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Over the years, your beloved RC cars can start to become a little slower, or maybe you are just looking for a way to upgrade its original speed that it comes with out of the box. No matter why you want to upgrade the speed on your Redcat RC car this article will help you do it.
As a novice RC car user, the speed of your older cars likely seemed to be perfect, but now that you have gained some experience and skills, you are pretty likely to start looking for a way to make your RC car faster. You may be looking to make your RC car faster for the sake of winning races, or it may be due to the fast-paced, intense speeds that you simply want to enjoy. Afterall, faster is better!
To increase the speed of your Redcat RC car you will have to do one or all of the following things:
- Upgrade your RC motor
- Upgrade your tires
- Upgrade your battery
- Decrease your cars weight
All of these individually will each help you increase the speed of your RC vehicle to some extent but when you do all 4 of them it will be easy to notice how much faster your RC car has become. Most RC cars will see a 50-100% increase in speeds when all 4 of these items are changed on your RC vehicle.
However, just because you can go that fast doesn’t mean that you should, so make sure that you gradually get used to the faster speeds so you don’t end up destroying your RC car or injuring someone by running into them!
We will go into more detail about each of these items in the rest of this article. They are traditionally simple to do and easy to follow, but if you are having problems, don’t hesitate to ask for help from a professional. Also, each of these can be applied to almost all brands of RC cars, without spending a fortune doing it.
To learn some additional ways besides the ones listed below you can check out this video if you would like.
Without further ado, let’s jump into the best tips and tricks to make your Redcat (or other brand) RC car faster.
Upgrade the motor of your RC car
There are various forms of motors that can be used to power your Redcat RC car. Thanks to these motors, you can enjoy high acceleration and good top speeds, making it one of the first aspects of your car that you need to upgrade when trying to increase that speed. Upgrading the engine of the RC car is key to unlocking faster speeds.
First, you should find out what type of motor that your RC car uses. Each type of engine has different ways that you upgrade it. For instance, for brushed motors, it may be time to upgrade your motor to the brushless types. Brushed motors are commonly viewed as the motors used by beginners and that is because they are cheaper and also slower.
Therefore, if you are hoping to achieve faster speeds, it is time to upgrade to the next best thing, brushless motors.
Brushless motors have significant advantages over brushed motors. They are considerably more energy-efficient, powerful and, therefore, faster than brushed motors. On the other hand, you have brushed motors that utilize energy to generate speed, but they lose additional energy through friction.
All of these point to the fact that brushless motors are faster than their brushed counterparts, but they do have their drawbacks. One of these drawbacks is that brushless motors are typically harder to drive and navigate (because of the increased speed), making them not a very suitable option for beginners. Also, they sometimes are not as responsive, especially with their suspensions.
Plus, they have to be maintained regularly and are more expensive.
If you are committed to getting faster speeds, just bear in mind that brushless motors come at a higher cost. Try searching for deals online for a brushless motor (such as here) or you can even try finding a few on sale at your local hobby store.
Swap out your tires
Some tires are more suited for a particular terrain and if you are using the wrong set of tires when driving across a specific terrain, you will start to experience reduced speeds and performance. To prevent this and enjoy faster speeds, you must remember which tires you should use on a particular terrain.
For example, when you are driving across mud or a wet and slippery lawn, you will want to use full spikes. They can have an excellent grip on the ground and stop slippage from happening, leading to better speeds. In contrast, when you are using your Redcat RC car on the road, try using slick tires for better performance.
This is necessary to achieve the speeds that you want for your RC car.
Also, remember that you shouldn’t purchase and try to use cheaper tires. Try to spend the extra money to buy tires that will last you a long time, which also will help to maintain excellent traction on the terrain as you go around bends and corners. Spending the extra bucks may seem like not the best option for you, but it is a sure way to enjoy faster speed for a longer time.
Another advantage of purchasing premium tires instead of cheap ones is that you will get lower costs in maintenance as your RC car will not sustain as many bumps and hits when going around sharp bends and corners. Premium tires offer superb traction to prevent this from happening.
Swap old batteries for better ones.
Many older models of RC cars can come with NiMH batteries, and this is often where the problem lies. NiMH battery packs are slower when compared to the newer, lighter and more powerful LiPo batteries. However, despite its perks and advantages, there are some disadvantages to the LiPo batteries that you should know as well before changing
- They are more expensive. So be prepared to pay more money when purchasing these type of batteries
- Many people have reported that they are challenging to use. If you find yourself in a pickle as well, then try to consult with someone more trained in this area.
- To be used properly, they require the correct charger to make sure they don’t overcharge and catch fire. .
Before you may make a purchase, ensure that you consult with a professional or a manual to make sure that you are selecting the right battery pack for your RC car.
But what if you already have LiPo batteries? You can still upgrade that battery set as well. If you have a 2-cell battery, then try upgrading to a 3-cell as these will normally deliver more energy and power. However, since it is a 3-cell, it is heavier than the 2-cell, which can slightly decrease the speeds of your Redcat car but it shouldn’t decrease it more than the extra power it provides so it should offer a net increase.
Due to the amount of raw power that upgraded batteries will deliver to the car, the car may become more challenging to drive and navigate. Therefore, it is recommended that you try to learn to drive your car and practice with the new battery pack before attempting to race it or use it around a lot of people.
Decrease your RC car’s weight
It is a simple fact that lighter objects can go faster than their heavier counterparts. Therefore, to attain higher speeds, you will want to reduce the overall weight of your Redcat RC car.
How do you do this?
You can lower the weight without losing any of the form or function of the vehicle by swapping out heavier components of the car for lighter ones. Many components of an RC car can be purchased that are made up of lighter materials.. These include aluminum, light carbon and graphite.
Each component that you swap out for a lighter one will likely not make a huge weight difference but combined they can make a large difference not only in the weigh but also in increased acceleration and speed.
Taking the action of changing one or two of your heaviest components for lighter alternatives can make a world of difference. Also, you can tie this in with the previously mentioned step of swapping out the older NiMH batteries for the lighter and more powerful LiPo batteries. This will definitely lower the weight of your Redcat RC car and boost your speeds.
You can search online and at your local stores for lighter components for your car. Just make sure that you consult with the manual of your Redcat car, and make sure that the parts are compatible with the car. Also, try to ask for help from trained professionals if you are not sure how to install the components into the car.
In conclusion
You may be looking for new ways to make your Redcat RC car (or any other brand) go faster, and hopefully this article has been helpful to you in trying to accomplish this worthy feat. By applying one, some, or all of these tactics, you will be able to enjoy a better and more exhilarating experience as your car is driving faster.
If you do happen to have any issues when trying to do this you shouldn’t hesitate to speak with a professional who is trained in this area or simply ask for help at your local hobby shop.