Car Tuning

Tuning your car can be the difference between winning and losing a close race. EV3 has multiple different ways to tune the performance of your car

Install/Upgrade Parts

The easiest way to increase performance is to install more parts. You can install engine, ignition, nitrous, turbo, tire, and transmission upgrades.

Modify Tire Pressure

Modifying tire pressure is crucial if you want to get the best reaction times and fastest elapsed times. Getting tire pressure dialed in will help your tires not spin which will make your car faster. The stock tires are not able to have their pressure modified, but the drag radials and all drag slick upgrades can be changed. When you install a set of tires you can adjust the front and rear tire pressures at any time. Although each car is different and it will depend on the power levels as well as your driving technique, a good rule of thumb is that drag slicks on the tires that are receiving the power like to be run at very low tire pressures. The exact number for each tire and car setup can be found with trial and error.

Adjust Wheelie Bar Height

If you have a rear-wheel drive car and have installed the wheelie bar you can adjust the height of the bar to improve performance. If you set the bar too low, the weight of the car can't shift it's weight to the rear tires and you may not have enough traction. If the bar is set too high, your car can use all of it's power trying to lift off the ground instead of going down the track. Like tire pressure, the perfect wheelie bar height will depend on driving style and what upgrades you have. It's important to understand that raising or lowering the tire pressure of your car will adjust the height of the wheelie bar, so each time you adjust your tire pressure you will want to adjust your wheelie bar as well.

Adjust Launch RPM

You are always in full control of the rpm you raise the throttle too when your car is staged. If you have the throttle raised too high, your car may make too much power and you'll spin the tires. If your rpm is too low, your engine may bog and take longer to get moving. In either case, your car will be slower. What rpm you launch at will depend on how much power your car has, which tires you have installed, and what the tire pressure is set too. You'll know you have the right launch rpm when your car leaves really fast and without spinning the tires.

Adjust How Quickly Your Apply Throttle

In addition to everything else, you have control over how fast or slow you apply the throttle. You can flick the throttle as fast as possible, you can apply it slowly, or choose an inbetween speed. Apply throttle too fast can cause the tires to spin, but apply the throttle too slowly can prevent your car from making lots of power. The key to applying the throttle is to be consistent so that you can adjust your tire pressure correctly.

Don't Tune Just One Area

As you're reading through the different ways to tune, you may notice that many areas overlap. For example in order to find a good rpm to launch from, you have to have your tire pressure set and determine how slowly or quickly you apply the throttle. To get the best run, you'll need to make changes to all areas and see what works best for your car. Each car is different, and so is every part setup. As you upgrade tires or install more parts to add power, you'll find yourself needing to adjust the tune on your car. Once your car is fully modified and you have found a tune that works best for you, you won't have to adjust anything else unless you just want to play around and experiment.

If you still can't quite get your car dialed in, or want to compare ideas, feel free to leave a post on our Facebook page. Many players compare tunes and exchange ideas, so don't be afraid to ask for help.