Suzuki Swift Super 1600

This time, I claim I'm not responsible for this: my friends Boo54, J-F and Teamneogordini are guilty!
Lately, we had an on-road run even I generally prefer off-roading or rallying with my Ford Focus WRC. Problem is we are currently searching for a new place to run off-road since the previous place is no longer good at anything. So, we met for a cool afternoon of tarmac driving. I came with my Citroën Xsara WRC and my Lancia Delta HF prepared for on-road.

Everything went perfect but my friends are smart: these rascals gave me an M-chassis for a try. I never considered this chassis class before as I considered them boring mini skateboards only suitable for fans of the famous Austin Mini. Well, let me tell you they're nothing better than mini skateboards... but terribly fun to drive. Fun, really fun to drive: they're very light, sharp cornering, quick and they litterally stick to the tarmac.

Result is I had a great fun and that you're reading the consequence of this try. My advice: never try an M-chassis! And don't trust yours friends .

December 2011: major update of the article

The M-Chassis family

In 2006, the Suzuki Swift Super 1600 inaugurated the M-03M chassis that can only be found on one other model released in 2009.

58368 - Suzuki Swift Super 1600

58427 - Fiat 500

But this chassis already existed in slightly different versions. The basis is the 1999 M-03 chassis that was lately declined in M-03L (2000) and M-03M (2006). Letters refer to the chassis length, more exactly the wheelbase (distance between front and rear wheels). These 3 dimensions are meant to adapt different bodyshells on the chassis: for realism and respect of the original dimensions when reduced to the 1/10th scale, Tamiya makes the chassis wheelbase vary. All lenghts are not available for every M-chassis generation, but they always respect the same wheelbase values.
"short" version (no letter): 210 mm
"medium" version (M): 225 mm
"long" version (L): 239 mm

The M-chassis series is not new in Tamiya product range since it first appeared back in 1994 with the M-01. And the saga still continues today. Apart from changing the chassis wheelbase, Tamiya also swapped between front and rear wheel drive. To make it simple, an even numbered chassis is front wheel driven and an odd numbered chassis is rear wheel driven.

Photo gallery of the M-chassis saga by generation:

     M-01's (1994-1997)

58149 Rover Mini Cooper (M-01)

58163 Rover Mini Cooper Rally (M-01)

58196 Honda S-MX Lowdown (M-01M)

     M-02's (1995-1997)

58158 Fiat Abarth 1000 TCR (M-02)	58168 Alpine A110 (M-02)	58173 Volkswagen Beetle (M-02L)	58175 Honda S800 Racing (M-02)	58180 Mazda Eunos Roadster (M-02M)
58187 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint (M-02M)	58197 Porsche Boxster (M-02L)	58202 Mercedes-Benz SLK (M-02L)	58208 Porsche 911 Carrera (M-02L)

     M-03's (1998-2009)

58211 Rover Mini Cooper Racing (M-03)	58234 Suzuki Wagon R RR (M-03)	58265 Toyota bB (M-03L)	58295 Mini Cooper (M-03L)	58368 Suzuki Swift Super 1600 (M-03M)
58400 Mini Cooper S 2006 (M-03L)	58427 Fiat 500 (M-03M)

     M-04's (1999-2007)

58236 Honda S2000 (M-04L)

58240 BMW "M" Roadster (M-04L)

58307 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint (M-04M)

58325 Eunos Roadster (M-04M)

58383 Volkswagen Beetle (M-04L)

     M-05's (2009- ?)

58438 Mini Cooper Racing (M-05)	58443 M-05 Pro Chassis Kit (M-05 Pro)	58444 Fiat Abarth 500 Assetto (M-05)	58453 Alfa Romeo MiTo (M-05)	58454 Honda S800 Racing (M-05)
58464 Suzuki Swift Super 1600 (M-05Ra)	58465 Fiat Abarth 1000 TCR (M-05)	58471 Alpine A110 (M-05Ra)	58483 Mini Cooper '94 Monte Carlo (M-05)	58503 Honda Ballade Sports Mugen (M-05)

     M-06's (2010- ?)

58460 M-06 Pro Chassis Kit (M-06 Pro)

58486 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint (M-06)

58493 Mazda RX-7 (M-06)

The M-chassis now lasts for over 15 years and is still growing. Some models are dressed with famous bodyshells like the Alpine A110, the Fiat Abarth 1000 TCR and of course, Mini and Volkswagen Beetle both original and the later renewed versions. Unfortunately,Tamiya didn't always respect the real transmission drive used by original cars when adapting them to the M-chassis, especially since the introduction of the M-05. About this, M-05 and M-06 chassis have lost their suffix despite the bodyshells have different wheelbases: all these chassis including the required spacers to modify the wheelbase, Tamiya now finds it useless to mention it.

