Arrma Granite V3 BLX esc and motor overheating solutions

[Cam1234]

I am running my RC car in quite high temperatures and it the motor in particular is getting very hot very fast even when i run on 50 per cent power. Are there any techniques i should use to keep temperatures down, pouring water on the motor etc. or should i simply not run the car in these kinds of temperature. Thanks

 

[Sphexish]

Other than trying to find a different surface to drive on (high grass is particularly brutal for temps) or gearing down a bit (particularly if you switched to a 18T or higher pinion, or installed heavier tires), the solution that worked for me on warmer days in the local park was upgrading the motor and esc fans to higher rpm ones and then taking short breaks every 15-20 mins while leaving the fans running.

Better fans do extend the time you can run without thermal shutdown, but they work best if given a little time while the car isn't driving, I've found.

 

[Cam1234]

Other than trying to find a different surface to drive on (high grass is particularly brutal for temps) or gearing down a bit (particularly if you switched to a 18T or higher pinion, or installed heavier tires), the solution that worked for me on warmer days in the local park was upgrading the motor and esc fans to higher rpm ones and then taking short breaks every 15-20 mins while leaving the fans running.

Better fans do extend the time you can run without thermal shutdown, but they work best if given a little time while the car isn't driving, I've found.

Thanks for the reply, is it bad for the car if it goes into thermal shutdown. ie. does it damage it? I have always been afraid of breaking the motor by running it at high temperatures.

 

[AIan]

Heat is bad for the motor cause it demagnetizes magnets, and motors have them lol and it’s also bad for electric stuff in general. So repetitive thermal shutdown will wear down your motor a lot

 

[Harriot10]

I would guess the taller grass like others have said is causing the heat issue. Make sure you don't have a bad motor bearing!

 

[Cam1234]

Thanks for all the replies

 

[GRC]

First of all, how hot? Motors get hot when you run them. 120-130F is quite normal. 140 to 160F is still fine. Above 180 is dangerous. You should use a temperature gun. Without a temperature gun, the general tip is if you can keep your finger on the motor for 2 seconds it's OK. If it's too hot to keep your finger on, it's too hot. Be careful! Not as accurate as a temperature gun of course.

Lighter tires, smaller pinion, lower KV motor will overheat less quickly. But as with most changes, there are tradeoffs. Smaller pinion, lower KV will be slower. Lighter tires won't backflip and handle rough off road as well. A more powerful motor fan is the most direct solution. But I also have a Granite and use a 28000 rpm motor fan. I still have to take a break on hot days.

 

[dure16]

A cheap $30 surpass motor was the best thing I changed for heat management. 3670 size and 2850kv. Still on stock esc and 3S. And only twice the price of a fan that might fix the problem.

 

[morrjr71]

A cheap $30 surpass motor was the best thing I changed for heat management. 3670 size and 2850kv. Still on stock esc and 3S. And only twice the price of a fan that might fix the problem.

I'm running the same Surpass motor with a 16T pinion, and I'm using the heatsink and fan that came on my Typhon 3s. Yesterday I FINALLY got the Typhon out to a large open area where I could run it full throttle or near full throttle for a solid fifteen minutes or more on low cut grass, and the motor never got too hot to touch.