brushless conversion questions

[suicideneil]

There will be a MMM esc & motor combo for about $300, so that would be ideal for you really- saves the hassle of guessing which esc and motor to buy.

Run that setup on 4s, and it will easily keep up with the nitro buggies- run it on 5s, and it'll blow them away (and you too I bet!). As for which lipos... rule of thumb I stick by:

Anything that can provide at least 80-100amps continous for a vehicle this size weight really (mah capacity x C rating = continuous rating). Plenty of brands to choose from, have a read around to see what others like & recommend.