So, I've fitted all the extras I was told to stop the RR from braking every time I used it and so has my mate, front alloy brace, droop adjustment screws and set them and the extra long turnbuckles.

First time my mate runs his car at a track (Novarossi raceway) he lands off a small jump and the front shock f o r k snaps!! I suppose now we need alloy forks all round? I'm just going to put my Race Runner on a shelf and go back to the HPI baja 5b

£1,000 worth of crap!!!

Hi Cabbie,

i have had a look a pictures and movies from novarossi raceway and it seems to me that it is especially build for nitro cars with lots of jumps following eachother.
Don't know how you drove the mcd but with so many jumps it could easily be that the shock **** was already damaged by an earlier jump.
MCD is not a Baja 5b -which is known for its jumping abilitys- but it can take a beating depending on how the jumps are made. Stevo has a vid out from him driving his mcd and jumping it for more or less 10 meters time after time. Can't find it for the moment. Mcd doesn't take high and short jumps, it will break, but it can take long low jumps. I don't know if you understand what i mean but this is the best way i can explain in my bad english.
The baja 5b will be better at that track.
If the mcd is used for what it is meant it is a great car.
Hope this helps you out a bit and you will still be driving the mcd instead of making it a shelf queen.

Marc.

found the vid, jumping from the table for lots of air time:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFmzi5Y86cs&fmt=18

So this Race Runner can ONLY be used on flatish tracks then? but I thought it was an OFF ROAD RC car.

Bottom line here is: MCD sell a weak car with many faults and you have to spend a load of money trying to get it to run for more than 6 minutes without snapping some thing.

As I said, it's CRAP.

Whats the point of spending all this dosh when a cheap HPI baja will out last it in a race?

I've talked to a few guys that attend 1/5th scale tracks and they all say out of the 8 or so MCD's that start a race 70% don't finish due to mechanical failure!!

Keep an eye on eBay cause the next time my Race Runner goes pop it's up for sale.

Cabbie , racerunners are a bit like a lotus cars loads of trouble but in the right hands good for racing ,
most people tend to put them in there boot when they break and not say anything and bring them back fixed the next week ,
they have a "cult" following and dont like there cars being called,
looking at some race reports the SS baja is good for bashing and racing .

I will keep an eye on ebay

I have seen MCD's going, i got to admit there much better at handling than the baja and look prettier, but for all round bashing and jumping, the hpi baja is the best, but you got to remember that the same problems can happen to the hpi too. I have seen many shocks broken and a-arms snapped.

So each car has there pro's n con's. Its all about personal preference, i have said many-a-times that the MCD is poo. But thats my personal opinion, i recon when i eventually get down to a track all the MCD's will be kicking my butt, lol.

yes i have to agree with baja j here, also the racerunner is a race car not a bash car for this the hpi is better i have to agree but if you drive the mcd properly then its a good car some people like them some dont,
just one of them things, regarding shock forks they do break all the time when you have a bad landing, i think its a good thing as if they didnt break somthing else would, alloy forks are for bling not for bashing they tend to snap all the same, cabbie i dont think this car is for you mate it might be better to go back to a hpi baja as it doesnt sound like your happy, but the track you race on is not designed for the racerunner and the brca wont have races there as the track is to hard on cars not just mcd, i can have any car i like as i am sponcerd so if i thought the racerunner was crap i wouldnt race one, anyway m8 hope you sort it out or sell it and go back to a hpi it sounds like it would be better for that track

just one more thing cabbie if you have the sport version with the short shock tower, this car is not designed to be jumped due to the ltd shock travel on the front so if you do have a bad landing it will stress the shock as there is not enough shock travel, this is why there is a long travel shock kit for the front which comes wih the competition model, the short shocks are designed for better sterring responce on flatish offroad tracks, i understand your frustration as i have had problems with my car but i also know people who have never had problems its all down to the way people drive, i mean since i have calmed down with my driving i harldy ever break anything, and i am actually going faster by being more smooth, the thing is with the racerunner is you can drive it more aggessivley due to the increased amount of grip due to 4wd so people tend to push the car harder through corners etc it might seem like your going faster but in actual fact your not, i have learned this racing,as when i am smoother and not sliding the car everywhere i am actually quicker, i might seem like am going on here but i am not trying to sell the car to you i just knw what its capable off when i race, hope you get it sorted m8 but if your driving style is aggresive or you jump the car alot like at the noverossi track then i suggest you go back to the hpi baja as thats what that car was designed for to jump as baja j said. hope you get it sorted m8

you guys are getting this wrong, my mate raced at Novarossi and snapped his shock f o r k.

All I've ever done is drive on flat ground!!

Here's my grudge, and remember I haven't jumped this car only run on flat ground.

