Does Anybody Think It Sucks That Horizonhobby Owns Losi Now?
07-31-2014, 02:57 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: USA blows
Posts: 209
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Does Anybody Think It Sucks That Horizonhobby Owns Losi Now?
Im a team associated driver but Im thinking about upgrading to a losi eight 3.0 e. I kinda wish Losi was its own company still and when you called for support you talked to people at Losi and not horizonhobby. I called horizon support once about a turd blade 120sr helicopter that didn't work and I didn't get very good customer service from horizonhobby. As a matter of fact the guy ends up hanging up on me and I said ok I'll never buy a horizonhobby product again. But now they own Losi so Im faced with this. Has anybody with a losi had to deal with horizonhobby support? Will they support the losi product better then losi did? Who will design the next generation Losi's,,,, Horizonhobby?
07-31-2014, 06:13 PM
#3
What do u mean by now??
Horizon Hobby brought losi in 2001, so u could say if it wasn't for that fact we wouldn't have the 8ight, 5ive, 22, and TEN based models.
but I don't know if there customer support has changed over past 13 years?
Horizon Hobby brought losi in 2001, so u could say if it wasn't for that fact we wouldn't have the 8ight, 5ive, 22, and TEN based models.
but I don't know if there customer support has changed over past 13 years?
07-31-2014, 06:19 PM
#4
iv never had to deal with customer service. but i did just retire an old XXXT. i bought the truck back in 2000/2001 which was only a couple years after horizon acquired the then "team losi" brand. and over the next decade i watched parts support quickly go down the crapper. as time went on, LHS's stopped keeping team losi parts in stock which was odd for good selling vehicles from one of the biggest names in the industry (the XXX/XXXT, NXT and XXXS were a huge deal at the time) . they became a special order item at best. some hobby shops (the hobby people i bought the truck from) actually stopped selling losi's all together!
then i was forced to endure horizon drag the team losi name through the cow pasture by making terrible vehicles and poorly rebrand quality vehicles. all the while parts support seemed to diminish.
then they pulled there heads out of there asses, jumped into 1/8 scale and made some quality vehicles again.
at some point they decided it was a good idea to drop the "team" from there name. and then a few years later decided to confused people and split the losi brand in 2. and have "losi" and "TL racing". which oddly enough could share a vehicle/parts catalog.
then they hired what i can only assume is a tweaked out crackhead to handle pricing cars and new products.
then they came out with some new high quality 1/10 scale cars.
as they were doing all that they (horizon) launched smaller crappy noob based crap brands to compete with themselves for some reason. and i watched what seemed to be horizon forcing these lower quality entree level brands that nobody wants or likes and don't sell as well on suppliers/retailers instead of just letting them deal in just whats moving from there shelves. which caused support to diminish even further.
and that's about the point i gave up giving a damn. iv sense jumped ship. a brand i used to love and highly respect i now wouldn't piss on to put out a fire. it will be a cold snowy day in hell before i willingly run to hobby shop and throw money at the guy behind the counter to special order a horizon brand product cause god knows it won't be in stock.
disclaimer: some of that timeline is probably a bit out of order
the attitude i seemed to pick up on from hobby shops was that if you're dealing with ECX or vaterra or the smaller lesser noob based brands, horizon is willing to give you a handjob and a steak dinner. but if you're just trying to deal in just losi/tl racing it's as if they really don't want to give you much attention. a few years ago i actually had a hobby shop employee tell me that in order to get a losi vehicle in stock they had to buy 3 ECX vehicles to go along with it. i was never able to confirm that, but they had over 10 ECX's in stock that never moved. the losi's were sold out.
anyway, BS politics aside, losi and TL racing does have some good quality (but IMO over priced) vehicles. if you've got a track that can somehow consistently support them properly (ie, have the parts on the shelf and not have to order them every time you need something), and you've got a job that pays better than mine, go ahead and give'm a shot. it's good stuff. just don't expect horizon to be of any help.
then i was forced to endure horizon drag the team losi name through the cow pasture by making terrible vehicles and poorly rebrand quality vehicles. all the while parts support seemed to diminish.
