I think it's an interesting question. I noticed on my Academy GV2, the Ackermann angle is really small at full lock. Only about 5° difference. The ideal (calculated) angle should be >30° or something. So that's what I would consider being "way off".
I can imagine it really depends on the grip level, too. On dirt you might get away with it or even have the benefit of aggressive turn in, however on carpet or astroturf due to the high grip level, a correct Ackermann angle might really smooth out the steering.
I don't really have any experience with 2WD buggies, I'm a 1/8 scale nitro guy.
I raced my little buggy only once on carpet and had some kind of issues during acceleration out of fast sweepers. As the speed increased there was a point where the car suddenly slowed down almost like I had hit the brakes. I guess (now), the small Ackermann angle may have caused excessive drag.
Any inputs?
Andi
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