Considering a 4WD on-road touring car

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Supa_Mario

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Hi guys,

I'm considering to buy a good 1/5 scale on-road touring car. At the moment I'm looking at the FG Modellsport Sportsline 4WD cars and the MCD X4 Rally cars. The price of these 2 cars fit my budget. I would appreciate if you guys can give me some advise on which would be a better buy in terms of parts quality, easy availability of replacement parts and also hop-up parts. Apart from these 2 different cars mentioned above, do let me know if I have missed any other models that are worth considering.

Pls also recommend me a reliable on-line store to buy one of these cars. I'm from an overseas country so I'm a little concern when it comes to shipping and stuff.

Thank you :)
 
Hobbytek in Germany for all your FG goodies. I've never owned an mcd or driven one but have had the fg's. I did have a couple redcat rally cars. personally I am not a big fan of the 4wd on road but they are fun. I just found I burned more fuel and tires running 4wd because of always being on the throttle. they are easier to drive and you can just power out of trouble rather than let off and steer out of trouble.

that said the belt drive on the fg is very smooth. I am a big fg fan and know their durability and ease of getting parts. I get stuff shipped from hobbytek in germany to canada all the time. they ship fast, prices are good and have about the best selection of stock and hop up parts. wtch their sale and clearance section and you get some killer deals
 
Thanks for the reply. Looks like there are a lot of hop-up parts for the 2WD version. There isn't seem to be any for the 4WD at the moment. Is the 4WD version still very new? Are the 2WD FG's parts compatible with the 4WD version? Upon getting my FG Sportsline 4WD, I thought of going for both front and rear hydraulic brakes. Is that possible?
 
front and rear brakes on a 4wd is possible, however you don't get the same benefits as a 2wd. the big benefit with a 2wd is adjustable front/rear brake bias, with a 4wd it cant be anything other than 50/50, unless you install a one way clutch in the front diff.

the 4wd is still very new, its less than 1 year old. some parts are interchangeable, some arent. its basically a cross between a 2wd car and a 4wd buggy.

i myself would go with a 2wd. 2wd is far more challenging to drive, you go through less tires, less fuel, and it doesn't feel like your driving a 1/10 scale. also if you want to get into racing the 2wd is the way to go, im unsure if there is any classes to run a 4wd in as of yet.
 
Thanks for the info.. Are the body shells for the 2WD and 4WD interchangeable at least? What are the current front hydraulic brakes suitable for the 4WD? Will there be a suitable space to mount the extra servo and master cylinder onto the 4WD chassis?

Also, I know there will be some parts that are worth replacing on these cars before bringing it out on track. I had that experience on my Baja 5T as well. So what are the parts that would you guys recommend to be changed or added?
 
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the fg is actually worth driving as is... you'll just need an upgrade servo tray to do a second brake servo. upgrade others as you go. one thing I wanted to try was the front one way dif. with front brakes you could use it to an advantage. it would turn into corners faster being like a 2wd and free wheeling, then powering out you'd have a spool for maximum pull. I think it would really help handling but I never got to try one as I sold mine.

as for bodies not many choices in the fg. porsche gt3 or austin cooper. mcd has med wheelbase bodies focus and subaru. but mcd also makes a long wheelbase rally so there is a few bodies... biggest thing to remember is clearance as the motor stands upright in the 4wd. I bought a mercedes clk gtr for my redcat and wouldn't fit because it's too low. the dodge viper won't fit, new beetle will fit. have a look around at the 510-520mm bodies.
 
I know at the moment the 4WD on-road cars come with the Porsche and Mini Cooper bodies. But i've also seen hobby shops like Pitstop racing having more options on bodies. I'm interested in gettin the one with the BMW ALMS body. That fits the 4WD chassis right?

Also, one important question. I have a spare TS 30.5cc engine that was used on my HPI Baja 5T. Can this engine be used for the 4WD on-road car? I'm not sure if the fitting allows. I do know that the power is overkill. But just want to know if it is possible? Any additional parts I need to make the engine fit? What are the pros and cons of fitting this engine onto the car?
 
the power of a 30.5 will get that car moving in a hurry, however the big stroker motor will run out of rpm far too soon for an onroad car, and the car wont have much top speed. there isnt many options to gear the car a lot taller to make use of the torque of a 30.5. this is why most stick with 23cc, and to a lesser extent 26cc in cars, the small motors have tons of rpm.

for the record, the 30.5 should bolt right in. you may need to use the zenoah clutch housing.
 
