[Racer]

HD Shocks we're introduced in Combat Showcase , so (Summer ?) 1987 .

Quite a few designs in VG2 haveHeavy Duty Shocks .
I got my VG2 at the end of 1988 . Didn't know what a lot of the equipment was - HD Shocks , VFRPs , Laser Reactive Webs , etc - until I got Compendium First Edition in 1989 . That was shortly before I found a copy of Combat Showcase . Was extremely pleased as a rarity in UK - I'd seen CSC Errata in ADQ 7/1 & used various moded designs in our games .

I went down the Super PP route for my version of Maximilian too . Swapped the RL ( too inaccurate - especially vs small targets - and causes players to panic when vehicle is on fire ) for RR with option for SWC . Hvy Chassis , Spoiler , more Armour & a few Std Spikes mixed in with Explosive ones kept in under $10K . Not as fast but unless your pulling 'one volley hit-&-run' , the you don't see more than 120-140mph on the Road that often . After seeing multiple costly HC 3 Cars fail control rolls & crash in a scenario that had them start at 60mph on outskirts of a town , we've all been extremely wary of high speed disasters looming .
Okay that was way back when using DCWs rules , maneuvering & crash tables , but losing half your vehicles to blown control rolls BEFORE any enemies enter the board bites big time .
High Acceleration is lovely for getting out of nasty situations , but high speed kills your rides quicker than weapons will a majority of time . A happy medium between 'too slow' & 'too fast' is a real skill in this game - depends on your designs , character skills & type of games you play most often . Some players have ridiculous luck with Crash Tables etc , so that can be even more irritating than those who always seem to roll high 'to hit' your hard to hit targets ...