I'm coming back just this once to help with the steering....

[charliebrown]

Well, I know I promised to leave, but I talked to someone (MadScott) and he gave me a pretty good lecture about how to fix the ZipZaps SE Steering. See, people have been getting 3-6 steps to the right in the propo steering, but only 1-2 steps to the left. I asked him how to fix it, and he gave me all the information that I am going to copy and paste.

"Make sure your car and transmitter are off. You start by removing the receiver/controller. It's two screws. One by the antenna and one towards the front. You can then slide the receiver forward and lift it up out of the way. There are several wires underneath, but I haven't had any problem with them breaking or anything. This exposes the steering box for the servo. There are two screws to remove to lift the top off. The two screws for the steering box are different from the the ones on the receiver. Be sure to keep track of which one is which. Becareful when doing this as the springs for the front suspension are easty to lose. You can remove the front wheel/knuck assemblies and suspension springs. Try to keep the springs on the knuckles. It will help you from losing them.

Now you can see the steering pot. It has three wires solder to it. The wire colors are green, blue and yellow. I've seen two different configurations. One has the green and blue wires soldered together on the middle pin of the pot and the yellow is on the pin on the drivers side of the car. The configuration has the green wire on the passenger side pin, the blue wire on the middle pin and the yellow wire on the drivers side, also there is a small jumper wire between the blue and the green wires.

If you have the first configuration, you have to un solder the blue and green wires to separate them from each other and the middle pin. Then you solder the blue back to the middle and the green to the passenger side pin.

If you have the second configuration, all you have to do is cut the jumper wire. I found using an exacto knife works fine. Once it is cut, bend the jumper wire a little to separate where they connected.

Nothing has to be done to the yellow wire/pin. Look at the position of the pot, it maybe rotated so that the yellow wire is kinda sunk down into the chassis. You can use the steering adjust screw underneath the car to rotate to pot around if you need better access to the pins.

The next step is to remove the steering arm or rack. It's flat white piece under the servo gear. It's kind of difficult to get out. Becareful and take your time with this.

Once it's out, you can then turn on the car and the transmitter. The servo should move a little as it adjusts back to a center positioning. After further testing I found it wasn't necessary to really find an electrical center on the pot. You can adjust the pot so the bluewire is kind of center. Turn the steering wheel left and right and the servo should move. You should also find that there is no stutter in the middle position. Also, try to get the steering trim on the transmitter back to a center position. I found when it is centered, there is a small dead spot when you slowly move the steering wheel left and right from center. You'll see that you can actually turn it jus a tiny bit either way before the servo will start to move. Also, you should have an equal number of steps both left and right, usually somewhere betwee 5 or 6 steps. If you have more on one side and less on the other, the steering trim on the transmitter is not centered. When it is, you'll have equal steps to each side.

Once all of this done, you can now put the steering arm or rack back in place. Again do this carefully. You also want to have it as close to center when you install it back in place. If the servo moves when putting it in, then you have to remove it, turn the car and transmitter back on to allow the servo to adjust back and then try again. It takes a few tries to get it all right. Once it's back in and fairly centered when the car and transmitter are on and the steering wheel on the transmitter are centered, you should be able to see the steering arrm move 4 to 5 steps in either direction.

Now you can reassemble everthing. Install the steering knukle/wheel assemblies. Ensure the springs are on. Place the steering lid back on and reattach with the screws. Then reattach the receiver. Now you make final adjustments to the steering. Do not use the steering trim on the transmitter. Instead use the screw underneath and continue adjusting it until the car is tracking straight when the steering wheel is centered. You should have equal steering on both sides now and it should track fairly straight when you let go of the wheel, a little correction may be required, but you should find it's much smoother to drive now and much more responsive.

I found that the steering rack can be trimmed a little. when it's installed and you turn the wheel, you can see where the rack hits the mounts for the knuckles. This is to allow oversteer. By trimming the rack down just a little on each side, you can allow a little further travel in the steering. This isn't necessary to do, just a preference for me. If you do this, it's best to do it and experiment with it while you are working on reinstalling it and centering the servo. If you do this, be careful not to trim too much off. If you do, then the wheels will hit the chassis when turning and cause the car to almost stop.

