I’ve really been enjoying my FMS FCX24 K10 (https://motorsportformentalhealth.com/2025/04/03/fms-fcx24-first-impressions) and have enjoyed doing a few little upgrades to it (https://motorsportformentalhealth.com/2025/04/06/fms-fcx24-stage-1-upgrades and https://motorsportformentalhealth.com/2025/05/13/fms-fcx24-chassis-steering-links) (i’ve also put in a Rampcrab servo as I blew the original up, but that didn’t seem worthy of its own post)
The K10 is where I want it now though – it drives really nice on the course and is very capable. So of course I found myself looking for my next project.
The CR18P “Rock Van” was the rig I kept going back to. The original rock van came in a number of different colours. The ones I was torn between were a blue/cream with rainbow decals or a bright orange and silver.
Then I saw the CR18P EVO with the Rock Van body in Gulf Racing colours – then things went blank and I had purchased it haha!
The EVO came with a couple of bits that the original didn’t. Most notably it came with a two speed gearbox – low gear for crawling and high gear for trailing – like the FCX24. It also has plastic arch liners which are great if you’re driving it through mud, and they also look cool which is a bonus for me.
Like the FCX24 the CR18P comes with portal axles (they’re a must with the type of courses my Dad and I build – those extra few mm of ground clearance make all the difference) with metal portal gears.
It is significantly lighter than the FCX24. This could be considered a criticism BUT the Gulf Van is a lexan body whereas the K10 is a hard body, which means less weight high up which should make it a little more stable. There’s a lot of aftermarket support for both trucks, so you can buy weighted hubs and wheels etc to give the CR18P more low down weight.
Speaking of mods – the first thing I did with this was Injora 1.0 inch wheels and S5 compound tyres. The S5 tyres transformed the K10 and they really helped this out too! Just don’t do the wheel nuts up tight as it causes the driveline to bind up.
A few pics next to its stable mate. The wheelbase on the Gulf Van is considerably longer.
The plan was to then leave it alone and just use it and enjoy it. Here’s some pics of it out on the course.
This should have been the end of this blog, but disaster struck! The two speed gearbox became a one speed gearbox! Unfortunately it was the low gear that shredded (all the internal gears were metal so goodness knows how!).
It was kinda my fault. The gearbox was noisy from new, and I just thought ‘it’ll bed in as I use it’. It didn’t.
I had debated sending it back, but I had my nice wheels on it and I liked the truck. The two speed gearboxes are available to buy, however uprated single speed gearboxes are available for around the same price. (With a much bigger motor). That was the option I went for.
I didn’t document or photograph installation I’m afraid. I was more focused on getting my little van back on its wheels than making content. The single speed fit the chassis absolutely fine apart from the prop shafts. The standard prop shafts for the two speed gearbox are shorter.
EBay to the rescue with these lovely blue and silver metal prop shafts!
It’s now up on its feet and running well! The motor is a lot more powerful than standard, so I did turn the dual rate on the throttle down a little bit just to give me a more controlled crawl.
It’s still not quite as capable as the K10 but I’m reluctant to do more mods to it as you do have to tackle obstacles differently with the two different trucks, which makes it fun and challenging.
Overall, I’m really happy with it. I was gutted the gearbox but I’m not holding that against the truck. It was partly my fault too. For the price the CR18P, in any of its forms, is a more than capable little platform. Out the box I do think the FCX24 is better, especially the Power Wagon that my Dad has – but if there’s a particular model you like on the CR18P platform, I’d still say get it.
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By Richard Francis
