Tamiya mini cooper

[infrontracing]

Hey boomer....Me and the guys down here at Allens RC in Rochester have all aquired mini coopers recently and I was wondering if you had any set tips to share? We will be coming up there for the TCS race.

Hope to see you guys at Allens March Madness race again. We will have a huge mini cooper class. later, Scott

[Big Daddy Boomer]

Originally posted by infrontracing
Hey boomer....Me and the guys down here at Allens RC in Rochester have all aquired mini coopers recently and I was wondering if you had any set tips to share? We will be coming up there for the TCS race.

Hope to see you guys at Allens March Madness race again. We will have a huge mini cooper class. later, Scott

Hi Scott,
I have heard that Mini has taken off. It is such a FUN class! Allen is up here racing this weekend for the Carpet oval here at Trackside. We will be bringing a crew down to allens again in March! with a few more guys!

See you either in January for the Novak race (See here for the Entry Form ) or the 2 DAY Tamiya TCS EXTRAVAGANZA in February.

You got PM also

[infrontracing]

I borrowed a pair of type A slicks to try on the front of my cooper and they had way too much traction. I race on high bite carpet . I have my ride height very low and heavy oil and all that.
Do they make a hard compound and a soft compound in the type A's? A harder compound would really help. The tires i tried also had the stock foam and a firm sedan insert in each tire. Anyone know? Thanks in advance.

[asw7576]

Doods, tamiya makes 2 types for mini : A ( up to 35 degree C ) and B ( over 35 degree C ) circuit temps.

Perhaps if you can get the B type for longer wear and lesser grip that would be great. But the B type is very hard to find.... even here in tropical country !!

I suggest other brands, maybe HPI ?

Or you try harder tyre inserts ? 1 sponge + 1 molded insert ?

[Big Daddy Boomer]

Originally posted by infrontracing
I borrowed a pair of type A slicks to try on the front of my cooper and they had way too much traction. I race on high bite carpet .

At Trackside we use S grip and M grip tires and those work great

[infrontracing]

By S grip and M grip tires are you talking about radials? (treaded)We cab get type B slicks but they are much shorter of a tire. That means less speed. We tried them and they were slow with the 20 t pinion. Im getting a ball diff tomorow. Im hoping to gain some forward bite. That planetary diff pulls harder with one wheel than the other.

[Big Daddy Boomer]

Originally posted by infrontracing
By S grip and M grip tires are you talking about radials? (treaded)We cab get type B slicks but they are much shorter of a tire. That means less speed. We tried them and they were slow with the 20 t pinion. Im getting a ball diff tomorow. Im hoping to gain some forward bite. That planetary diff pulls harder with one wheel than the other.

Yes we run the radials.

Up here at Trackside you have to be Tamiya Legal with the right size tires for the right car and the right pinion depending on the chasis.

Here are the rules for Mini from the 2004 TCS

“M” Chassis

1. Any Tamiya “M” chassis car (M01, M02, M02-L, M03, M0-3L, M04). The M0-3, M0-4 and M04m will be the only chassis allowed for the 2004 North American Finals.
2. Tamiya Hop-Ups allowed, no chassis lightening allowed.
3. A proper mini body must be used with its proper mini chassis. I.E. (FWD front wheel drive body must be used with front-drive chassis. RWD rear wheel drive body must be used with rear wheel chassis)
4. Cars may run any Tamiya tires designed to fit the "M" chassis. The tires and wheels must conform to the scale look of the body. Running 26mm sedan wheels and tires on a Mini Cooper body would be an example of what wouldn't be allowed. The Porsche Boxster, Porsche 911, Mercedes SLK, BMW M Roadster and Honda S2000 may only use wheels and tires that are of the 26mm type. 24mm wheels and tires are not legal for the 2004 season. Using the smaller wheels on a M-04 or long wheeled base M-02L is not legal unless the body type warrants it.
5. Porsche Boxster, Porsche 911, Mercedes SLK, BMW M Roadster and Honda S2000 may not run extra wide or offset wheels.
6. Kit type closed-endbell, silver can motor only. (Mabuchi or Johnson)
7. Due to the recent amount of disparity among the different mini chassis types, the following gearing rule will be in effect for the 2003-2004 season. Because the M-04 uses the bigger sedan tires and offers an overall gearing advantage compared to the older smaller tired minis, the M-04 will be restricted to the 17-tooth pinion as of the 2003 season.

