Twitchy mini-Z, part 3

Radio Control Car Action, Aug 2002 by Gonzalez, George M

Q TWITCHY MINI-Z, PART 2

Please help; I have a twitchy Kyosho Mini-Z. The steering twitches whether the car is moving or not. I have installed new batteries in the car and transmitter, and I also checked all the wires for loose connections; but everything checks out. Do you have any advice? [e-mail] Brian A You did a good job of starting the troubleshooting process by installing new batteries in the car and transmitter and checking all toy wires for loose connection and fraying. You can continue the process with a system of elimination; here are some other things to look at. Try a different set of frequency crystals; the crystal installed in the car is delicate and might have been damaged by the shock from a crash. And for the same reason, if you've ever dropped the transmitter, you might also try using a different radio. Another factor to consider is that a worn-out or damaged motor can cause radio interference even when it isn't running, so the next logical step is to replace the motor. Rather than shelling out money to buy new components, first ask your local hobby shop to plug the new parts into your car so that you can test your RC system before you buy. It you do that, you'll only have to buy the part that you need.

If your glitching persists even after you've completed these checks, there's a good chance that your car's ESC/receiver has been damaged and should be replaced. Kyosho offers an RC unit set (item no. MZ-8) that contains an ESC/receiver and a steering servo.