I cant agree more with Sharkey, the 2wd version is the cream of the crop.
The 4x4 version is new and I think it was made to satisfy the 4x4 drivers. In my opinion, if you want to get into 1/5 you should adapt to the driving style. This is not a 1/10 car where you can point and shoot. These cars have to be driven with finess. I think that is what makes them so popular in Europe and around the world.
I cant say which one is better than the other one because we all have different tastes, but you will never see an EVO 4x4, all the special parts will only be made for the 2wd, at least for now.
 
Luis what you are said about driving a 1/10 scale onroad is false. It is obvious you have never driven a 1/1o scale because if you try to drive them by using a point and shoot driving technique you are going to be right in the wall. You better have some finess when you drive the 1/10 scale onroad or they will get away from you. You need to stop being so negative about 1/5 scale 4wd, people have a right to choose between 2wd or 4wd.
 
ive ran nitro touring for 10 years before i got into 1/5 scale. no its not exactly point and shoot, but in comparison to 2wd 1/5 scale it is. i think almost anyone with some rc experience could put a 1/10 scale 4wd around a track without much issue, however doing it fast is another story. it does take skill. however i feel 1/5 scale 4x4 is the exact same thing as 1/10 scale, and after driving 1/5 2wd for a year 4wd is point and shoot no matter what scale.

imo, if you want a simple car to put around a track, go with a 4wd. if you want to experience what 1/5 scale is really all about, go 2wd.
 
I understand that you guys here, have many years of driving experience and prosessional driver with 2wd cars. Let don't argue about which is the best 2wd or 4wd, let discuss and list them down about the advantage and disadvantage and also the output performance of 2wd and 4wd(with and without front one way differential) on a race track
 
Sharkey said:
ive ran nitro touring for 10 years before i got into 1/5 scale. no its not exactly point and shoot, but in comparison to 2wd 1/5 scale it is. i think almost anyone with some rc experience could put a 1/10 scale 4wd around a track without much issue, however doing it fast is another story. it does take skill. however i feel 1/5 scale 4x4 is the exact same thing as 1/10 scale, and after driving 1/5 2wd for a year 4wd is point and shoot no matter what scale.

imo, if you want a simple car to put around a track, go with a 4wd. if you want to experience what 1/5 scale is really all about, go 2wd.
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......................Make up your mind Sharkey you are talking in circles. Either you think a 4wd car is point and shoot or it is not. 4wd cars are not simple to drive or setup. However 4wd offers more traction than 2 wd enabling a experence driver to take advantage of this and have faster lap times with it. Why do you think 1/8 onroad racing evolved into 4wd only?? I view the development of a 4 wd car as something good anything to promote interest in 1/5 scale diversity is good. And there is room for both 2wd & 4wd class.
 
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ok ill correct myself. a 4wd car compared to a 2wd is point and shoot. here is the best way i can put it

4wd- you can jam the brakes or throttle from idle to wide open without consequence, you can crank full steering lock while on the throttle and it'll turn. its fairly simple to set up and adjustments make small changes, its harder to get into trouble when trying a new chassis setup. the car will always be drivable when setting up the chassis. tire choice isnt life and death and can get away with harder tires. fuel consumption will be high as you able to drive it a lot harder. because of that, you will also burn through tires in a hurry.

2wd- takes fine throttle control to keep traction, need to roll the throttle and brakes, pay close attention to how much brakes you apply. steering need to be precise and just enough to get around the corner, especially on throttle. small changes make a big difference in handling, too big a change can make a car undrivable. tire choice is very important, too hard and the car becomes unpredictably loose. fuel consumption is low because you rarely use full throttle, and tires last a lot longer because you cant drive too hard.

on a race track it comes down to the driver. most 4wd cars tend to push in a corner (unless they have a center diff or one way), a 2wd tends to be neutral to oversteer through the corner. take into consideration that a 4wd has more parasitic drivetrain loss, a 2wd should have more top end. in a long race a 4wd may have to stop for fuel, and even tires, more than a 2wd would.

one last comment ill make is about the smaller scales. 1/8 scale turned int oa 4wd only because the power levels got out of hand and 4wd seemed like a better option. same can be said for 1/10 scale stuff, where i am 1/12 pan cars saw a big downturn and more people went to the easier to drive 1/10 touring cars. it seems in the 4wd classes ive raced in its the person who can drive decent, but has the biggest wallet who wins. i got stuck in the game one too many times in my days of carpet racing. however watching the pan cars, it was always the best driver who won, no matter how much better the other cars were. imo this is why (at least where i am) the 1/10 gt class is getting big. 2wd 1/10 pan cars, something where you don't need the biggest budget to win a race
 
What alloy parts (that are currently available for the 4WD version) would you guys recommend to stiffen up the car? I am planning to get the car together with some hop-up parts. So to start up with, what would be good? Probably things like alloy arms, front and rear body supports would help reduce body flex right? Pls advise. Thank you..
 
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