Tamiya Rally Beetle Project

Page 2: Upgrades!

Yeah Racing has a nice aluminum upgrade kit that changes out most of the suspension parts so I picked one up. You can see how many parts were in the box. This does not merely change plastic parts to equivalent aluminum versions, it also move the outer suspension pivot point outboard without changing the wheelbase. More on that below. I also had a set of oil filled CVA shocks of the right size removed from another model so took the opportunity to swap out the horrible friction dampers.

Here is a comparison of the front suspension before and after. Look at how short the upper arms were, for example. On the lower arms, you can see the new pivot point which will be inside the wheel. There are also CVD axles for good measure. Less obvious are the oil shocks which look a lot like the stock unit but sure perform a lot better.

Now the rear suspension. We made basically the same changes as the front. The upper arms are now turnbuckles. There is also now a stiffening rod between the right and left body mounts which helps support the upper arms.

From above the changes may not be all that apparent, but from below the aluminum gleams. The blue anodizing also looks good with the body coloring. You can see the toe in on the rear wheels which is fixed by the suspension geometry. Front toe can be adjusted with the steering turnbuckles. Camber is adjustable on all four corners.

Here are all the parts which were replaced. The friction dampers will go in the bin but I'll keep the springs in case I need them on another project. I'll store the rest of the spare parts for now in case I break something.

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