Since 2010, Tamiya made a rallye version that was expected for long by fans who had to recut Rally Block tires to fit them on M rims or to be lucky to find the so rare Enroute tires. The rallye version (Ra suffix) features additional protections in order to limit dust projections over the chassis.

Please note that the knowledge of the Vintage-RC forum members is the source of most of the information for this M-chassis saga. Thanks mates!

Now it's time to build this Suzuki Swift Super 1600. I'll begin with the bodyshell since I will start assembling the chassis as the different paint coats dry.

The bodyshell

Since I started with my first models, my technics for bodyshells evolved. Nothing revolutionary, just some practical hints:
1st step: clean the bodyshell with washing dishes product
2nd step: cut the bodyshell
3rd step: mask / paint
4th step: remove the protection film
5th step: apply stickers

This is the most logical sequence to follow. Except for the Ford F-150 as you need to apply stcikers that will guide you for masking.
In general, cleaning and cutting the body first is better since you won't harm the fresh paint. to cut it, the best is to use a cutter knife to draw the lines where to cut. Then just fold the lexan until it breaks right on the cutting line: you can only do this on straight line like the sides bottom. Everywhere else, still after marking the cutting lines with the cutter knife, just start cutting with cisors and then tear the lexan: it will naturally tear along the cutting line.

Next step is masking, especially the windows, and then paint:

Inside the bodyshell after painting

Side view

Front view

Yep, everything's there There's just no need to mask anything on this bodyshell since the windows stickers are provided. For those of you who really want "real" windows, just use the stickers as mask models.

On these photos, the body doesn't look great since the protection film is still on. Only remove it when the paint is completly dry as it will be useful to avoid scratches while the paint is drying (since you probably let your bodyshell dry on its roof). Now just apply the stickers to finish the bodyshell. This model needs two full decals sets to be completed (fortunately, they are pre-cut).

Front view with the first sticker set	Front side view with the first sticker set
Front view with all the stickers	Front side view with all the stickers

The bodyshell is almost finished: for the moment, I left the rear wing and the mirrors apart since they are on the part trees. Applying stickers is not difficult since everything is pre-cut. Some are tricky to apply because they are either pretty big or need to be very well adjusted next to others. Completing the decoration requires at least 2 full hours because this car is just full of sponsors.

For decoration, I chose the one for Per-Gunnar "P-G" Andersson's car, one of the two official drivers of the Suzuki Swift Super 1600. Tamiya also provides the set for Guy Wilks's car but I prefered the Swedish driver: I thought he would be more gifted than a British driver used to drive on the wrong side of the road .
My driving skills being what they are, my cars sometimes tend to drive by themselves: any help from the real driver is much appreciated in such conditions . Though, I'm still waiting for Sébastien Loeb to drive my Citroën Xsara WRC...

To fit the mirrors and the rear wing, you need to drill holes in the bodyshell. That's pretty odd since the bodyshell already comes with 5 holes for the body mounts and the antenna pipe. Tamiya could have drilled the additional 4 holes while making the others: well, they didn't. The holes need to be 4mm for mirrors and 6.5mm for the rear wing: the best is to drill with the thinnest bit to begin and then finish with the one you need for each hole diameter.

Assembling the chassis

This step doesn't require much time and it quite easy thanks to the self-explaining Tamiya manual. The 8 type 1050 ball bearings are provided but 2 type 850 bearings and 4 type 1150 plastic bearing need to be replaced by real ball bearings. Please note that the 1050 ball bearings are specific to the rims mounted on this car: other M-chassis may require 1150 ball bearings. So be careful not to mix them with the 1150 ball bearings that take place into the gearbox (if there's some play then it's not the correct bearing).

One step to perform with care is the gearbox assembly: do not over tighten the screws or the gears will not move freely. Just screw until the screw naturally stops.

About the wheels, sponges are provided and help the tires keep their shape for on-road use. The manual says to glue them into the tires: I didin't follow this advice since I doubt the sponge can move once the tire is mounted on the rim. But don't forget to glue the tires to the rims.

