Setting up the Car for drag

TheBlackDEAth · #1 03-01-2004, 06:27 PM

i searched the forums, but could not find anything that could help. I want to know how to best set up my car for drag racing. I got the RSX but i'm thinkin that the supra would be better for it. Any help u can give me will be awsome...

Sky_Liner · #2 03-01-2004, 07:24 PM

You can use:
Stiff springs and 1.5 degree tie rod
soft tread or hard slicks
have the batts all the way up

2WD for a long drag race
AWD for a shorter drag race

180s motor

Xmodspeed nitro-charger (havent tried it yet)

All I can think of right now

PS: I think the longer cars- Supra and Skyline are best for drag
I also think the RSX and the Civic are good for drifting.

Peace

meteoraclown · #3 03-01-2004, 09:07 PM

all you need is a very torqy(sp?) motor. why cause you'll fly of the line quicker and just make sure you can get to the top speed quick.

00black_civic · #4 03-01-2004, 09:38 PM

Use the Supra it has longer wheel base which means more room for bigger motor. You Should do this 6 cell, AWD, Bearings, Team Orion motor, and pimped out body.

Metallica88 · #5 03-02-2004, 05:32 PM

Whats this Orion motor i keep hearing about? Does it drop right in? How much faster does it go then say the top speed stage 2? Thanks!

aperson · #6 03-02-2004, 07:24 PM

0 degree tie rod. that way the wheels will be pointed straight forward instead of inside a bit. that might help cut down on some friction. i think...

Springs:
Front: Hard/stock
Rear: Hard/stock

Gearing:
Torquey motor: Road Race gearing
Fast motor: Drag gearing

Tires:
Hard treads/slicks all around depending on track.

Weight Savings:
Body: trim all body/mounting posts and super glue everything on.
Chassis: Carbon Fiber chassis/ upper deck plates, use only 1/2 of the screws where it can be applied

thats all i can think of right now. i may be wrong though. you just need to experiment. then again don't experiment. you may end up breaking something.

KnotHole · #7 03-04-2004, 04:17 PM

You've got some good ideas there aperson. Your weight reduction idea is really good for the drag races. It might only be grams and ounces that you get rid of but in real life, those guys try to get rid of as small amounts of weight as they can. Even 5 to 10 lbs. lighter can help them go faster. Anywho, have fun !...KnotHole...

SuPrBuGmAn · #8 03-04-2004, 04:27 PM

The RSX really limits you to the motors you can use.

The Supra, Skyline, and Civic all use the longer chasis and have room for 180 motors(and larger). The Team Orion Elite Stock motor is a 180 can. The RSX uses the medium chasis adjustment hence the lack of motor options other Xmods can enjoy.

viperdout · #9 03-06-2004, 06:52 PM

Yeah, I shouldn't of gotten it. Take off the front cover and all excess parts. Then shave off as much as you can inside the body. Maybe you should even take off the recever board cover. Stick with softer tires, as they stick. I would suggest hard springs, to minimize wheel hop, though I don't know if it's a problem with these cars. Move the batts as far back as they can go. NO LIGHTS! Leave anything off that you can. If you're only doing 1 run, then not run it for a while, you might be able to get away with not running the metal heatsink. If money is no object, atomicmods.com li-on kit is the way to go. Also, go with bearings (when you get them, clean them and regrease them), cf chassis and driveshaft. The only thing that is useful in the awd kit is the lsd <--- (hint, hint, tiny).

If money is an object: get IC3s, or any other ones, though I like the IC3s the best and I think that many people agree with me. They are great, and for repeated drag runs, they are WAY better than alkalines, and in the long run, you'll save a lot on batteries. For 2 bucks, you can buy a 2 aaa holder at RS. For another buck, buy some 9 volt connectors. They're the cheapest quick release connectors you can buy. 6 cell it. Duct tape the holder down and run bodiless. If you are running the RSX body, you'll need to trim the posts to mount lights (you don't need lights anyway), and you might need to trim the arch on the back body mount for the 6 cells to fit. A dremel is really useful for the trimming. If you have to run with a body, lower the body. That might seem cosmetic, but you're shaving weight. Again, if you are forced to run with a shell, take off ALL extra pieces, such as the mirrors, bumpers, skirts, etc. Dremel some more of the body, while you're at it. If you plan on keeping the stock FETs, then just keep on focusing on keeping the weight down. New or stacked FETs will allow for higher rpm motors, but that a little on the expensive side unless you do it yourself. On the front body mount, you can take a little off by those 2 holes. While the X is so much better weight distribution-wise than a normal car, it won't hook as well as a Mini-Z because of the irs. Oh, one last thing. Use a piece of tape to keep the side batteries in instead of the plastic things, as that'll shave weight, too. While the longer wheelbase allows for a 180 motor, more body=more weight. That's all I got.

civic freak · #10 06-07-2004, 02:31 PM

i was really sleppy when i read all these posts so if im sayin somthing someone has already said im sorry.ok what i would do is get a long wheelbase car (preferabally the Skyline) and put a 6-cell in it just like somebody said except put the extra batttery pack in the bumper because 1. it will giv you more weight over the wheels that need it and so you can lower the front . but note: you can NOT lower the Skyline it is way to hard to lower and will make you body ****ed at an angle because it is SO low already but for a Supra/Civic theres 2 little holes in the front of the cars body mounting thingy cut shave dremel those out how ever you wanna do it.

