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Old 07-12-2003, 11:38 AM
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modellor
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Here are the pros and cons of each.

Alloy Pros -

It keeps all the main weight to the bottom of the car for better CG
It wont break in a hard impact unless the material is really brittle.
It is comparatively cheaper than Carbon
It is better suited to bumpy unprepped tracks

Alloy Cons -

It is heavy compared to Carbon
It doesnt give the best performance handling due to unneccessary flex on smooth permanent tracks.
It will bend in a hard crash and tweak the cars set up (can be un-noticeable by eye until you put the car on a tweak station).

Carbon Pros -

It is lighter
It wont bend in a hard crash
It is stronger if designed right
It gives better handling on a flat smooth permanent track with good grip.

Carbon Cons -

The cost is higher
The chassis retains more heat than an alloy version which hurts the engine (This can be overcome by the correct design of the airholes in the chassis and the correct design of the engine mounts).
It will shatter or at least splinter in a hard crash.
It is too rigid for unprepped permanent tracks.
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