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When Traxxas discovered off-the-shelf engines couldn’t deliver high performance, reliability, and longevity worthy of The Fastest Name in Radio Control^®, there was only one solution: engineer and build a new breed of nitro engine just for Traxxas models. The award-winning TRX^® 2.5 and 3.3 Racing Engines were the result, and remain the benchmark for Ready-to-Race^® performance. But a cutting-edge engine is only half of the Traxxas nitro-performance picture: the other half is the fuel the engines burn.

Extensive testing by Traxxas engineers revealed available RC fuels varied widely in quality from brand to brand, and even some “premium” fuels were less than consistent in their mixtures from bottle to bottle. And so, Traxxas developed Top Fuel Power Plus, the only fuel 100% certified for use in Traxxas engines. Top Fuel is manufactured with the best ingredients, precise mixtures, and rigorous quality control. Let’s take a look at what goes into every bottle of Traxxas Top Fuel Power Plus, and why it’s the only fuel you should trust to power your Traxxas models.

Unless labeled otherwise, all RC car fuels contain the same essential components: Methyl alcohol (also known as methanol), nitromethane (where the name “nitro” comes from), and oil—typically a blend of natural castor oil (it comes from beans, who knew?), and synthetic lubricants. Each component has its own role in powering the engine:

Methanol is the main component in nitro fuel, for two important reasons. The first is its efficiency; methanol requires less air to burn than other fuels, making it well suited to the small combustion chamber of a model engine. Second, methanol reacts with the platinum alloy of the engine’s glow plug, which helps it stay hot enough to ignite the fuel with each piston stroke.

Nitromethane increases the methanol’s combustibility for a more powerful piston-driving explosion with each stroke and higher power output at the crankshaft. The higher the nitro concentration, the more potent the fuel. Top Fuel is available with 20% nitro and 33% nitro.

Oil is mixed into nitro fuel to provide lubrication for the piston and sleeve as well as the crankshaft bearings. 2-stroke model engines don’t circulate a reservoir of oil like full-size car engines do, so the oil is blended into the fuel instead.

High-Grade Ingredients, High-Power Performance
All glow fuels contain methyl alcohol and nitromethane, but these ingredients are sold in different grades and are not all the same. Only the absolute highest grades of methyl alcohol and nitromethane are used in Top Fuel, and precisely mixed for consistent performance from bottle to bottle and jug to jug. Your model’s performance won’t change when you finish off the jug of fuel you purchased a month ago and open the one you bought yesterday.

Lubrication Optimized for TRX Racing Engines
Top Fuel’s lubrication package is custom blended for TRX Racing Engines and optimized for high-power, high-RPM operation. The proprietary mix includes premium castor oil and synthetic oils selected specifically for glow power. The synthetic blend allows the piston to slide through the sleeve with the least friction possible, ensuring maximum efficiency and rapid throttle response. Castor oil provides additional high temperature lubrication and over-lean protection, so you get maximum life from your engine’s wear components.

Protection for Critical Components
Additional ingredients in Top Fuel Power Plus help ensure trouble-free operation and extend the life of your engine. Engine vibration and rough terrain shake your model’s fuel tank, which can trap air bubbles in the fuel and cause inconsistent performance. Anti-foaming agents blended into Top Fuel ensure your engine gets a steady flow of pure fuel. To improve the fuel’s lubrication properties, a wetting agent is added. Improved “wetting” means the fuel and the lubricants it contains can more easily spread and penetrate throughout the engine. To protect your engine when your model is stored between driving days, Top Fuel contains proven corrosion inhibitors. As long as you run the engine to empty before putting your model away for short-term storage, after-run oil is not required when you use Top Fuel Power Plus.

Other brands may recommend 20% nitro or less to protect their engines, but not Traxxas. Top Fuel Power Plus is available with 20% nitro, which is a great choice for all-day running. 20% nitro fuel offers a wider tuning window if you don’t mind trading a little power for cooler operating temps. If you want maximum horsepower—and we know you do—you can run your TRX Racing Engine on Top Fuel 33% nitro, tankful after tankful.

TRX engines are engineered for reliable high-output operation and long life with 33% nitro, a feat made possible by the engines’ precision construction and Top Fuel’s high-temp, high-rpm optimization. 33% nitro contains 10% more nitromethane than a 30% nitro fuel, and 65% more nitro than a 20% nitro fuel. A TRX Racing Engine makes more power than and other brands’ engines of the same displacement when burning identical fuel; when you add the TRX Racing Engines’ ability to reliably use 33% nitro while the other guys have to stick with 20%, Traxxas nitro power surges even farther ahead.

Gallons of Top Fuel Power Plus are sold exclusively at hobby stores. Quarts of Top Fuel Power Plus may be purchased on Traxxas.com or in your local Traxxas dealer. To find the Traxxas dealer nearest you, use the convenient Store Locator.

Top Fuel Power Plus
5050 33% Nitro, gallon
5070 20% Nitro, gallon
5030 33% Nitro, quart
5020 20% Nitro, quart