Background -
I've had this body for about 5-6 months now. It has gone through two different chassis (MA-010, and now it's on an MA-020). Throughout that time I have slowly been modifying it, and tuning the chassis to suit my driving style. Since I drive the car all the time, it receives a lot of damage. I've spent more time repairing/tuning it than I have actually building the custom kit for it. Since I finally got it to a point where it seems to hold up to abuse well, i've decided to go through with the finishing touches.
Chassis Setup -
MA-020 Chassis
Standard Ball Bearings
Kyosho X-Speed Motor
Aluminum Motor Holders/Cover
Kyosho Ball Differential (rear)
PN Racing Axles (rear)
3Racing 0 Degree Knuckles (rear)
Kyosho Solid Axle (front)
Kyosho 4.5 Degree Plastic Knuckles (Front)
Stock Kyosho Axles (front)
PN Racing .5mm Spacers (front)
0 Degree Toe (rear), sometimes swap to 1.5 Degree
Custom Widened R34 GTR Wheels
Notes -
For some reason, maximum front camber on the MA-020 causes the axles to bind tremendously. I thought getting some quality solid axles would solve this, but they made it worse. The car would actually slow down from full lock turns. I've decided that the stock plastic axles are the best option.
I tried installing a Kyosho titanium driveshaft, and it did not mesh well at all with my front solid axle. There was nothing wrong with the gear in the solid axle, and there was no room to add shims on either side. Maybe that's just normal with metal to plastic contact?
I've run into a bunch of problems trying to get the chassis to mesh properly after swapping everything to the new chassis. I think I might need to replace all the gears with new ones, and see if it solves the problem. I was previously running the car with a broken rear lower chassis mount that caused some binding.
Despite all this, i'm still able to enjoy driving the car. It seems that stock is best with this new chassis. Most of my modifications (besides the new differentials and camber knuckles) have made it worse.
Body Modifications -
Front bumper (cut open side vents, shaved license plate opening)
Rear bumper (modified to resemble BN Sports kit)
Side skirts (modified to resemble BN Sports kit)
Shaved front grill to resemble GTST hood
Roof wing added above rear window
Shaved the mounting holes on the stock wing
Custom alternative spoiler made to resemble D-Max wing
Ganador style side mirrors (purchased online)
Front canards from Silvia S15
Side body mounts were shaved and relocated higher up in the body to lower it on the chassis without sacrificing suspension travel
Custom front clip to lower the front
Fenders were shaved paper thin
I did not document every step, but here are pictures from various stages of completion.
Side skirts were collecting dust from being to low to the ground.
Test fitting various parts.
Testing black roof, this will be done again when the car is finished.
As you can see the car was built to be as low as possible, but still perform equal/if not better than any well setup drift car. The car does rub the ground when there are slight elevation changes in my hardwood floor, but the added weight and power makes the effect on driving very minimal. I plan on adding stiff springs to the car so it doesn't have as much suspension travel.
I know low cars and drifting are not everyones thing, but they are two things I am very passionate about. Even if this is not your style, I hope you can appreciate the build!
Once the car is fully completed I will take a video of it driving
I know a lot of us have probably been frustrated that we can't use some of the wheels that are included on certain bodies, because of the poor sizing. After a while, the aftermarket selection of good offset wheels gets old. I absolutely love R34 GTR wheels, so I wanted to make them work.
I bought some 0 offset narrow black dish wheels, and slid a wide drift tire over them (it's hard to tell in the picture, because I shaved down my drift tire so thin). Then I trimmed the R34 wheel down so it was just the face, and slid it into the drift tire to fill the gap. It's an easy solution, and it allows for interchangeability.
As you said, I'm not a big fan of the look of the kit, but I definitely appreciate the work you've done on this one. And the wheels are a nice touch. Really clever on this!
Got everything together except the taillights. I used super glue for everything, and the vapors hardened on my fingerprints partially ruining the headlight lenses, windows, and clear coat. It's not terrible, just a bit annoying.
Here are some pictures of the car. I've been driving it, so it's a bit scratched already. Will take more pictures when it's done.
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