I've done 3 cars now, all with the same results and I really like the way they drive. If you feel unconfortable doing any part of this, then I suggest you don't try it. The newer Savanna's and Efini's seem to be much better now than what they were. I think radio shack is starting to solve the problems. The steering is equal and the stuttering is much less noticeable. Anyway, good luck and feel free to ask any questions."

Thank you VERY much MadScott, this helps out a TON. And I'm sure the people on this board will appreciate it too.

-Charlie Brown

[Racer9]

Thanks! Now if only I could get it to charge....

[charliebrown]

Originally posted by Racer9
Thanks! Now if only I could get it to charge....

Try using higher capacity NiMH AAA batteries in the controller.

HERE are high capacity RadioShack batteries with a cool charger, and HERE are the batteries I used.....got 2 minutes of runtime..

Wait, if you're having charging problems, Open up the car and see if any wires are disconnected. Also, lookHERE at the first question, you can get replacement batteries.

[potentiality]

Thanks Charlie Brown!

There are two screws to remove to lift the top off. The two screws for the steering box are different from the the ones on the receiver. Be sure to keep track of which one is which

Anyhow I would add that it might help to loosen the additional two screws that hold the servo housing together after getting the top off the servo (one is indented into a hole a little). This will help when you try to remove and reinstall the steering bracket That way you can move the whole assembly up easier versus trying to gently bend/pry the chassis to get the bracket out.

[charliebrown]

Well, at least it was helpful to 2 people......

Chuckster...

[Nathan]

That worked pretty well. The steering just works best with the trim centered.

[Sniper596]

is there a third configuration because i only have the blue and yellow wires, no green one. The blue is in the middle and the yellow is at the drivers side.

[charliebrown]

Originally posted by Sniper596
is there a third configuration because i only have the blue and yellow wires, no green one. The blue is in the middle and the yellow is at the drivers side.

Then they may have already taken this into their hands and tried to fix it....how does it steer?

Chuckster...

[Sniper596]

Originally posted by Sniper596
is there a third configuration because i only have the blue and yellow wires, no green one. The blue is in the middle and the yellow is at the drivers side.

It has the problems with the left side having 1-2 positions while the right having 4-5 positions.

[charliebrown]

Originally posted by Sniper596
It has the problems with the left side having 1-2 positions while the right having 4-5 positions.

Hmm....well, you may want to exchange it for an Enfini RX-7, but I wouldn't suggest getting the Savanna. I heard THAT only has 2 wires going to the potentiometer.....if that's how you spell it...

Chuckster...

[Sniper596]

Originally posted by charliebrown
Hmm....well, you may want to exchange it for an Enfini RX-7, but I wouldn't suggest getting the Savanna. I heard THAT only has 2 wires going to the potentiometer.....if that's how you spell it...

Chuckster...

well actually i have both of those cars. The Savana is the one i opened up. I'm opening up the Enfini as we speak . See if i can fix at least one (crosses fingers).

Btw, i have found your article very useful, hell it got me rehooked .

[charliebrown]

Originally posted by Sniper596
well actually i have both of those cars. The Savana is the one i opened up. I'm opening up the Enfini as we speak . See if i can fix at least one (crosses fingers).

Btw, i have found your article very useful, hell it got me rehooked .

article? You mean the steering fix or the Xmods guide? Thanks, I like when people appreciate my work and effort....*winks at RedRSX*

Chuckster...

[Sniper596]

Originally posted by charliebrown
article? You mean the steering fix or the Xmods guide? Thanks, I like when people appreciate my work and effort....*winks at RedRSX*

Chuckster...

I'm talking about this article right now, it's got alot of details which i like.

Alright i opened up the enfini, the blue wire was not connected to the pot yellow was on drivers side (far left), green was on passenger (far right side). Is this correct then?

[charliebrown]

Was there a blue wire at all? If so, maybe this mod can't be done on those cars....

Chuckster...

[Sniper596]

yah the blue wire was there, it just wasnt connected to the pot like the yellow and green ones were.