I say a sportmaxx, not too big, not too small, 2wd, simple, light, durable, humangus hop-up potential, ground clearence. I have one with RPM short arms all around (shorter=more durable, less leverage on the bulks), towers, bulkhead braces, XTM CVD's, a custom chassis layout, all kinds of stuff. Here's a pic of it I took while I was building it