Xray

Xray Logo

Xray Model Racing Cars (known commonly as Xray) is a radio-controled car manufacturer founded in 2000 in Slovakia by Juraj Hudy. Xray is considered one of the most dominant forces in RC racing both on-road and off-road manufacturing some of the most innovative and high-end RC cars on the market. Xray cars have won many national and world championships.

History[edit | edit source]

In the 1970s, Juraj Hudy started to design and manufacture slot cars which he used for racing, becoming a multiple national champion and dominating racing in Central and Eastern Europe.

In the late 1970s, he started to race RC cars but since the communist goverment of Slovakia (Yugoslavia at the time) did not allow for the importation of western goods, he turned to manufacturing his own RC cars. The first car he ever designed was manufactured at home and soon became the best performing and most reliable car in the championship. Juraj Hudy started getting requests for the same car but his in-house production was limited to 10 pieces per year.

Juraj Hudy, Founder of Xray

Since the government at the time did not allow for private enterprises, he kept improving his designs in a vaccum, staying completely walled from foreign inspiration and interference. Despite the odds, Hudy designed and developed the first 4 wheel-drive RC car in the world.

After the fall of communism in 1989, Juraj Hudy started producing parts for RC car manufacturer Serpent and for more than a decade, Hudy remained the main supplier of steel and aluminum parts for Serpent cars. At the begining of the 1990s Juraj Hudy was already mass producing RC tools, equipment, and accessories under the HUDY brand name. He built a distribution network around the world and when Serpent moved its production to Asia in 1999, Hudy started industrial production of its own cars with the first ever Xray product being the T1 RC car.

Timeline[edit | edit source]

1972/74: first self-designed and manufactured slotcars. Juraj Hudy became slot-car racing Multi-Champion in Central and Eastern Europe.
1975: first RC cars designed and produced by Hudy with a focus on both nitro and electric cars. All cars were handmade in small series in a 9m² workshop. At the same time, the first handmade bodies were produced from laminate and epoxy materials.
1977: Juraj Hudy produced hand-made chassis plates from 4mm thick duraluminum.
1978: a new RC car design with the motor in a vertical position. The car featured solid suspension and a flexible chassis.
1979: Juraj Hudy designed a new nitro car with the motor in a horizontal position. The car featured solid rear suspension and a front suspension using simple dampening.
1980: a newly-designed nitro car featured a differential in the wheel. The front of the chassis was made from fibreglass and the rear from duraluminum.
1981: a new nitro car featured solid suspension, a central differential, adjustable width and caster, and simple dampening. The first bodies were produced using a vacuum machine and special ABS material. From this year onwards, 10 to 15 cars were hand produced each year.
1982: a new nitro car featured independent suspension, rear differential, and direct drive through gears between motor and rear transmission. A front central shock is used, and a wing is attached directly to the rear suspension.
1983: a new nitro car was produced, based on the successful 1982 design. New centrally-mounted front shocks and an anti-roll bar were introduced, and a Serpent fueltank was used. This ultra-stiff chassis design was the most professional, and achieved the greatest racing performance at the time.
1984/85: one of the world's first 4WD nitro cars was introduced, using driveshafts and a front one-way differential.
1986/87: a new nitro car featured an automatic 2-speed transmission, and fully-enclosed front and rear transmissions to provide dust protection.
1988/89: the first off-road car is designed and manufactured. An improved nitro car also appeared, based on the successful 1987 design, and also featured ultra lightweight materials. These cars featured a purely technical design that distinguished them from "toy" cars. There were no unnecessary parts, and everything was strategically placed for best weight distribution and performance.
1989: After the fall of communism in Eastern Europe, Juraj Hudy establishes his first company, named SPECIAL, which was later renamed to HUDY. Juraj Hudy moved manufacturing from his own flat/workshop to a garage 60m². The first machines are bought and real production begins. The company focuses on designing accessories and tools for slotcars. The first comm lathes and slotcar tire truers are designed. The HUDY company has 60 employees at this time, over 2000m² production factory, and manufactures high quality RC products which are sent to over 30 Resellers around the world.
1990: Juraj Hudy introduces his products at SERPENT headquarters in Holland, and HUDY company becomes the manufacturer of special transmission parts using special spring steel. During the time of the co-operation with SERPENT, HUDY produced spring steel parts as well as parts from duraluminum (chassis), and graphite composite materials.
2000: Juraj Hudy establishes the XRAY MODEL RACING CARS company, which focuses its many years of design and manufacturing experience to produce high-tech, high-quality RC model racing cars. The first project, named "T1", is designed and introduced.
2001: XRAY products are represented and distributed in over 30 countries around the world, supported by professional services and a factory team. TEAM XRAY is established, made up of dozens of top professional RC drivers around the world.

RC products[edit | edit source]

Xray RX8

Xray RC cars whether engine or electric cars are some of the most critically acclaimed cars in the industry with many of Xray RC cars having won championships at National, Continental and World levels such as the Xray X12 ’19 driven by Alexander Hagberg at the World Championship in South Africa in 2018.

The company's catalogue of past and present cars holds dozens of references, all of which are in the middle and high-end segment of the market.