then they pulled there heads out of there asses, jumped into 1/8 scale and made some quality vehicles again.
at some point they decided it was a good idea to drop the "team" from there name. and then a few years later decided to confused people and split the losi brand in 2. and have "losi" and "TL racing". which oddly enough could share a vehicle/parts catalog.
then they hired what i can only assume is a tweaked out crackhead to handle pricing cars and new products.
then they came out with some new high quality 1/10 scale cars.
as they were doing all that they (horizon) launched smaller crappy noob based crap brands to compete with themselves for some reason. and i watched what seemed to be horizon forcing these lower quality entree level brands that nobody wants or likes and don't sell as well on suppliers/retailers instead of just letting them deal in just whats moving from there shelves. which caused support to diminish even further.
and that's about the point i gave up giving a damn. iv sense jumped ship. a brand i used to love and highly respect i now wouldn't piss on to put out a fire. it will be a cold snowy day in hell before i willingly run to hobby shop and throw money at the guy behind the counter to special order a horizon brand product cause god knows it won't be in stock.
disclaimer: some of that timeline is probably a bit out of order
the attitude i seemed to pick up on from hobby shops was that if you're dealing with ECX or vaterra or the smaller lesser noob based brands, horizon is willing to give you a handjob and a steak dinner. but if you're just trying to deal in just losi/tl racing it's as if they really don't want to give you much attention. a few years ago i actually had a hobby shop employee tell me that in order to get a losi vehicle in stock they had to buy 3 ECX vehicles to go along with it. i was never able to confirm that, but they had over 10 ECX's in stock that never moved. the losi's were sold out.
anyway, BS politics aside, losi and TL racing does have some good quality (but IMO over priced) vehicles. if you've got a track that can somehow consistently support them properly (ie, have the parts on the shelf and not have to order them every time you need something), and you've got a job that pays better than mine, go ahead and give'm a shot. it's good stuff. just don't expect horizon to be of any help.
07-31-2014, 09:33 PM
#5
I disagree 100% but I suspects that's because where I live and my experance.
I've never had a issue getting losi parts, and there vehicles are available at most of the big hobby shops.
i found making a warrenty claim was a breeze, I had both servos, shock boot, and a recall preformed on my losi 5ive.. Even tho one of the servo was my fault (Incorrect EPA)
And price wise. They are good. I can't say they are anymore expensive than other high end brands
but... I'm bios
i have
1x 5ive-T
1x 8ight 2.0 EU converted to brushless with losi kit
1x 8ight 2.0, I plan to convert it into a 1/8 GT car
2x micro SCT
I've never had a issue getting losi parts, and there vehicles are available at most of the big hobby shops.
i found making a warrenty claim was a breeze, I had both servos, shock boot, and a recall preformed on my losi 5ive.. Even tho one of the servo was my fault (Incorrect EPA)
And price wise. They are good. I can't say they are anymore expensive than other high end brands
but... I'm bios
i have
1x 5ive-T
1x 8ight 2.0 EU converted to brushless with losi kit
1x 8ight 2.0, I plan to convert it into a 1/8 GT car
2x micro SCT
08-01-2014, 03:33 AM
#6
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: USA blows
Posts: 209
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thank you Suburban Hooligan, the only one that really answered the question. I didn't know HorizonHobby owned Losi for so long now. I want a Losi vehicle but I don't need anybody to tell me that HorizonHobby has got their head up their ass. I don't have time for any vehicles that don't have good support or parts on the wall. I own a rc track and live right here so Im harder on RC's then anybody I know. Im a good driver I just drive more then anybody else so my vehicles get a lot of ware. Mugen MBX7eco is a great driving vehicle but its crap to me because theres no parts on the wall and support is in Japan. Sometimes I feel like I should just roll with Team Associated, they are still their own company after all. *** was Collector1231 talking about OFNA? I had a OFNA before, that thing wouldn't last a couple days under me lol.
08-01-2014, 07:02 AM
#7
Team Associated is not their own company, they are not independent that much I know. Someone correct me if I'm wrong but they are owned by the Hobbico/Great Planes/Tower Hobbies conglomerate.
