V12-CE SETUP MANUAL
Once you have run any set of tyres,
store them in an airtight container
or bag. This increases their life
by not allowing them to ‘dry out’
between meetings. It is also a
good strategy if you ever run your
car at a club that does not allow
the use of additive – there is usu-
ally enough left in your tyres from
the last meeting when you did use
additive to see you through the
first couple of rounds at the non-
additive club when grip is likely to
be lower.
After every race, check that your
tyres have not started to come
unstuck from the rims. Even the
smallest unstuck area will encour-
age grip roll. Use either EvoStick
or Super Glue to re-attach the tyre
to the rim.
Lastly, it is vital to round off the in-
side and outside edges of all tyres.
This will help prevent the outer
edge ‘rolling under’ during heavy
cornering. Grip roll is likely if this
ever happens.
FRONT SUSPENSION:
Since this is such a simple system
it requires very little work done on
it. However, since the steering
system is so direct, the work you do
need to do is extremely important.
Make sure each part moves com-
pletely freely and there is no stick-
ing or binding. If anything feels
stiff, disassemble, clean and
re-assemble. Check that kingpins
are not bent, that track rods have
not been knocked out of align-
ment, that ball cups have not got
grit in them or have too much play
and that bearings rotate freely.
REAR SUSPENSION:
Again, very simple, but very im-
portant too. The front ball joint can
gather dust and get stiff. Remove
the ball from time to time and
clean. Taking the ball in and out
too many times though causes the
cup to wear and the ball can then
be easily knocked out during a
race. If this happens, replace the
pod plate straight away. Use the
rear spring nuts to adjust your ride
height and chassis tweak (more
on that in a moment).
As the rear tyres wear down you
will have to change the spring
tension again (or change the axel
bearing cams if you have the ad-
justable alloy pod). Always leave
at least 1.2mm clearance between
the bottom of the rear pod and the
top of the chassis when the car
is resting at its given ride height.
Less than this and the pod will hit
the chassis as the rear suspen-
sion compresses in the corners,
leading to poor handling.
DIFF:
This must run smoothly. Do not
over tighten the diff side wheel
nut as this will cause the diff to
bind, back it off about ½ a turn
and this should be about right. It
is also wise to run a 5mm drill bit
through the rear wheel axel holes
so that the diff axle can rotate
freely in it. If the diff feels gritty,
take it all apart and clean every-
thing (except the thrust race) in
motor cleaner, paying particular
attention to the insides of the ball
holes in the spur gear. Diff plates
can be lightly sanded to remove
the ball-ring and to scuff the sur-
face slightly. Re-assemble with
just the lightest possible smear
of silicone diff grease on the balls
(but none on the diff plates).
Tighten the adjustor nut extreme-
ly gently and by very, very small
increments.
The best way to check the diff
tension is to get the car on the
track (with rear tyres fully ad-
ditived but dry) and accelerate
HARD from a standstill. If the
diff slips, tighten it. If it does not
slip, back the nut off until it does,
and then tighten it a bit. Once
set, the diffs can run for weeks,
or even months, without the need
for adjustment.
RIDE HEIGHT:
Mardaves run at their best when
about 3.0 - 3.5mm off the deck.
You will need to keep on top of this
as tyres wear down, so be pre-
pared to add/remove shims from
under the wishbones to change the
front ride height and change the
rear spring tensions (or rear axle
cams) to set the rear ride height.
1.0mm spacer fitted under
whish bones
Ride Height Spacers – 0.5, 1.0
and 1.5mm.