I pay £800 for an off road 1/5th 4DW car, I'm told it's "ready to run"

First I snap an axle just driving on flat ground.

Then I find out after damaging a lower arm it should have droop adjustment screws, why are they not fitted at the factory? I purchase 6mm grub screws and new lower arm.

Next the turnbuckle pulls though the upper arm so I purchase King Cobra extended turnbuckles and a new upper arm (MCD must know their turnbuckles are too short if longer items are being made)

Then I'm told the front bulkhead needs an alloy brace as it's weak so I add this to all the other parts

And now I need the extended front shock assembly to jump!!!

Price for shocks and extended mount please Stevo?

Now I've had this car for 4 month and not finished a tank of fuel yet due to mechanical failure and only run it on a flat piece of grassland, if you think that's acceptable then OK but I think it's total bollox, what if a guy purchases this kit and it's all the money he has to spend on it? he'll be left with a broken car and no way of fixing it.

yes i agree cabbie with what your saying but you have been unlucky with this car for some reason
i see lots of other cars that dont have problems but i see some that do, rather than buying more parts for it sell the car as its clear your not happy with it, i mean i can sell you the long travel shock kit which is better for doing jumps etc but it wont stop the car from breaking if it has a bad landing, the compettion model comes with all the upgrades you have bought already the sport version is a cheaper alternative and is a stepping stone its still a good car and i see plenty that are fine on the track, regarding the droop screws yes they should be included and will now be included with everycar as i am now told as mcd was not aware of the problem but they are now, i have had a rear axle snap on me at the weekend and it was brand new, mcd knows there are axles out there that are not up to scratch, in which they they will be replaced,
a shock **** is not really that bad as its better for that part to go than anything more expensive and it doesnt take long to change, i dont think anything i say to you or sell you will make you happy with the car, in this case my best advice is to sell it and buy a hpi, they to stil break but in different ways but they are a more hardy car to bash with, like i say i have problems with my car but i carry spares with me to fix it but i can see your point about spending so much money

good point about the poor modeller.that wud be me
i see your point and i think anyone wud be pssd at those issues.
i think any further problems would only make you hate it more.
if it were me i would sell and buy whats givin you the most fun.
goodluck

A large pecentage of LS cars fail to finish most races with out a minor problem, be it HPI Baja, MCD, Hormann etc.... 30 minute finals really test all large scale cars.

also you cant drive a hpi baja as hard as an mcd it just cant be done as you spin out all the time but if drove calmly they can be very quick just as the mcds can be quick, my point is they break more as people drive them to the limit as they produce lots of grip

Another point to raise is only a very small amount of the cars on this forum are raced at BRCA level so about 95% are used for bashing on open fields etc so i view of that the racerunner would not be the best choice .

Cabbie, Know exactly how you feel mate. There was some tough lessons to be learned swapping over from my Baja 5b to an MCD when racing on the track and in fact within the first 20 meters of putting my new car on the track I had busted a wheel, a rose joint and punched in my bumper from trying to take a jump the same way as I did with my Baja. Lesson learned. During the months following I had my fair share of breakdowns so began to adjust my driving style and upgrade parts accordingly. Im still breaking down in at least one of the 4 heats during race days but this is because the track is not suited to this car. Its more like a motocross track and this is where the Baja's shine. Even though there only 2WD there very competitive as they can take the jumps a lot harder than I can and in my opinion are far more resilient to crashes than my MCD so can typically continue racing after a bad crash which if it had of been me would have taken me out of the race.

I think its crappy of MCD to release the EVO3 without realising the need to use and properly adjust the droop set screws to prevent shock tear outs as well as the fact I also believe the new arm design is not as tough as the older version provided stronger rose joints were used but the good news we are all now aware of the issue and I have not had a tear out since (broke 4 arms this way before realising what the problem was) and MCD did look after me in terms of replacements after I raised the issue with them.

But with all of that I still prefer my MCD to the Baja. Much easier to work on and maintain and great handling are two of the things that continue to impress.

Heres a pic of the track I race at. How does the novarossi track compare?

thats a crackin vebue there mate.where is it?

australia i think lol

It can't be England, the sun's out

LOL you guys crack me up. Don't let that sun deceive you. Just cos its out doesn't mean its warm. The first pic was taken just as I was setting up around 7:30am and was tea cake' freezing let me tell you.....

As Stevo said the track is located in Melbourne, Australia in a suburb (now your gonna love this) callled Sunshine. Any of you gents ever down this way let me know and we will hook up for a beer.

EDIT: Ha cannot say f.r.i.c.k.n'. Magically turns into "tea cake"

hmmm should ave guessed it was abroad.that much land here and its built on or polluted
freezin? we invented that word.lol

I can live with "tea cake freezin' " as long as the sun's out