Parts support on the wall at the LHS depends on the LHS. LHS has to order from distributors, the two main distributors being Tower Hobbies and Horizon Hobby. How much the LHS orders from them, what they order, how they pay, how long they've been with them, all factor into the relationship between LHS and distributor. I wouldn't doubt if Horizon tried to push ECX vehicles on that shop at one time, but it may not have been just to push ECX vehicles. There's a LHS by me that can only place orders once a month from Tower because of a poor relationship and having a high minimum order. The LHS up the road orders once a week with no issues and can order anything they want at anytime. I order my 8ight-t 2.0 from them, had it the next week and no ECX vehicles magically appeared. They also have a decent stock of 8ight parts especially considering there's no real track nearby.
The worst part about Losi being owned by Horizon is Horizon controls who distributes Losi parts. You'll never find Losi parts on Tower or Horizon's other big competitors. I've never had to deal with Horizon customer support, but I've seen others post about problems with Losi vehicles and getting things like new engines without any arm twisting. Though I'm sure the opposite is true as well. I agree it was stupid to "split" Losi and TLR meanwhile the 8igjt RTR's are still on Losi and not TLR. If you're looking for someone to blame for vehicles like the High Roller, Strike, Speed NT, Desert whatever, those were Gil Losi Jr's brainchildren. Although Horizon green lighted them so they share some blame too.
Parts support on the wall at the LHS depends on the LHS. LHS has to order from distributors, the two main distributors being Tower Hobbies and Horizon Hobby. How much the LHS orders from them, what they order, how they pay, how long they've been with them, all factor into the relationship between LHS and distributor. I wouldn't doubt if Horizon tried to push ECX vehicles on that shop at one time, but it may not have been just to push ECX vehicles. There's a LHS by me that can only place orders once a month from Tower because of a poor relationship and having a high minimum order. The LHS up the road orders once a week with no issues and can order anything they want at anytime. I order my 8ight-t 2.0 from them, had it the next week and no ECX vehicles magically appeared. They also have a decent stock of 8ight parts especially considering there's no real track nearby.
The worst part about Losi being owned by Horizon is Horizon controls who distributes Losi parts. You'll never find Losi parts on Tower or Horizon's other big competitors. I've never had to deal with Horizon customer support, but I've seen others post about problems with Losi vehicles and getting things like new engines without any arm twisting. Though I'm sure the opposite is true as well. I agree it was stupid to "split" Losi and TLR meanwhile the 8igjt RTR's are still on Losi and not TLR. If you're looking for someone to blame for vehicles like the High Roller, Strike, Speed NT, Desert whatever, those were Gil Losi Jr's brainchildren. Although Horizon green lighted them so they share some blame too.
08-01-2014, 11:35 AM
#8
Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Kingston UK, but living in Athens, GREECE
Posts: 18,082
Likes: 0
Received 3 Likes
on
3 Posts
BlueBorderRC, what is the point of this? Seems to me like you're here to bash Horizon 13 or 14 years after the fact, the title of the thread is a dead giveaway. Instead of typing 'What do you think of Horizon's handling of Losi?', which would have generated discussion both positive and negative, you lead the audience to only comment if they think it sucks, as you clearly do. You completely ignored the opposing view offered by someone who answered your leading question with a resounding 'no', though somehow suburban_hooligan was the 'only one who answered your question'. Open discussion doesn't work like that buddy, and please tone it down with the implications and the attacks ("heads up their asses"). Cheers. 
By the way, Thunder Tiger owns Team Associated.
By the way, Thunder Tiger owns Team Associated.
Last edited by Foxy; 08-01-2014 at 11:38 AM.
08-01-2014, 04:25 PM
#10
I disagree 100% but I suspects that's because where I live and my experance.
