How to Make a Tamiya Car Faster

Electric Powered Cars and Trucks

• 1

  Purchase a larger toothed pinion gear to replace the original sized pinion found on the electric motor to increase the vehicles top speed. All of Tamiya's 1/12, 1/10 and 1/8th scale remote control vehicles utilize a 48-pitch pinion gear.

• 2

  Use a 1.5mm hex wrench to loosen the setscrew located on the collar of the pinion gear. Remove the old pinion gear from the electric motor.

• 3

  Use an appropriate sized hex wrench to loosen the electric motors mounting screws slightly to allow the electric motor to slide within the motor mount slots. This will allow for enough room between the motor shaft and the spur gear when installing the larger pinion.

• 4

  Install the new pinion gear on the electric motor and tighten the pinion's setscrew using the 1.5mm hex wrench while lining up the pinion evenly with the spur gear. Slide the electric motor towards the spur gear ensuring proper mesh between the spur and pinion gear before tightening the two motor mount screws.

• 5

  Replace the original electric motor with a modified version either from Tamiya or an aftermarket supplier. Install the modified electric motor according to the assembly instructions that came with your Tamiya vehicle.

• 6

  Purchase lightweight high performance chassis parts from Tamiya. High performance replacement parts include aluminum engine mounts, shock towers and screw sets, as well as high strength titanium drive shaft components, and will increase the vehicles speed and responsiveness.

• 7

  Purchase a high performance "matched cell" battery pack to use with your Tamiya vehicle. These "matched cell" battery packs deliver the maximum amount of voltage and amperage to the electric motor, allowing the vehicle to run as fast as possible.

Nitro Powered Cars and Trucks

• 8

  Run the nitro powered Tamiya remote control car with a higher blend of nitromethane. Blends of nitromethane R/C car fuel range from 10 percent to 40 percent.

• 9

  Purchase and install a tuned exhaust pipe available from Tamiya or an aftermarket supplier. These specially designed exhaust pipes will increase the power potential of the nitro R/C engine, which will increase the vehicle's speed.

• 10

  Replace the nitro engines centrifugal clutch with a high performance unit available from Tamiya or an aftermarket source. Purchase a larger toothed Clutch bell to change the gearing ratio, which will increase the speed of the vehicle.

• 11

  Take advantage of any lightweight carbon fiber, aluminum and titanium chassis as well as drivetrain hop-up parts available from Tamiya. Much like the electric powered R/C vehicles, these weight-reducing components will afford the same speed and versatility for the nitro-powered versions.