Drifting RWD Z's: a possible baseline.

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color0
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Drifting RWD Z's: a possible baseline.

Post by color0 »

I've been working to get my MR02 to drift for almost a year now, and now I've gotten far enough that I think I can publish my findings and help someone else out. I realize most MR01/015/02 owners would rather race than drift, but hey, there's gotta be someone out there who shares my interests.

My own setup has been changed to cope with slippery hardwood, and goes as follows:

Front:
- Plastic drift tires, sanded/textured with rough-grit sandpaper
- Stock MR02 springs, 1.2mm preload
- Stock knuckles, 0* camber
- Stock 0* toe-out tierod
Rear:
- 55* slicks
- Ball differential, 43t spur, slightly tighter than factory
- 39t handwound motor in ball-bearing can, 6t pinion
- FRP hard t-plate, no spring
- Oil damper, 200wt oil, no spring

This car's been hard to control on slippery surfaces, so I'm working on a setup suitable for it. However, I usually drift on a marble floor, which has some degree of grip, and this is perfect for it. I've posted videos somewhere in this forum, or you can just go on Youtube and search for "MR02 drift". I have not managed to shoot any new video clips using the new setup, as I've changed my strategy almost completely (gone from soft front stiff rear, to stiff front soft rear).

A suitable baseline for most would be as follows:

Front:
- Plastic tires
- Standard soft springs
- 0* camber
- 0* toe
Rear:
- 50-60* slicks
- Ball differential
- Medium h/t-plate
- Oil damper

In general, some things can be said about RWD drift setups.

- The rear tires should have more grip than the fronts. It's just more consistent that way, the rear will come back more easily when you let off the throttle.
- Ball diff tightness has a significant bearing on understeer/oversteer characteristics, especially entry understeer/oversteer. The tighter the diff the more understeer. If the rear tires are significantly softer than the fronts and the diff is too tight, the car will never break rear traction.
- The rear longitudinal (up-down) damping should be adjusted to your likes, but roll (side-side) damping should be kept to a minimum, or none at all.
- The roll stiffness of the rear should be high. Corner entry has to be 100% consistent, so keeping roll resistance high ensures that the tail comes out at entry.
- An MM car will be easier to turn into the corner, but more difficult to hold the drift. An RM is just the opposite, and may require softer front tires and harder rears than an MM. Overall rear stiffness of an RM must be harder than an MM, to account for the weight distribution and polar moment of inertia.

Some of these points may be more obvious than others, but in general, that's what I think a RWD 1/28 needs in order to drift successfully. Hope it helps. :)
Last edited by color0 on Mon Jan 22, 2007 3:50 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Post by Maxximum Attack »

I was trying to explain this to someone on another forum. I didn't get into the specifics of the body roll and damping but I think he got it. I also linked your youtube video. You got full credit, obviously ;)

Maxx
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ynad
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Post by ynad »

Good write up.
will try that
thanks
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color0
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Post by color0 »

The marble floor has been newly polished, so I took the car there for a spin.

Setup was updated with a much looser differential, Kyosho hard (yellow) front springs and taller limiters.

The car feels pretty good now, off-throttle steering is great, don't have to get on the brakes to induce the slide anymore. However, I find that I have to let go of the throttle after entry sooner, and for a much longer time. I can't get on the throttle till about the apex of the corner. I'm not complaining, as this is a standard in racing, but I'm not used to it. I have much to learn about working with mod motors, and that's the first bit of data.
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