The following is the maximum size gears that are allowed for each mini chassis type:
M0-4 with Sedan type tire: max pinion 17 tooth
M-04m (Alfa body only) with 60D tires: max pinion 19 tooth
M0-3 with 60D tires: max pinion 20 tooth
M0-1/2 with 60D tires: max pinion 20 tooth
M0-1/2 with 26MM sedan tires: max pinion 18 tooth
Running a M0-3 with sedan tires is not legal for 2003-2004.

[F1Junkie]

Hi There -

I just got my Mini and I am in the process of building it.

I have read that people want the gear diff to be tight so that it doesn't unload or lose speed.

I run almost exclusively on an indoor carpet track.

Would locking the gear diff be a useful modification to do to it? I could use Shoo Goo so I can take it out later.

What advantages would ther be to locking the diff in a front wheel drive car - would it push excessively? I have read that people notice an improvement with a locked diff.

I also have universals on the way - any risk of serious damage to them? With a locked diff, would anyone recommend just keeping the stock dogbones?

Thanks for your help in advance, Mini is taking off again at my local track...

Dave

[asw7576]

Cheap way : You could lock the diff with silly putty, thick automobile grease, or glue the internal diff gears.

Expensive way : you buy TA03 ball diff, I think this is the best way.

The problem with tight or locked diff : the pinion gear and spur gear will wear out very fast. The car will push ( understeer ) in tight corner.

The benefit of locked / tight diff : less speed loss during cornering.

If you prefer the original gear diff, you could set the front suspension hard and low to minimize body roll. This setup allows both front tires have tolerable contact during cornering ( no lifting >> limited spin. ).

Universal dog bones makes the power transfer more efficient and minimize wheels rattling during cornering.

[infrontracing]

Minis took off like wildfire at my track too!
A guy at my track put shoe goo in his gear diff and it had a little more traction coming out of the corner but it did push a lot too.
Also his motor was 170 degrees when he came off after a race. I would go with a manta ray diff myself. I ran with the gear diff for several weeks and it worked well but they seem to pull harder with one wheel than the other.That will make it push one way and corner well the other way. Its just kind of inconsistant.

my 2

[Turbo Joe]

Another really trick way to semi-lock the gear diffs is with silicone dielectric grease (aka: "Tune-up grease"). It's really thick and it doesn't get thin when it gets hot. It makes the diff act like a really smooth ball diff. You have to buy a decent-sized tube of it though, because the little packet isn't going to be enough to do a diff.

I have a Ta03 in mine, cranked WAY tight. It's pretty easy to drive, but it does push on power quite a bit...just like a real FWD car. It's pretty easy to drive, though.

I had a 5800 Novak in it for quite a while. (never stripped a single gear)

It was pretty funny seeing a Mini running down 19T cars on the straights.

[grahame]

Hi
just got a mo3 for chrissy and was wondering what shocks and springs and oil are best for this car as the standard friction ones are garbage

Thanks

[414play]

get the cva tamiya super mini shocks 50746, tamiya short spring set 53333 and 40wt oil. these shocks let you run a lower ride height than the alloy shocks. don't get the cva mini shocks as they are to long must be the SUPER mini shocks.

[414play]

also i think these shocks only come in set of 2 so you will need 2 sets.

[Turbonium]

i have the 414M2 shocks on mine, with limiting spacers inside to reduce the droop, and the short springs.... and can get a 3mm ride height! of course, the shocks and ball diff would double the investment price! i just "borrow" them from one of my other cars when i decide to run it...