the stage 2 motors work pretty well. I'm actually pleased with my xmods, but cleaning out the bearings, wheels and chassis in general on a regular basis is a must.
It does not matter what you do, these cars are too light for FWD, and the weight bias is towards the rear. If you have a Civic or RSX, it's fun for authenticity and novelty value alone, it handles and launches a lot more like an FWD car.
When you first hit reverse on the XMODS, it brakes, and with RWD you can't really tell that it's braking, but it's connecting the motor with a resistor or something, and it really does slow the car down. With FWD and AWD, this is more noticeable because of the wieght transfer to the front wheels, so with FWD, the braking will work better.
With enough speed and the right suspension and tire setup, on the right surface you can get brake oversteer while cornering with FWD. You won't really "drift" but you can attack corners a little harder than you could without oversteer. Just look out for the gross understeer that will happen once you goose the throttle again