Originally Posted by TryHard
gonna jump in with my view here....
I doubt the next tamiya belt will be mid motor. A number of reasons....
1) the car is pretty well balanced at the moment.
2) if you adopt a mid motor, you can't get the cells as close to the centre-line, as you have to make space for two belts rather than one. The cells close to the centreline will have more affect than the motor being in the middle.
3) My feeling on why the 05 has a mid motor, is simply it's is aimed at the club racer, and as such designed with a regard for the economics of racing, hence why the the belts are the same length, makes it cheaper.
To back this up... the latest version of the Stallion (as used by adachi recently) distinctly shows it with the motor mounted even further back in the car... and don't forget the Losi JRXS with the rear motor. Mounting it back would have a positive affect on gaining traction when accelerating.
The main change I can see happening is moving the front belt to the left of the centreline (like the Cyclone and BD), allowing the batterys even closer to the centreline.
And as for the TF5 / MSX debate... a load of crap... in general most TC's look the same... but it's in the details where the differences lie.
Ed
The reason why the Cyclone has the front belt off set is so that the centre-point steering bellcrank can be placed in the correct location.
If you have a close look at the Cyclone, the cells aren't really any closer to the centre because even with the belt to one side - the spur gear is now in the way of getting the cells closer. Either the cells would have to come forward to clear the spur, or the layshaft moved back.
I think your first point is right - the MSX is well balanced the way it is.
BTW it is possible to move the motor to the middle AND get the cells closer to the centre-line - it requires the support bulkhead closest to the cells to be moved in at the lower part so the cells can squeeze in there - the Top Racing Scythe has used that idea.