My worst Ebay purchase!

[Throttle]

I bought an HPI RS4 and I literally had to start over. This car had broken,bent and hacked parts all over it. This was all plastic when I started. I changed almost every part except for the shocks and radio tray. I also needed an engine mount due to the hack job that was done on it. Well, after a month of shopping and working on it here are some pics. I suck at painting, so I did my best. My son picked out the color who is six and now I just need to mount the engine and electronics and she will be good to go. I am worried about the front turnbuckles because they were so cheap. I also changed the way the turnbuckles mount on the rear of the car. Well enough ranting here it is:

 

[Candyman]

Well damn. It's right purty now. Too bad you had to go through the whole thing when you got it. That kinda sucks!

 

[Throttle]

Thanks Candyman, it was a good learning experience. Next time I buy off of Ebay,I will tell the seller to send some close up pics. I didn't,I trusted the person and that was my fault. I just hope the weather holds and I can run it a little in the next day or so.

 

[jon2]

I have learned personally how bad it is not to check your rides before selling it. I almost lost a friend due to it. Glad you got through your bad ordeal.

 

[Throttle]

Thanks Jon2 for your input. I thought I was only going to spend $150.00 to $200.00 max because it is a parking lot basher but every time I went to do something on the car,I would have to replace it. Now I'm at $500.00 and my wife thinks I spent $160.00. I guess I will have to keep this ride for a longggggg time.

 

[NCNitro]

That sucks that you got burnt, but it sure looks nice now!

 

[Throttle]

Thanks NCnitro,now I need to figure out how to setup the suspension. Any thoughts?

 

[NCNitro]

I'm still trying to figure out my RS4 3, lol. But adding the carbon fiber upper deck and a sway bar kit helped mine tremendously.

 

[RatzoRC]

I trusted the person and that was my fault.

It wasn't your fault bro.
It's a shame that this is how we have to think these days, but I guess you can't trust anyone.
This is whats f***ing up ebay, and the people that use it.

Glad you got it back together, and sorry that you had to put so much $$ into it.

 

[Buggyracer28]

Sorry you had to go through all that... That has happened to me MANY times, including my first car. BUT, you made it look BADASS now! go have fun with it!

 

[Throttle]

Thanks guys. But now I'm trying to figure out the suspension setup so I can just go and get in a few runs without making any major adjustments. I guess I better explain why I bought the car. I love 1:1 cars but can't afford to play with the big toys. Family first. I don't know anyone else who runs cars so it's just me and the parking lot. I only get a few hours to run the car. My kids love my truck and buggy but the car is boring if I can't jump it or flip it. So I go alone and with limited time I want to make the best of it.

Any thoughts on how to get a good ballpark setup on the front and rear end so I dont have to do so much adjusting while out running? Like maybe what hole locations everyone is using? Thanks

 

[jon2]

can't remember but does your ride have droop screws? I played with my droop screws, shock oil and different foams. Is the area you run on groomed or at least debris free?Flat? Dirt and uneven ground wreak havoc on controlling your ride.

 

[Throttle]

What are droop screws?

 

[jon2]

Suspension tweaks

I found this and it helped me on my old NTC3. Not sure if it applies to your ride particularly though.

 

[Throttle]

Thanks Jon2,I will read that and any other suspension tweaks I can find.

 

[Monkey Wrench]

Wow Scotthg1, that is one awesome job on that rig! I wish I had better access to an area to run a street car, I'd love to try one!

 

[Throttle]

Thanks Monkey Wrench. I had an ntc3 about a year ago and sold it. It had an mt-12 and it moved. I bought the car because it had an mt-12 but didn't know of all the other issues. I just hope the engine is fine. It seems to have great compression. On that note,I go to start it today and my bump box battery crapped out on me. So I ran to the LHS and now it's charging. Hopefully tomorrow I can get it fired up and get it ready for some bashing at my old high school. They resurfaced the lots two years ago and it is huge.

I can't wait.

 

[Throttle]

Today I fired up the car and I'm having issues keeping it cool. It's running at about 285. So I did some troubleshooting and I pulled the flywheel off and found a chunk of metal missing from the front main bearing seal. The hits just keep coming with this car. Anyway,I'm wondering if anyone has ever repaired the front bearing seal without replacing the bearing? Anyone?

 

[jon2]

I would replace it altogether. The Main bearing should be perfect. if it allows the crank shaft to spin out of center it can destroy your engine. I would replace it.

 

[Throttle]

I'm not sure how much a new installed bearing will be for an mt-12 is but I might just purchase a new cheap engine and be done with it. I will have to see the cost from my LHS.