great range
 

after having my sons car (49 mhz) go futher than mine (27 mhz)
i got up set and added a new anntena to the car help got about five feet inside. i still was unsatisfied so i went to the shack and got a cordless phone antenna for the charger its like 36 " long closed it is as long as stock fully extended it was real easy five screws and thats it heres how

undo four on back of controler one is in batt compartment then open up and remove the little screw threw the antennas base thatis it the only problem you might encounter is if the antenna has the round bottom youll have to grind it square easy done
after that i easily had thrity feet inside and well over fifty feet out side and best of all it cost 4 bucks

do u have a picture of your controller now?

This is what I used...
 

I also did a similar mod and it extended my range to 40 feet (at least).
I bought it same time as my ZipZaps since I saw my friends range were very short (less than 10 feet).

RadioShack part#270-1416A
Cordless telephone antenna

Mine extends to about 22 3/4" total including the part inside the controller.

Photos will be here (second page): http://www.importcarworld.com/gallery/zip/index.htm

mods applied to both
 

I did do the mod to both 49mhz and 27mhz controllers both with great results.

Question for you guys that did this mod too.

Does your new antenna stick up from the controller instead of closing all the way down flush like the stock one?
My new antenna that I got from Radio Shack sticks up about 2 1/2" above the controller now.

Also: Did you have to modify the controller at all to get it to fit?
The antenna I bought was a bit thicker than the stock one so I had to cut the controller plastic a bit with a Dremel to get it to fit right.

After this mod I could get my car to move from much farther away but it still stutters and stops and starts. It's not a smooth controlled feeling.
I think I may still need to put a better antenna on my car. I'll have to try that too and see what my results are.

I used Radio Shack Part#: 270-1413A
24" extended.

same here...
 

I actually had to grind the base of the the antenna a little to fit it properly inside the controller. (bench grinder)

I used the part #270-1416A which is only a little more than 22".

I'll have to see what your part looks like.

I also did modify the plastic cover by slicing off a part to get the antenna some space to get into so I can still cover the charging base.

Additional: and my antenna sticks out about 8" out of the controller when fully retracted.

Yup.
I had to grind the bottom of the antenna a bit with a grinder as well.

I also had unscrewed the bottom part of the antenna (the elbow joint) and threw it away.

i kept mine...
 

I think the copper connection on the bottom gives me better contact to the antenna. I kept the bottom part and I think grinding it helped increase the connection.

:)

new part#
 

Radioshack part# 270-1401B is longer by 8" compared to the previous one I tested.

total extension 30.5".

Description: Replacement Telescoping antenna.

Doesn't specifically say cordless antenna but it is the same type as the others.

It's also easier to install since it has a smaller base compared to the other one. (less to grind)

i get good range inside but outside it isnt so good.

Re: i kept mine...
 

I'll be darned. Well I didn't put the bottom part back on but I did grind off the chrome off the bottom of my new controller antenna to expose the copper colored base metal.

This DID improve my range.
While I'm still not seeing 100' like some people I can get up to about 30' outside now and 15-20 inside depending on the room. At least I don't feel like I'm gonna lose contact with my car during a race around a decent sized indoor track now.

In total I've done the controller Antenna mod and the car antenna mod (replaced my stock car antenna with 8" of 1 conductor from a junked Cat 5 Ethernet cable) and I've got that antenna coming out of the front left fender (1/16" hole) like a car radio antenna.

would a blob of solder ontop of the tiny screw inside the controller that mounts the antenna improve the signal strength?
-SlackerZ

Antenna Mod
 

Previous poster, you can fill in around the antenna with a blob of hot glue.

Now, my question for the group. When I opened up my controller, a little metal rod 1/2" long fell out. I didn't see where it went, but suspect it has something to do with the antenna. Anybody know what this is and where to put it? Thanks

yeah that holds you handy dandy wrist strap

Uh....duh....yeah, I knew that...I was testin' ya. ;-) Thanks GZG!!! :-D