I've never had a issue getting losi parts, and there vehicles are available at most of the big hobby shops.
i found making a warrenty claim was a breeze, I had both servos, shock boot, and a recall preformed on my losi 5ive.. Even tho one of the servo was my fault (Incorrect EPA)
And price wise. They are good. I can't say they are anymore expensive than other high end brands
but... I'm bios
i have
1x 5ive-T
1x 8ight 2.0 EU converted to brushless with losi kit
1x 8ight 2.0, I plan to convert it into a 1/8 GT car
2x micro SCT
I've never had a issue getting losi parts, and there vehicles are available at most of the big hobby shops.
i found making a warrenty claim was a breeze, I had both servos, shock boot, and a recall preformed on my losi 5ive.. Even tho one of the servo was my fault (Incorrect EPA)
And price wise. They are good. I can't say they are anymore expensive than other high end brands
but... I'm bios
i have
1x 5ive-T
1x 8ight 2.0 EU converted to brushless with losi kit
1x 8ight 2.0, I plan to convert it into a 1/8 GT car
2x micro SCT
i should be a fanboy to. iv been around team losi's sense the JRX2. my cousin raced a XX and XXT in the mid 90's. and one of my friends had a JRXT in high school. being around those cars is what made me replace an RC10T3 with a team losi XXXT. and then i ran that XXXT without any mechanical complaints for well over a decade.
yet, im still sitting here bitter about horizon. cause out of the 500 hobby shops around me, the closest one i know of that regularly deals in losi is 20 miles away and there's no guarantee they will have parts in stock. but they can order it.... so, yeah... so that's a total of 80 miles driven. gas is currently just under $4 a gallon. my car gets ruffly 26mpg. that's going to be an expensive set of $10 suspension arms. availability and support around here sucks.
i remember back in the mid/late 90's (actually clear up until about 2002) team losi was easily in the top 3 as far as parts support and product availability. team losi was easier to find than traxxas. no joke! the only company that i think was better at it was team associated.
Last edited by suburban_hooligan; 08-01-2014 at 04:28 PM.
08-02-2014, 11:06 AM
#11
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: USA blows
Posts: 209
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Im sorry Foxy you didn't like my thread. You usually have good information for my questions and don't have a bunch of off topic complaints. Excuse my language. I was just saying what I meant. If you don't like the way "I" talk then you probably should not ever come to North Carolina. Lol. You wouldn't like it here.
Last edited by BlueBorderRC; 08-02-2014 at 11:15 AM.
08-02-2014, 11:17 AM
#12
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: USA blows
Posts: 209
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Team Associated is not their own company, they are not independent that much I know. Someone correct me if I'm wrong but they are owned by the Hobbico/Great Planes/Tower Hobbies conglomerate.
Parts support on the wall at the LHS depends on the LHS. LHS has to order from distributors, the two main distributors being Tower Hobbies and Horizon Hobby. How much the LHS orders from them, what they order, how they pay, how long they've been with them, all factor into the relationship between LHS and distributor. I wouldn't doubt if Horizon tried to push ECX vehicles on that shop at one time, but it may not have been just to push ECX vehicles. There's a LHS by me that can only place orders once a month from Tower because of a poor relationship and having a high minimum order. The LHS up the road orders once a week with no issues and can order anything they want at anytime. I order my 8ight-t 2.0 from them, had it the next week and no ECX vehicles magically appeared. They also have a decent stock of 8ight parts especially considering there's no real track nearby.
The worst part about Losi being owned by Horizon is Horizon controls who distributes Losi parts. You'll never find Losi parts on Tower or Horizon's other big competitors. I've never had to deal with Horizon customer support, but I've seen others post about problems with Losi vehicles and getting things like new engines without any arm twisting. Though I'm sure the opposite is true as well. I agree it was stupid to "split" Losi and TLR meanwhile the 8igjt RTR's are still on Losi and not TLR. If you're looking for someone to blame for vehicles like the High Roller, Strike, Speed NT, Desert whatever, those were Gil Losi Jr's brainchildren. Although Horizon green lighted them so they share some blame too.