After a couple of hours, this is the result:

This chassis is totally stock, including the motor. I only completed the ball bearing set (2 type 850 and 4 type 1150), and replaced the friction dampers with hydraulic ones I had in my spare parts stock. As usual, I added "o-rings" on the body mounts to preserve scratch on the inner side of the bodyshell. I know they are just useless: the hours spent on this bodysheel will get ruined at the first corner I'll get too fast 

Another hop-up is the 53056 pin type wheel adapters: this is a "comfort" option I mount on every model. Plastic hex found on part trees quickly wore and always remain stucked into the rims. Metal adapters are more solid and changing wheels is much easier.

The chassis allows 3 different motor pinions: 16, 18 and 20T. The latest is the only one provided, and that's great. Smaller pinions let you mount better motors but the Mabuchi 540 with the 20T pinion is enough to run this very light model and give it a very decent top speed.

There is not much room left on this chassis to store cable extra length, but compared to the Dark Impact, there's more than enough. Just place the electronic speed controler close to the motor and then place the receiver slightly to the rear end of the chassis. Then you will have room enought to cable-tie everything.

Once the chassis is finished and the stick pack is in, you will notice that most of the weight concentrates on the first third of the chassis length. This is normal since this chassis is front wheel drive and needs as much weight as possible on the front to get the best grip. As a consequence, forget jumps with it: this is an on-road chassis. But the risk is that the rear drivetrain may easily loose grip in corners as it is very light: be prepared for memorable roll-overs 

While I was gathering information to write this page, I read dozens of forum pages giving tons of advices for M-chassis setup, hop-ups and other hints. When compiling them, I soon realized I couldn't trust that material: just about anti-roll bars, I should have installed them at the front and rear drivetrains, only at the front or only at the rear. Well, anything and everything, you choose. And not only for anti-roll bars: the advice orgy concerned everything else. Finally, I found the Aussie band at RC-Mini.net, and that's the end of the world: forget urban legends and mythomaniacs. The best advice I can give is go visit their site. Their conclusion is rather simple: if you need to install any hop-up on an M-chassis, first hop up the driver, not the car.

Some photos

I quickly took photos while the car is still brand new as I guess the first run will probably leave scars . The next move will be to set a date with my friends Boo54, J-F and Teamneogordini for an M-chassis session...

The real Suzuki Swift Super 1600 in action

Credit: David Farquhar / Suzuki

My Suzuki Swift Super 1600 evolution 2

2 years after this model joined my collection, I decided (at last) to update this article (august and november 2011). The very first thing to mention after two years is how fun every run was: this model is the one I drove most since it ran at almost every meeting.

So here is a detailed review since I now have quite an experience to share about it.

Overall reliability:
This is definitely THE strengh of this chassis: it is rock solid. Apart from the servo-saver (see below), the M-03 chassis is bulletproof. It is almost maintenance-free, nothing more than some cleaning from time to time to remove tire residues and miscellaneous stuff it brought back from the track. The motor needs to be replace after over 30 packs, as the motor pinion does: the aluminium stock one will not resist more than 20 packs and I recommend you replace it with another one in steel.

When I say "overall reliability", I mean to survive this kind of stunts:

Sorry for the blurry pictures, but I guess you will understand the photograph couldn't anticipate this . Of course, the bodyshell is the element that suffers most: mirrors are among the very first victims but once gone, the car slides much better on its side.
I added only two extra protections: a foam bumper at the front (because others go sometimes so slow that you need to push them gently ) and reinforcement tape on the antenna tube where it crosses the roof top. This avoids the antenna tube to be cutted off when the car rides wheels up.

The bodyshell is robust

Foam bumper and antenna tube reinforcement

Scratches on the body are testimonies of intense battles between my Suzuki Swift and the track surface. Mirrors soon got lost but even the very long rear body mounts are still alive.


The servo-saver:
This is the M-03 weak point: the stock one is very soft which leads both to unprecise steering (getting worse after each run) and a predictable breakage after a few shocks and other stunts. So I recommend to replace it with the 51000 Hi-Torque Servo-Saver:

51000 Hi-Torque Servo-Saver

3Racing M03M-16/LB

Installed on the chassis

I also found interesting to replace the stock plastic servo mounts by aluminium ones from 3Racing. I can't certify either any precision improvement for the steering system nor better reliability, but I think they may contribute to the overall system.


Drive and gears:
Apart from the stock aluminium motor pinion to quickly replace with one made of steel, the differential cups and the wheel axles show some wear. This is normal and proportional to the motor power. This is why I replaced a few things after 2 years.

