Body Characteristics

This will be a little writeup regarding handling characteristics of different bodys.

Body shape and weight has a big influence on the setup  of your car.

Body types/ Shape
We can split the body shapes inte a few different categories.

Cab placement:

• Cab forward. These bodies has the cab more over the front wheels. This results in a sharper handling car. More steering. Less rear grip.
• Cab rear. These bodies has the cab located near the rear wheels. This results in a less agressive car. Less steering. Turn in at lower speed. More rear grip.

Overhang:

• Large front overhang. Less turn in. The front end will tend to be overloaded, and the car will act sluggish.
• Little front overhang. More responsive steering. 
• Large rear overhang. Off throttle steering added.. This is caused by the added mass, and gives you a "swing" effect. On power steering will be reduced. Usually this gives you a stable car.
• Less rear overhang. Off power steering decreases. On power steering increases. This can give you a nervous car.

Center of gravity:

• High CG adds body roll. This will give you more mid corner steering, since the suspension will be loaded more. On low traction surfaces this can often be the way to go. 
• Low CG gives you less body roll. On high traction surfaces this is the correct setup. It will keep your car from flipping, and also give you a somewhat more responsive car. The weight shifts faster from side to side.

Overall weight:

The cars overall weight are extremely important regarding balance and handling. A heavier car are often more stable and easy to drive than a lighter car. The ususal weight limit ranges around 170 - 180 grams for the different races.

• Lower weight. A lighter car gives you more agility and added response. A lighter car with enough grip will let you hug the corners tighter.
• Higher weight. A heavier car will give you a more easy to drive car. It can be a bit sluggish, and slower in the infield. It can also cause problems mid corner as the car pushes out because of the added weight.

Lower weight body's will also give you more room to play around with additional ballast in your car to fine tune the balance of your car.

A small selection of my favourite race body's: