I have a Monsoon XTR and had a couple issues with it. The tires that came with it are quite a bit out of balance and I had a tolerance problem with 2 of the differentials that I happened to notice before any damage was done to the gears.
The differential parts from Redcat are very expensive but fortunately you can find great deals on complete HSP 1/8 scale diffs on ebay as with many other Redcat/HSP parts. You can also get the engine for this vehicle on ebay for under $100 shipped and it is a decent enough engine with pretty good reviews overall. Parts for these 1/8 scale models from Redcat are for the most part a little more expensive than they should be but ebay deals help me a lot.
The truggy drives really nice on rough terrain but the super wide stance and massive tires do make it a little fragile looking. I haven't used it all that much yet, but it seems the suspension arms are very tough and hold up but the problem with that is the housing that they attach to is the weak point that breaks when you hit something and that involves taking a lot more apart to repair the truck. At least the housing is not an expensive piece.
I have a Redcat Hurricane XTR which I like a lot better. Although a large portion of the parts are shared with the Monsoon, the Hurricane is shorter and narrower, less fragile and just tons of fun. I now have my Monsoon tires on the buggy and it is really fun for bashing around.
If I could do it over I would have tried a nitro Avalanche or Earthquake, an electric Hurricane or something from another brand over the Monsoon.
Can't stress enough how much I like my Hurricane though
