Even if you own an off-road vehicle, you must select your driving areas with care to keep your vehicle in good condition. Careless driving will cause trouble and possible damage to your car.
1. UNSUITABLE AND DIFFICULT DRIVING SURFACES
DRY RIVER BED
A dry riverbed where many large rocks are found is one of the worst places for driving an off-road vehicle. In 1/10th scale, even a stone with a 3-inch diameter is the equivalent to a 2-1/2 foot boulder to a full size vehicle. Driving against these objects is very destructive to your vehicle.
WATER AND PONDS
You may sometimes run into a puddle or two when running off-road. The radio control unit, motor, speed controller and batteries are very sensitive to moisture. Avoid running into standing water and heavy rain. A splash of water on the car is enough to damage the electronics.
GRASSLAND
Grasslands with tall grass and stems are bad for buggies because the grass can become entangled in the shafts and universal joints. This causes an unnecessary load on the motor, which can lead to overheating.
GRAVEL AND DRY SAND
These surfaces offer considerable resistance to your vehicle. They cause burden on the motor and use much more current. The vehicle will not move as fast on this type of terrain and loose dry sand, the tires can become buried and spin without moving the car.
ASPHALT AND LAWNS
High speed cornering on concrete, asphalt or smooth lawns can cause the vehicle to roll. Slow down a little when cornering on these surfaces.
2. JUMPS
Dynamic jumps are a part of off-road driving. However, you can damage your car if it is done recklessly. For 1/10th-scale cars, a jump height of only 10-inches has a scale height of over 8 feet. Special attention must be paid to jump correctly.
ENTER THE JUMP RAMP STRAIGHT
To obtain a stable attitude when jumping, you must leave the ramp squarely and not at an angle. If this is not done, the car will tend to tumble while in the air and will land off balance.
TO OBTAIN A GOOD LANDING ATTITUDE
A jump must be performed so that the car's rear wheels hit the ground first, in a level or slightly nose high attitude. To do this, it is important to apply enough power to the car when leaving the ramp. Applying too much power tends to raise the nose too much and not enough power causes the nose to drop and land on the front wheels. If power is slightly reduced when entering the ramp, the jump attitude should be good.
CONTROLLING THE CAR'S ATTITUDE IN THE AIR
While in the air, a car's attitude can be altered by adding or reducing power. Adding power will raise the nose, due to the torque reaction of the motor and wheels, while reducing power will lower the nose.
ACCELERATE WHEN ALL WHEELS ARE ON THE GROUND
Applying power before the car lands or when only the rear wheels have touched will make the car "wheelie" and be very unstable. Accelerate only when all four wheels are down.
KEEP JUMPS AS LOW AS POSSIBLE
Although they look great, high jumps are not advantageous during competition because the car cannot accelerate while in the air. It is recommended to keep the jump low and land quickly so time is not lost during the jump.
SUCCESSIVE JUMP RAMPS
Special planning and technique is required when going through successive ramp jumps. If the car jumps from the first ramp normally and lands on the following ramp, the landing will be very unstable. Do not jump the initial ramps, instead, reduce power and run over the ramps smoothly. Clear only the last ramp or two with a jump.
PASSING ON A PLATEAU OR TABLELANDS
Plateaus and tablelands are raised level surfaces between slopes. If the level surface is short enough to jump over, you can jump it like a regular ramp. If the top surface is fairly long, slightly reduce power and climb smoothly up to the level surface. Add power just before the down slope, leaping off to land on the rear wheels. This prevents the car from "nose-diving" and becoming unstable.
MAINTAINING OFF-ROAD CARS
Since off road cars and buggies are design to run mostly on dirt and often are run on these surfaces, dust is a major problem compared to on-road cars. Always completely clean your car after running it. Dust can be easily removed using brushes with stiff bristles. If the car was driven through loose ground or puddles ending up with mud all over the car, wipe off the mud from easy to reach areas using tissue paper or a rag and let the rest of the dirt dry off. When completely dried, mud will come off easily by brushing and chipping off with a screwdriver. For heavy mud clogs, remove the wheels and body for a thorough clean up. Remove all mechanics such as servos, receiver, speed controller and motor when washing with water to prevent water getting into the mechanics. After washing, completely wipe off moisture and thoroughly dry to prevent an rust and reapply oil and grease in the gearbox, shafts, bearings and other moving parts.
R/C CROSS-COUNTRY TRIAL
Enjoy the versatility of R/C cars in a natural environment. Try a cross-country run. Build an obstacle course using natural humps and bumps on the ground. Add ditches, stones and logs for more challenge. The winner can be determined by a point/penalty system. If the car finishes the course without any driving failure, no penalty is applied. If a car runs off course: backs up to correct a mistake or rolls over, points are deducted.