Stock worn part

New parts

Without fail, the motor power and brake leave their marks and the whole system soon has a lot of play (sooner depends on the motor power). But let's get clearer: the above photo is after 2 years of regular runs with the stock 540 motor. No need to panic, but you should only consider this after a while, especially if you run your model with a powerfull motor.
To solve this, there are universals like the 3Racing's (ref M03M-11/V3) that I installed: they remove any play between the dogbone and the wheel axle. Consequence: better lifetime without loosing efficiency due to wear. The next advantage is to remove any risk of loosing the dogbone in case of severe incident on the front arms (which is rare). About the differential cup, I replaced the stock ones with Tamiya's reinforced version reference 53218.

Another interesting hop up to improve reliability: the reinforced gear set (reference 54277). The exact same as the bullet-proof stock one, but even more bullet-proof (and black).

54277 M Chassis Reinforced Gear Set

53267 TA03 Ball Differential Set

So why no ball differential? Good question: therre is nothing specific for the M-03 chassis but the TA-03's will perfectly do the job (reference 53267). Pros? Lighter, can be set up from stiff to loose, less rotating weight and above all, a smoother and more precise transmission of the motor power. Sounds goof until you check the cons: complex to set up, very frequent maintenance (after each run or so when using big motors), quick wear. Conclusion: keep up with the planetary differential with a reinforced gear set. To keep reliable, stay simple.


Suspension:
Very tricky part that bothered me until my friend J-F gave me the solution. The symptom: straight line-curb-roll over. Funny at the beginning but soon it becomes annoying, especially when you are of the "trigger happy" kind like me. In fact, the reason is quite simple: when entering the curb, the weight is mainly transfered to the front of the car and make the front suspension work. That's Logic. The problem is located at the rear: when the suspension is not smoother than the front's, the inner curb rear wheel will lift since the opposite damper doesn't compress enough. Thus roll over.

Solution: a rear suspension soft than the front's. Given this is an on-road chassis, my first idea was to set a stiff suspension. For purposes of equity (synonym for ignorance and laziness), the four dampers were set the same. Taking J-F's advice into consideration, the rear was now softer thanks to softer springs: roll over problem solved.

But another problem immediately rose: the car was heavily vibrating anytime I pushed throttle hard. It couldn't be a problem with the motor since I was using the Mabuchi 540. Here again, suspension was badly setup: more precisely, it was too stiff at the front.

Definitive solution: 2-hole pistons for all 4 dampers, but "medium" springs at the front and "soft" at the rear. As soon as this setup was made, the car got well balanced. Roll overs are rare and always due to my "trigger happy" driving skills. Based upon the precious advices from the Aussie band at RC-Mini.net, to find the chassis balance is the most important factor for an M-Chassis and I do confirm it provides a much improved driving pleasure.

Something else can contribute to the chassis suspension balance: anti-roll bars (aka sway bars). They are a must on some chassis (like the M-02):

For the M-03 chassis, you can read several statements and their exact opposite: some people swear they are required and others just do fine without. Difficult to know the truth but I think the suspension setup is the key (dampers stiffness). In my opinion, a good dampers setup is enough to forget about anti-roll bars: but if you have problems finding the correct chassis balance, then anti-roll bars are the easy way. On my side, I found the correct suspension balance but I have anti-roll bars on hand: so I will try them to see if I can feel any difference when driving. But once more, you first need to find the correct chassis balance before to think about anti-roll bars.


Tires:
Now the chassis is well balanced, no need to touch it anymore but it is time to focus on grip.
In addition to being a front-wheel drive chassis, the M-03 is remarkably quick: this is the best receipe to wear the stock tires bald in 10 packs. Better said: in 5 packs, the front tires will show already severe wear, but after running them 10 packs, they will get bald like a baby's butt. By the time, the rear tires will suffer a half wear. You might think it would be smart to swap front and rear wheels: big mistake! The M-03 being front-wheel drive, the rear drivetrain is the most important for overall chassis balance: always prefer the best tires at the rear, even if this means the front may slide (the steering will help to control it).

