Printed on the box as: 9.6V Twin Turbo Miller Indy
The Tyco Miller Indy Miller was a radio controlled car manufactured by Taiyo Toys (Japan), and released by Tyco Toys in the USA and globally for a limited time in 1990.
Reportedly aimed at the adult market due to the alcohol advertising and relatively high performance of the car, the Miller High Life is a twin of the 9.6V Twin Turbo Marlboro Indy which is perhaps more well known.
Rarity
While not as popular as the Marlboro Indy, the Miller Indy is even more rare, and difficult to find good photographs of, in any condition, nevermind mint. If you have a Miller Indy in better condition than the one shown, the collectors community would very much appreciate if you could send them to admin (at) tycocollectors (dot com) so we can put them up, and give you credit!
Features and Performance
There simply isn't a higher performance Tyco RC car than the ones built on this 9.6V chassis originally designed for the Lamborghini Countach Twin Turbo, and later used for the Ferrari 348 Twin Turbo, and Super Fight F1 Twin Turbo. With its near hobby grade suspension system, twin Mabuchi motors, rubber tires, pistol grip controller, and high power 9.6V battery, this is the closest Tyco / Taiyo ever got to releasing a true hobby grade car.
Below: You can see the twin electric motors with the fat rear wheels, and up front quite a sophisticated suspension system for a 'toy grade' model make this the best on-road drive that the company ever made.
For more details on the chassis, see our article on the 9.6V Twin Turbo Lamborghini Countach.
Is it rare because it was pulled from shelves?
For a long time, I had thought that the rarity of the Miller Indy and Marlboro Indy, and the appearance of a 'redesigned' model with only TYCO logos (see below) was evidence that these toys were pulled from shelves following outrage over alcohol and tobacco advertising on a children's toy.
However in September 2024, Jeff Wimann, the marketing director for Tyco Toys between 1987 and 1994 dropped by our Facebook Group and responded to a post I'd made regarding the reason these cars were so rare, correcting me that in fact they were not removed from shelves due to outrage over the sponsorship graphics. Jeff advised that these models were marketed towards adults, with 99% being sold via Toys 'R Us stores at $119 USD with occasional promotion for $99, which was a considerable amount of money for a 'toy' car in the 80s and 90s.
Once sold out, the fact that a minimum 5,000 units would need to be ordered from the Japanese manufacturer (Taiyo Toys), along with other factors meant that no further Miller or Marlboro Indys would be produced, making them quite rare amongst popular 9.6V turbo models.
See below for a photo of the TYCO branded model which led to the rumor that potentially this was a rushed replacement for the Marlboro. Whatever the case, it looks fantastic, and is almost certainly the most rare of all Tyco RC models.
Recommendation
The Miller Indy almost never comes onto the market, with very few examples remaining, and no photos available that I can find in mint condition. So, if you come across one and are sufficiently cashed up to buy, I cannot see a reason why you would not!
Do you have a Tyco Miller Indy? Can you get us some good quality photos? Contact us!