Seen below: Right what you start out with, Left what you wanna have when your done.

viperdout · #11 06-07-2004, 04:26 PM

Get a suspension kit. Double up on blues in back (2 per rear wheel), and double up on the front with double stocks. No more wheel hop!

#12 06-09-2004, 10:28 AM

good advice so far. Also, glue your tires to the wheels, especially if you're using soft tires. It helps immensely! You can use rubber cement or tacky glue, or even a light amount of super glue if you want. This removes the "wheel/tire" slip, where the tire plants to the pavement but the drive wheels still lose traction against the tire's inner surface. It doesn't take much glue to fix it, rubber cement is also easy to remove when you want to change tires off. I personally just went and bought the wheel upgrade kit and a few tire upgrade kits (for spares!) and started gluing. I just change out whole wheel/tire sets instead of digging around for 4 matching tires, and since they're already glued, it really speeds up the process of changing tires out and gluing them in the paddocks before the race.

Also, I modified the damper mounting points so that I can swap springs out without unscrewing the dampers from the control arms.

As far as setup goes, the RSX weighs less than the other cars as well. Not by much, but it does weigh less. If you are participating in an "Official" XMODS drag race and you're forced to stay within the limits of stock and XMODS official parts, the RSX may well be the winner. Longer wheelbases definitely handle better, but wheelbase has NO effect on launch, traction, or top speed.

Tire choice will depend on the surface. For unfinished smooth concrete or smooth asphalt (like a skate park or tennis court) soft slick will work fine. For finished concrete or laquered hard wood (like a basement or basketball court) you will probably want to use soft tread, but when in doubt, try all your options.

Tie rod: Stock (as mentioned before, the wheels pointing straight forward will provide less rolling resistance)

Weight: I trimmed the whole air dam off the front of my skyline. I'll post a pic of it. Bodykit is a no-go. Spoiler and mirrors removed when racing. I trimmed the plastic out from under the hood, used a dremel with a drum sander to grind away inside the body. I removed the light kit too. Weigh all stock parts against the bodykit replacements and you'll see that you'll save somewhere near a dozen grams by staying with the stock parts. Grind away some stuff and you'll save more. See note about AWD below.

Drivetrain:
* ALWAYS use the LSD Ball diff in the back.
As mentioned before:
* Long Drag Races (40' or more, let's say): RWD and tallest gearing possible for a long race. AWD adds drivetrain friction AND weight, which will hurt your top speed, and your launch with taller gearing (less torque).
* Short Drag Races: AWD And possibly shorter geearing (more traction and torque). If you can get ahold of another LSD Ball Diff, put it in the front, too. Your steering will suffer severely, but how many corners are you taking on a drag strip? You'll still be able to steer enough to stay on course if you start to veer to one side.
* As mentioned above, ball bearings are of paramount importance, but keeping them cleaned out with a pair of tweezers and properly lubricated is just as important.
* Use a light coat of graphite on the motor pinion, Y gears, and diffs.
* I polished my driveshaft with mag wheel polish. it's smooth as glass and works well with the ball bearings.

Suspension: In general, the harder the better. You don't want it to be rock stiff though, it needs a little bit of "give" to keep the wheels on the ground in case it hits small bumps. If it's too stiff, one small bump might cause the whole car to hop, causing 2, 3, or all 4 wheels to lose contact with the ground, instead of just the one that hit the bump. Doubling up springs on the dampers works pretty well.

Motors: New motors that have been broken in properly (water break-in) are a must. Even a well-broken in motor that's seen a lot of use (and abuse) will be slower than a fresh one. Setting aside a few motors strictly for competition events is probably a good idea. If you have an S211T (Drag) motor that you only use when competing in timed drags, you will probably have a motor that will last several seasons with regular use. Use "play" motors when tuning your car for the course you're going to be running. Try your hardest to NEVER use reverse in your comp motors once they're broken in. Don't let your competition motors touch or even sit within an inch of another motor or magnet Don't drop the motors, either. This can damage or weaken the magnets over time.

