Panther Chariot Zip clone
 

I just got two of these Panther Chariot Zip Zap clones from Vic in Canada. For those that haven't heard, they are series one Zip Zap clones from Germany. They have snappy magnetic steering and a good proportional throttle. These are the Zip clones refered to as the Pantherchassi by one of the more talented German body modders out there. I have to say I like them alot. These may well be the best overall racing setup I've layed my mitts on. The cars are fast right out of the box. I mean real fast. If not for the propo throttle, the car would do nothing but fishtail and do donuts from the hole. This is partly due to slightly hard tires, but the torque is unreal. Stock dual cells and 4AAs in the charger/controller may have something to do with it. A slow pull on the throttle produses gradual acceleration with a scary top end. The cars are the same wheelbase dimentions as a Zip. The wheels are bit sized with smaller wheels on the front. The rears are just a smidge smaller than a Bit rear wheel. The overall look is closer to scale than the Zip wheels. Especially with a Zip body on the chassis. The cars come with a pink gear set and pink endbell. Whatever that means. The range is excellent. I've had them over 30 feet away without a single glitch. The controller is the pistol type with a steering wheel. The cars charge on the side of the controller. The controller is well made and comfortable in the hand. Zip bodies pop right on the chassis, but minor tab modification is needed to slide the chassis forward a tad. Wheel wells line up perfectly.
Now to a couple of negatives. The bodys, well,...suck. The passenger compartment is bowed up to high and the details are shoddy. The paint is cheap with ugly generic decals. They may be of use for custom work. But, swapping out a Zip body is cake and looks great on these chassis. There is some front wheel slop, but it doesn't seem to effect steering or performance at all. The tires don't swap with Zip hubcaps and tires. Bit or Microsizer tires might work, but I think some of the Motorworks may be a closer fit. That's about all I can find wrong with these things and they're very minor. I'll post some pics in a couple of days. My daughter is visiting this weekend and bringing her camera.

Here's a link to an ebay auction for these cars.
Edit: I've removed the link to the ebay auction on these cars. I originally put it here as a way of providing a source of information and as a method for interested parties to ask the seller questions. This seems to have been misconstrued by some as advertising. This was not my intent and I apologize if this makes it more difficult for you to obtain answers. I will do my best to answer any questions you may have here though.

Found a pic over at BitPimps.

Is there anyplace you can get them in the US

From what I've heard, someone is going to sell them in the US. Heck, they may be all over the malls by Xmas. I put ZZ tires on the rear and these things shoot out of the hole like a bullet.

Well theres one answer....ZZ tires do fit :)

Have you swapped motors?

ZZ tires fit, but not real well. The rims are more like Bit rims and the inside edge is slightly higher than the outside edge. Zips have even edges on each side of the middle hump that the tire rests on. This makes the ZZ tires flare up on the inside slightly. Not a perfect fit, but the cars still fly with the grippier tires. Bit tires should do better on the back. ZZ tires won't go on the front at all. Bits may work there too. I'm using stock tires on the front. No, I haven't swapped motors, but they are exactly the same and interchangeable with Zip motors. I tried to give the info I thought interesting in my review. Was there a specific question you had?

No just curious . We all know how clone motors are labeled. A 3.6 might really be a 2.BS lol. You never know if a ZZ motor might perform better or worse in the car.

Very true. I'll try some different motors and see what happens. The pink motor provided with the car is serious fast already. I don't know if it correlates with other pink endbell motors or not though. A couple of other differences to a Zip I noticed: The heat sink/motor clip snaps in like a Bit. It doesn't screw in like the ZZs. The car has a stabilizer bar, no springs like the new ZZs. The car and controller antennas are much longer than a ZZs. Prolly why the range is so much better. The car antenna is much thicker and stiffer than ZZ antennas. Almost like a factory Cat5 mod. One other negative BTW. The PCB covers are prone to coming off. The design is faulty in that the cover clips in the front and back like a Zip, but the back snaps don't hold the front tabs in place and allow the cover to slide backwards and pop loose. Scotch tape is being used to hold them on both of my cars now. Not a big deal, but worth mentioning.

did you know that these are 5$ in bulk?

Yes I did. But, I have no plans of buying them in bulk. I just wanted two of them. Since, I'm sure, ordering only two from the factory over seas would probably cost much more than that bulk price, I decided to let someone else take care of the details. What's your point?

oh im just stating facts.

WHERE? and how many do we need to buy. im interested!!!!!!