The Taiyo Typhoon T3 is a 1/14 scale radio control hovercraft manufactured by Taiyo (Japan), and sold in the Japanese market (and likely other markets globally) in 1991.
What happened to T-2?
While it is certainly a successor to previous Typhoon models, we're not aware of a Taiyo branded Typhoon 2 (there is a 1991 Tyco Typhoon 2), and so perhaps in Japan it succeeds the 1990 Taiyo Super Typhoon.
Features and Performance
The 3rd iteration of the Typhoon series, it introduced several upgrades not present in previous generations:
- New lightweight body
- 90's style neon colors
- Teflon coated rubber skirt
- Increased top speed of 20km/h (12mph)
This made the Typhoon T-3 the fastest hovercraft that Taiyo would ever produce. On the motor front, we'd expect it's still using the same Twin Mabuchi RK370 motors (we are yet to open one and confirm), the largest ever used by Taiyo, and has gained the increased speed through lighter materials for its outer shell.
At the time of writing, this is the first Taiyo model that we know of that they manufactured in China, with all previous Taiyo and Tyco RC manufacturing happening in Japan and Singapore predominantly, a few in Malaysia, and just one model in Korea.
Do you know of a model Made in China prior to 1991? Comments below!
Recommendation
Whether the Typhoon T-3 is worth getting is one of those questions of personal taste and interest. The T-3 is likely the best hovercraft that Taiyo would ever make, and the last (except if you consider the Taiyo Edge brand perhaps). It retains all the good things about the originals, and tweaks out some of the negatives.
All in all, I would'nt say no to one that's for sure, and it's likely children of the late 90s will begin to seek these out once they become nostalgia for their early years.