That said, my long drag prep is like this:
Skyline Chassis, freshly cleaned and debris removed from axles, front upper deck cover removed
Skyline body with stock parts, weight reduced by grinding away excess material, removing mirrors, command logic light kit, and spoiler
Freshly Cleaned/Lubed Bearings
Broken-In S211T (Drag) with heat sink (I could probably go without it though)
Drivetrain given fresh graphite
Double Yellow springs up front, Double Blue in rear (I only have one spring kit, 4 of each color)
LSD Ball diff in back (screws tightened snugly), RWD-only setup
Rubber-Cement Glued tires (compound varies according to surface)
Stock steering tie-rod
Fresh NiMH Cells (4x AAA)

I don't currently have (nor can I afford right now) snazzy un-sanctioned parts.

Un-Sanctioned parts:
Unless you're putting down lots of crazy torque (such as a FET-Stacked car with upgraded motor), you don't need upgraded axles. Stock ones will work fine and weigh about the same.

On an XMODS with all the "official" upgrades, Power upgrades such as higher-voltage battery setups and upgraded wiring will offer you the best bang for the buck. Followed by that, FET Stacking and motors are the next best bang for the buck. After that, weight reduction becomes viable (CF chassis and driveshafts) Options such as external power boards (the V1 upgrade for example) are only for the crazy die-hard tuners with too much battery and motor for their own good, but they will make your car crazy fast if everything else is in place.

jamiekulhanek · #13 06-09-2004, 10:53 AM

A mod that gives you more acceleration and top speed is:

Drying out your bearings, ever seen/used skateboard bearings roll?? This mod makes your bearings roll just as well!

firstly, remove all your bearings, and put them in a container such as a metal jar. Add enough petrol or gasoline to cover them, shake em up, until you get all the gunk and lubricant out of them, this process needs to be repeated with FRESH gasoline or petrol at least 3 times. Dry with paper towel after each cleaning cycle.

Your bearings will be free and will still last a great deal of time.

Though they are not lubricated anymore, there is nothing to attract dirt and grime, so they should last a similar amount of time to untreated bearings.

I did this to my mini Z and saw 9km/h top speed increase.

The xmod runs twice the amount of bearings as the mini Z does, so results should be quite good.

viperdout · #14 06-09-2004, 03:57 PM

Dude, you are totally wrong about AWD. While it does add weight and a little friction, it also adds much more traction, thereby getting off the line quicker. The tall gearing will keep you ahead near the end, but AWD is just so great. I found myself literally losing control just punching it with RWD, even on pavement. With AWD, I never have problems with control. AWD does not hamper your steering in an xmod, the xmod was designed for AWD, and that's why the turning sucks.

#15 06-09-2004, 09:48 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by viperdout
Dude, you are totally wrong about AWD. While it does add weight and a little friction, it also adds much more traction, thereby getting off the line quicker. The tall gearing will keep you ahead near the end, but AWD is just so great. I found myself literally losing control just punching it with RWD, even on pavement. With AWD, I never have problems with control. AWD does not hamper your steering in an xmod, the xmod was designed for AWD, and that's why the turning sucks.

On the right surface you will always have a faster top speed with only 2 wheels turning. Yes, it adds traction, yes you'll launch harder every time. yes, it's easier to control.

Let's scale it up to 1:1 cars...
Go look at a neon SRT-4 and a Subaru WRX. FWD Vs. AWD, similar horsepower and torque figures. The WRX's drivetrain efficiency sucks. On an 1/8 mile track, the Peon would get schooled. On the 1/4 mile, the WRX gets a painful lesson. Trained drivers in both cars, stock for stock, the Neon will have a quicker time. I've seen it happen many times at the track (2 people in my car club have WRX's and one has an SRT-4)

The simple fact is that you're increasing friction, weight, and worst of all, rotating mass with AWD. High-powered R/C Cars take skill to drive RWD. Hop in a Supra and goose the throttle in 1st gear. I'd bet you couldn't keep it going in a straight line either. It takes skill to drive an RWD car that's grossly over-powered, and you have to be gentle with the throttle when launching. It's no different with R/C Cars. It's possible, with the right tires and suspension on the right surface to launch an RWD xmods in a straight line, especially without upgrading cells or things like that.

I'd almost bet you a small amount of cash, that if we ran a 1/4 mile scale race, 1320' * 1/24, or 55' with the same mods on a good surface (hell, even a smooth yet mediocre traction surface like a clean hardwood floor) except me RWD and you AWD, I'd probably beat you every time. I've tested this over and over and over again. The only time I can find a real advantage to AWD in a straight line is with flat-out crappy traction surfaces, such as dirty linoleum, freshly waxed hardwood floors, solid sheets of ice, etc.

Break out a stopwatch with and without AWD on a 55 foot straight-line run and you'll see what I mean.