Took the plunge and bought an X5

[MILKY]

Hello to the family,Took the plunge and bought an X5...always loved the x factory product and in particular 4WD so why not

This is immaculate(for now) and will get used hard so any thing to watch for?

The car is in top condition and has had little use but the belt appears to click,is this the norm or is it mis-aligned?The lay shaft can be removed with out mountain man like strength so presuming tension is good.

Thanks in advance

[YoungChazz]

First, Milky, I hope you have a ton of fun with your new old ride. Indeed there is life in the old nail yet; properly maintained she's a dream to drive and very competitive.

There are several threads on here about the X - 5, and I suggest you give them a read. Biggest thing is to make certain the belt is running straight and free. Take the bottom cover off and run the car -- you'll se what the belt is doing and you can move the idler in or out to make the belt run straight.

There are many posts on belt tension. Some people try to make it ridiculously tight in an attempt to eliminate skip -- you can't. What you want is minimal skip. The driveline must be free to rotate, and tight enough to eliminate skip is just too tight.

Finally, don't run a big motor. You'll say this sounds slow, but an 8.5 is about the most she will handle and when the driveline is properly free, it's plenty fast if geared right. The car was designed around the 11 double and 3300 cells, about all you wanted in 2003. Modern LiPos and brushless motors simply overpower the driveline.

So please check the other threads and see if they answer any other questions you have.

[Chrislong]

Chazz is 100% right if you want to keep the car running problem free. However (with regular maintenance) I had no issue running 8-9 turns when we ran brushed even on high grip astro, and 5.5 brushless with early Lipo (more like 7.5 now with latest generation motors and high power lipo). BUT be prepared for the layshaft gear wearing, keep an eye on it. Some of us ran xx4 gear here but take into account the effect on gear ratio - and reshim the whole layshaft properly so no side play and belt runs straight like Chazz says.

I got around the skipping under braking, by turning my brakes right down to approx 60%. i.e. enough to race a quick lap and brake into corners, but not enough to lock the wheels and skip the belt (just). This was with running a one way front diff. I absolutely loved my X-5 but it feels like such a long time ago now.

[MILKY]

Thanks for the replys. Can't wait to use it and love the no compromise design. Chris do you happen to know the part number for the gear?

[Darren Boyle]

Originally Posted by MILKY

Thanks for the replys. Can't wait to use it and love the no compromise design. Chris do you happen to know the part number for the gear?

It is the rear belt pulley from a Losi XX4 that is used, part number is LOS A3210

[MILKY]

Hi Darren thanks for that,had a few bits from you for it yesterday should have added it to the order!oops. I want to keep most bits in my box is the Losi xx4 pulley set worth using instead of the x factory items?as in diff pulleys also and do you keep either on stock.

Thanks.