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Old 2015.05.05, 11:01 PM   #1
JatoTheRipper
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Issues With My First Mini-Z

Hi. First post here. I just bought an MB-010 Optima buggy. The transmitter turns on, but the LED on the car does not light up. I tried two sets of brand new batteries and verified polarity was correct. Any ideas what could be wrong or how to troubleshoot this issue?

Thank you.
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Old 2015.05.06, 03:37 PM   #2
RussF
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Did you switch the power on on the buggy? Probably but you didnt say. The transmitter may need to be "bound" to the car. follow the instructions for binding.
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Old 2015.05.06, 05:51 PM   #3
JatoTheRipper
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Did you switch the power on on the buggy? Probably but you didnt say. The transmitter may need to be "bound" to the car. follow the instructions for binding.
Haha! Good point. Yes, I turned the switch on. I also tried it in the off position just in case it was installed backwards. Neither worked.

Will the car bind to the transmitter if the LED isn't on?
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Old 2015.05.06, 06:20 PM   #4
RussF
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No I dont think so. Must be a problem with the battery contacts or wires going to the batteries or from the batteries to the board. Or I guess if everything is good it might be a dead board. Are you sure the batteries are in right?
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Old 2015.05.06, 06:28 PM   #5
JatoTheRipper
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No I dont think so. Must be a problem with the battery contacts or wires going to the batteries or from the batteries to the board. Or I guess if everything is good it might be a dead board. Are you sure the batteries are in right?
Yes, I triple or quadruple checked the batteries using both the manual and the markings molded into the chassis.

I am annoyed. I've purchased two Kyosho products in my life which both happen to be from this year (Scorpion 2014 and this Mini-Z) and both have had issues. Kyosho America is not willing to help with the warranty because I bought it online from a HobbyShop in Japan.
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Old 2015.05.06, 10:15 PM   #6
El Tigre
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Check the wires that are soldered to the battery terminals and verify if they are connected properly, a poor solder joint is always possible and many times will pass a QC check, but become unconnected during shipment, rare but possible. You can also clean the battery terminals with a pencil eraser , it is mildly abrasive and will slough off any oxidation or tarnish that may have formed during shipment to you from overseas. I have had the motor terminals have this issue with new out of the box Z's and that caused the motor to work intermittently. Good luck , stay positive.
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Old 2015.05.07, 07:17 AM   #7
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Check the wires that are soldered to the battery terminals and verify if they are connected properly, a poor solder joint is always possible and many times will pass a QC check, but become unconnected during shipment, rare but possible. You can also clean the battery terminals with a pencil eraser , it is mildly abrasive and will slough off any oxidation or tarnish that may have formed during shipment to you from overseas. I have had the motor terminals have this issue with new out of the box Z's and that caused the motor to work intermittently. Good luck , stay positive.
Thank you! I'll try that when I get a chance.

The reseller refuses to help me other than taking it back and giving me a full refund. I don't want that because these Optima ReadySets are almost impossible to find these days. Maybe I'll contact Kyosho of Japan.
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Old 2015.05.07, 08:13 AM   #8
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Where are you located? there are people here willing and able to help if someone is close to your location.
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Old 2015.05.07, 10:27 AM   #9
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Try and bend out the battery contacts on the - side to apply more pressure. Sometimes those tabs do not apply enough pressure to fully contact both sides of the battery, so while it may seem like all the batteries are in properly and contacting, they may not be porviding any power. Had this happen to me when I bought a new kit, this is a common thing.
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Old 2015.05.07, 04:30 PM   #10
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Push the battery's hard into the positive direction with a screwdriver or something. Sometimes they are a tight fit and don't touch the positive side.
If you want to double check and have multimeter, make sure you have 4.8V over all the batteries. Then you are sure they are touching the contacts.
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Old 2015.05.08, 06:50 PM   #11
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Thanks for the responses. I did a little tinkering last night with no luck. I tightened the screws in the attached picture. I also took voltage readings there and got nothing.

Does this heat shrink tube look normal? Is that typically there on a new MB-010?

Last edited by JatoTheRipper; 2015.05.08 at 07:01 PM.
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Old 2015.05.09, 02:59 AM   #12
LED
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Is your steering working? If not then the problems is not there. Those are the motor connections. I assume you are simply not getting any power to the print of the buggy. So ignore those for the moment.
If your steering is working then we need to look at other things.
Did you measure directly on the batterys?
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Old 2015.05.09, 09:09 AM   #13
JatoTheRipper
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Quote:
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Is your steering working? If not then the problems is not there. Those are the motor connections. I assume you are simply not getting any power to the print of the buggy. So ignore those for the moment.
If your steering is working then we need to look at other things.
Did you measure directly on the batterys?
I do not have steering. I don't have any signs of power - not even the LED.

Where should I measure that batteries? I don't know how they're wired. Positive on the outermost battery to negative on the opposite, outermost battery?

Last edited by JatoTheRipper; 2015.05.09 at 09:23 AM.
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Old 2015.05.09, 10:01 AM   #14
LED
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If you look at the botom of the buggy, next to the switch the positive. And yes on the other side of the buggy the negative one.
You shpould have 4.8V minimal without even turning on the switch.
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Old 2015.05.26, 10:24 PM   #15
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The reseller agreed to take this back, return it to Kyosho for inspection and repair and then send it back to me all on their dime. I thought that was awesome of them.

I received it today and nothing has changed. The reseller stated the following:

"Thank you for sending the item and we have the manufacturer (Kyosho) checked the item.

They have changed the new transmitter and they informed that there is no problem with the chassis.

You just should have undergone a pairing adjustment (you needed a pairing adjustment if you use a new transmitter you have purchased).

They have underwent a pairing adjustment for this ready set now and we have also checked the inspection before the shipment."

The light on the new transmitter constantly blinks. The LED on the car doesn't light up even when I try to put it into binding mode. The car shows no signs of life - at all. I verified the batteries are installed and that they have life.

What am I missing???
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