it. So please wait for it!
I’m not a fan of the original colors of the Tamiya rc cars. Its a bit to flashy for me, therefor I’m going to paint it in an yet undecided color! but I’m thinking dark red with black!
I put some different wheels on it because to my idea the original wheel are a bit to small for this car. It somehow doesn’t look right to me! So I bought some ZD-Racing wheels, they are slightly bigger and wider and black!
I will use a brushless motor and ESC, but this type of cars don’t have a lot of space left under the body. So an 60A ESC with fan is already quite big, I have to see how to fit it in. Or I have to go back to an 35~45A ESC.
Somehow I think these DF-02 chassis are not that popular but I could be wrong about that. But I love them, I think they are quite stable to drive! This is because of the lower center of gravity of the chassis. My other DF-02 has an 3650 motor with an 60A ESC and an 67T spur gear and 19T pinion gear on 3S, so it goes quite fast but doesn’t flip over that easily.
As small upgrade for my Tamiya Gravel Hound (DF-02) Rebuild!
Finished painting my Tamiya Gravel Hound DF-02 Rebuild! I used PS-23 Gunmetal and PS-37 Translucent Red. Only thing left is the motor and ESC.
Tamiya (DF-02) 
Some original Info:
- Total length: 400mm
- Total width: 249mm
- Total height: 170mm
- Chassis Material: ABS
- Suspension: Front and Rear Double Wishbone 4-independent wheel
- Drive train: Shaft-driven 4WD
- Equipped with a Type 540 motor
- Tire Diameter F/R: Both 86mm
I like your build. Do you think it has enough ground clearance to use it on anything besides pavement? I have a RedCat Tornado EXP Pro that is too low for the way I’d like to use it. Do you have a build thread? Do you know what it would be like to buy parts and/ or have them shipped to the US? Waiting 3 MONTHS for parts to come from China gets old in a hurry!! Thanks.
Thx, it has about 23~24mm ground clearance. I have an another Tamiya DF-02 which I use on grass and so on and that goes really well. You can see a video here https://www.shonanbeachrc.com/rc-rebuids/tamiya-rising-storm-df-02-rebuild/
I do not have a build thread yet, I made a video of it but a big part is missing so I’m wondering what to do still! Yeah ordering parts in China can take a long time, I found some stores on Aliexpress that deliver quite fast (to Japan) and I order from Ebay UK, now and then, they ship quite fast too. Also Amazon has some parts available that will be delivered in a few days! This is my experience but can be different for anyone! I have no experience sending parts from Japan to the US!