Dash Emperor and Burning Sun MS Kit Guide
Dash-1 Emperor and Dash-2 Burning Sun are two specific Tamiya kits, not a loose "Emperor series" theme — item 18625 and item 18628, both built on the MS Chassis, both reissues of Dash! Yonkuro-era machines from Tamiya's Mini 4WD PRO Series. It is easy to treat them as interchangeable retro kits because they share a platform, a battery count and a general silhouette. They are not: the two ship with different nose hardware and colour treatments, and — because the MS chassis has been through Black Special and Memorial reissues too — different sibling releases worth telling apart before you buy or build. This guide sticks to what Tamiya's own product pages state about these two kits specifically. For MS chassis fitment and part compatibility in general, see the MS chassis compatibility guide rather than repeating it here.
Dash-1 Emperor (MS Chassis) — item 18625
Dash-1 Emperor (MS Chassis), item 18625, is catalogued as Mini 4WD PRO Series No. 25. It is a revival of the original Dash-1 Emperor, the machine driven by protagonist Yonkuro Hinomaru in the Dash! Yonkuro manga and its 1989-1990 TV Tokyo anime adaptation, rebuilt onto the modern three-piece MS platform rather than reissued on its original 1988 chassis. Tamiya's product page lists a 152mm length and 92mm width, a centrally mounted double-shaft motor that drives all four wheels directly, pin-spike tyres, and snap-together assembly with no cement needed across the nose, centre and tail units. Two AA (R6/UM3) batteries are required and not included. Tamiya has also sold this bodyshell as a Black Special version (item 95296 — smoke translucent body on a fluorescent-yellow MS chassis; 'Black Special' names the livery, not the chassis colour) and, separately, as a Japan Cup 30th-anniversary Memorial release (item 95110) — same body tooling, different chassis colour and packaging, so match the item number on the box before assuming a part or paint scheme carries over between them.
Dash-2 Burning Sun (MS Chassis) — item 18628
Dash-2 Burning Sun (MS Chassis), item 18628, is Mini 4WD PRO Series No. 28 and represents Tankuro's machine from the same Dash! Yonkuro story. Tamiya describes it as an armoured, robust body style, distinct from the Emperor's cleaner cowl. It shares the 152mm x 92mm MS footprint and centrally mounted double-shaft motor, and also runs pin-spike tyres, but specifies the N-02 nose unit by name on its product page — worth checking against whatever nose unit came with your Emperor kit, since MS nose units are not all identical across releases. The kit also includes a front bumper bar intended for display rather than racing, referencing the bumper's appearance in the original comic. Like the Emperor, it needs two AA batteries not included in the box, and both kits are part of the same Dash! Yonkuro-linked MS lineup that also includes a Dash-3 Shooting Star release.
Spec comparison
| Dash-1 Emperor (MS) | Dash-2 Burning Sun (MS) | |
|---|---|---|
| Item number | 18625 | 18628 |
| Catalogue listing | Mini 4WD PRO Series No. 25 | Mini 4WD PRO Series No. 28 |
| Chassis | MS Chassis (nose/centre/tail) | MS Chassis (nose/centre/tail) |
| Length x width | 152mm x 92mm | 152mm x 92mm |
| Motor | Double-shaft, included | Double-shaft, included |
| Tyres | Pin spike | Pin spike |
| Nose unit | Not separately named on the product page | N-02 (named) |
| Notable extra | Reissued as Black Special (95296) and Japan Cup Memorial (95110) | Display-only front bumper bar included |
| Batteries | 2x AA, not included | 2x AA, not included |
Tamiya's separately published MS chassis reference (checked against the platform generally, not this pair of body kits) lists a stock wheelbase of 80mm, a 67mm front / 69mm rear tread, roughly 124.7g of chassis weight, 4mm ground clearance and a 4:1 gear ratio when built with an N-02 nose unit, large-diameter tyres and alkaline batteries — figures Tamiya itself flags as configuration-dependent, so treat them as a baseline rather than a fixed value for every finished car. Both Emperor and Burning Sun match Tamiya's 152mm x 92mm MS footprint exactly, which is expected since neither box modifies the chassis unit itself, only the body, nose hardware and tyre finish around it.
Building the two kits without mixing up parts
Because both kits ship the same three-piece MS platform, it is tempting to treat leftover nose units, gear covers or tyre sets as interchangeable spares between an Emperor and a Burning Sun build. Confirm fit against each kit's own instruction sheet first: Burning Sun specifies an N-02 nose unit by name, and MS nose units differ across releases in gear-cover shape and mounting tabs even when the outer dimensions look similar. Build each chassis unit square and check the gear cover seats fully and the axles spin freely before fitting either body — a car that grinds or wobbles at this stage makes every later comparison meaningless. If you are restoring an older box rather than a fresh reissue, verify which item number and packaging generation you actually have before assuming a grade-up part or gear set matches; Tamiya has reissued this bodyshell more than once under different item numbers.
Racing them: Stock Class, PRO motors and organiser rules
Mini 4WD PRO kits like these two use double-shaft PRO motors and are, per Tamiya's official regulations, restricted to kit-included or PRO-specific motors — a single-shaft standard motor from the regular Tuned or Dash lineup will not fit an MS drivetrain. Tamiya's general race regulations (R1) cap width under 105mm, height under 70mm, length under 165mm, and set a minimum weight of 90g including motor and batteries, with tyres between 22-35mm diameter and 8-26mm width; both Emperor and Burning Sun sit comfortably inside those figures as sold. Stock Class rules (R2) separately prohibit chassis cutting, homemade chassis, and non-Tamiya parts outside the permitted brand list, while allowing body shaving and cementing multiple FRP or carbon plates together. None of that substitutes for reading the current rules yourself: regulations are revised over time — R2 itself flags changes as recent as May 2026 — and organiser rules plus on-day technical inspection are the final word at any event, not this article. For tuning once a chassis is legal and square, see the MS chassis tuning guide; for how the Dash-era lineage connects to the modern catalogue, see 40 years of Mini 4WD history.
Frequently asked questions
Are Dash-1 Emperor and Dash-2 Burning Sun the same chassis kit with different bodies?
They share the same MS Chassis platform and 152mm x 92mm footprint, but they are separate item numbers (18625 and 18628) with different bodies, and Burning Sun's product listing specifies an N-02 nose unit by name where Emperor's does not call one out — check each kit's own instructions rather than assuming full parts interchangeability.
Can I run either kit in an official Stock Class race as-is?
Both fall within Tamiya's general dimension and weight limits, and Stock Class rules permit body shaving and cementing plates without permitting chassis cutting or non-Tamiya parts — but eligibility for any specific event is decided by that event's organiser and its on-day technical inspection, so confirm current rules (R1, R2) before entering, not this article.
Do I need a special motor for these kits?
No extra purchase is required to run either kit stock — both include a double-shaft motor in the box. If you upgrade later, you need a Mini 4WD PRO double-shaft motor, not a standard single-shaft Tuned or Dash motor; see the motor guide for the current PRO motor lineup.