I have a Violator and I love it for bashing. It's made it through probably a half dozen head on crashes into trees, 14'+ jumps and a bunch of other torture I put it through. Only broken parts so far were a cv shaft, rock shield, and a couple cracked wheels. You'll need a couple better servos definitely, but I think that goes for the pcr as well. You can buy a violator on ebay for $400 shipped right to your door. The rotostart works good and is better than carrying around a starter box just make sure you have a few batteries for it. I'm in the same situation your in. Never plan to race really, but my local track would allow it if I ever wanted too. My main deciding factor was the fuel tank and the wider suspension. Wider is better!