Parts support on the wall at the LHS depends on the LHS. LHS has to order from distributors, the two main distributors being Tower Hobbies and Horizon Hobby. How much the LHS orders from them, what they order, how they pay, how long they've been with them, all factor into the relationship between LHS and distributor. I wouldn't doubt if Horizon tried to push ECX vehicles on that shop at one time, but it may not have been just to push ECX vehicles. There's a LHS by me that can only place orders once a month from Tower because of a poor relationship and having a high minimum order. The LHS up the road orders once a week with no issues and can order anything they want at anytime. I order my 8ight-t 2.0 from them, had it the next week and no ECX vehicles magically appeared. They also have a decent stock of 8ight parts especially considering there's no real track nearby.
The worst part about Losi being owned by Horizon is Horizon controls who distributes Losi parts. You'll never find Losi parts on Tower or Horizon's other big competitors. I've never had to deal with Horizon customer support, but I've seen others post about problems with Losi vehicles and getting things like new engines without any arm twisting. Though I'm sure the opposite is true as well. I agree it was stupid to "split" Losi and TLR meanwhile the 8igjt RTR's are still on Losi and not TLR. If you're looking for someone to blame for vehicles like the High Roller, Strike, Speed NT, Desert whatever, those were Gil Losi Jr's brainchildren. Although Horizon green lighted them so they share some blame too.
08-03-2014, 01:13 AM
#13
Don't u think a smarter option would of been "has anyone had issues claiming warrenty on Losi vehicles"
To be honest m8, I'm not supprised they hang up on u, if the conversation was anything like this thread I would of too.
good luck with what ever u end up getting, I've had great success with losi vehicles and losi warrenty claims. I'm sorry it's not what u want to hear but it's the truth
To be honest m8, I'm not supprised they hang up on u, if the conversation was anything like this thread I would of too.
good luck with what ever u end up getting, I've had great success with losi vehicles and losi warrenty claims. I'm sorry it's not what u want to hear but it's the truth
08-03-2014, 06:46 PM
#14
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: USA blows
Posts: 209
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Don't u think a smarter option would of been "has anyone had issues claiming warrenty on Losi vehicles"
To be honest m8, I'm not supprised they hang up on u, if the conversation was anything like this thread I would of too.
good luck with what ever u end up getting, I've had great success with losi vehicles and losi warrenty claims. I'm sorry it's not what u want to hear but it's the truth
To be honest m8, I'm not supprised they hang up on u, if the conversation was anything like this thread I would of too.
good luck with what ever u end up getting, I've had great success with losi vehicles and losi warrenty claims. I'm sorry it's not what u want to hear but it's the truth
08-03-2014, 07:11 PM
#15
Yeah I sucked at English... I'm more of a hands on guy, I guess u can't be great at everything. 
Good luck, from what I've heard the 3.0 is awesome,
Does the manual have any recommendations of a gear chart type thing?
Good luck, from what I've heard the 3.0 is awesome,
Does the manual have any recommendations of a gear chart type thing?
08-04-2014, 03:02 AM
#16
Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Kingston UK, but living in Athens, GREECE
Posts: 18,082
Likes: 0
Received 3 Likes
on
3 Posts
Im sorry Foxy you didn't like my thread. You usually have good information for my questions and don't have a bunch of off topic complaints. Excuse my language. I was just saying what I meant. If you don't like the way "I" talk then you probably should not ever come to North Carolina. Lol. You wouldn't like it here.
About the pinion, the 43t spur is unusually small, suggesting a small pinion. What motor does the car have, what cells are you going to be running primarily, and what will be the main use of the car, racing or fun? Even without that info, I'm already thinking a 13t to start off and see how you go from there.
Last edited by Foxy; 08-04-2014 at 03:05 AM.
12-18-2015, 11:08 AM
#18
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Grand Haven, MI
Posts: 2,984
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Horizon Hobby customer service stills sucks. Last time I called them $&% turds they tried charging me shipping to send in my micro, charging me for overpriced parts, labor, and to ship it back. I thought I could get some warranty support on a truck less than a month past it's warranty date. I ended up saying the hell with them and just bought the $10 part off of eBay. I've found that when it's within the warranty expiration, they are more helpful (still like to charge you wherever they can), but when it's out of the warranty period, forget getting anything from them. Still the same old crap customer service as it was years ago...