Just imagine the tire wear considering the first photo below was shot after only a 10 minutes race (please note the mirrors are still there, which proves the photo was shot soon after my model hit the track ):

Tire debris on the bodyshell (and spread all over the chassis)

Front tire after running 7 battery packs 60D Super Grip (53254) / 60D Reinforced Tires Type B (54216)

These hop-up tires (radial or slicks) will provide much better grip and will make the chassis even more quick: there are required once your stock wheels got bald. Also note tire diameter has an influence... in theory. There are two kind of M-Chassis tires: 55D (55mm diameter) and 60D (60mm diameter). Both can suit any M-chassis rim since the inner diameter is the same. But the size difference means a 9% top speed difference in favor of the 60D compared to the 55D. But it does mean an identical torque performance drop when accelerating. Choosing either size is all about esthetic considerations related to the bodyshell shape. Let's be concrete: 9%, considering the value remains constant all track long (ie the track has no curbs), represent 0.5 second in a 1 minute lap. In theory. In the real life, alternating curbs and straigh lines will cancel any difference. But above anything, the driver will make the difference.

Talking about tires, don't forget inserts (also called inner sponges or foams): their role is important. By reinforcing the tire from the inside, they stiffen the tire walls (avoiding chassis roll) and provide a better contact surface between the tire and the ground, thus a better grip (to be exact, they stiffen the tire contact surface with the ground avoiding it to be altered by track irregularities). Whatever foam band can do the job, povided you like spend time to cut it to the right dimensions. In concrete, hard inserts reference 53255 for 60D tires are the best solution (they also exist for 55D tires).

I also tried to install classic 1/10th wheels from any TT-01, TA-01, TL-01 etc...: this time, the size difference is about 18%. The real track test shows that the stock 540 silver can with the 20T motor pinion goes as fast as another 55D wheels M-chassis powered by a Sport Tuned motor (18T motor pinion) . Of course, this high top speed has a serious drawback in curbs since the motor lacks torque. In the end, it is useless . But my yellow Suzuki looks way more agressive:

With 60D tires

With classic 1/10th wheels

Of course, this was just for fun (and look) since it is much more funny when all cars have the same setup. Even if it is definitely useless on a track, give this mod a try if you have 1/10th wheels available, just for fun (but they may not fit every bodyshell wheel arches).


Handy useless things:

As with every chassis, many options are available for the M-03, some contributing to performances or comfort at usage when others are just for decoration.

Quick Battery release (53346)

Pin Type Wheel Adapters (53056)

For me, those two options are among the useful but not required, even if at usage, they quicly turn into must have. The battery retention system is very helpful even though it is certainly more fragile than the standard system. About the aluminium wheel adapters, I install them on all my models since they never get trapped into the rims and never wear or break.

Now the considerably less useful parts:

3Racing motor heatsink (M03M-21/SI)

3Racing cooling fan (M03M-09/LB)

From those two, the most effective must be the fan... well, almost . The motor heatsink doesn't have a chance to evacuate heat since the heat transfer can only come through the motor screws: the thermal exchange surface is rather limited. The equivalent option from Tamiya (reference 53344) lacks the same efficiency since this is due to the chassis layout. Now the motor cooling fan that simply fits above it: at its best, the fan may unlikely give the motor a cold but will never make it colder .

Among other available options for M-03, I think the only valuable ones are the adjustable turnbuckles (to fine tune drivetrain settings) and aluminium uprights (toe-in/out setup). I consider the rest to be about cosmetics and/or overweight.


Overall handling:
Very difficult to describe the M-Chassis if you never had the chance to see one and above all, to drive one. It is very quick in curbs, fast in straight lines and quick to reaccelerate, even when power by the Mabuchi 540 stock silver can. To some extend, the handling makes me think of a mix between my Racing Master and my FF-01.

When taking it first in hands, it is suprisingly easy to drive despite being a front wheel drive chassis. But don't think it is boring and that easy. The best is to share the track with friends running cars with the same setup. I definitely highly recommend this chassis to anyone who wants to makes its debuts on-road, but also to everyone who think 1/10th 4WD classic chassis are boring to drive unless you fit them with more power than a Mabuchi 540 silver can.


Future evolutions of my Suzuki Swift Super 1600:
Honnestly, you can drive this model for years and have great moments without changing anything to it. Once you have found the suspension balance, this chassis is a blast to drive. With my friends from the Team Vintage Racing, we have decided to get even more spice out of our M-Chassis runs: our models will now be fitted with the Sport Tuned motor and an 20T motor pinion. Even quicker, even faster, even more fun!

More photos are on the gallery.

Top of page

First publication: july 05, 2009 Last modified: december 06, 2011

© 2005-2012 - Black Hole Sun