WL TOys 124016 124017 Top 5 Mods*

*To be clear my car is still under preorder but I have 3 cars of a very similar spec so do have a good understanding of what makes these tick and how to improve

The WL toys 124016 and 124017 are faster and more efficient brushless version of the hugely popular 124018 and 124019. If you want to know more about these new brushless cars then check out the preview article I wrote here: ​WL TOYS 124016 124017 PREVIEW: FIRST FACTORY BRUSHLESS WL TOYS RC CARS
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In this  article I'll be taking you through my top 5 mods for this car

If the stock car is anything to go by, the brushless model will be at least as fast but with much stronger acceleration and better battery life. With the understanding that you will be going faster for longer, there is an increased change of breakages on what is not an especially weak but not an especially strong car either. In addition, the extra speed and acceleration will show up the handling. For these reasons and but one of the 5 best mods below to improve your 124016 or 124017 will focus on DURABILITY and HANDLING and maybe just a little more POWER

Mod 1: Metal Steering Knuckles/spindles
Based on my experience with the 144001, 124019 and 124019 (which share the same part), the most commonly broken pieces are the front steering knuckles/spindles. 

This is the most common break I see on this car - the front steering knuckle. I broke it on this car when it was still running the slower brushed motor

Here is the broken piece. With this broken it stresses the driveshaft too which you can see bent in the background

You can either buy spares of the standard part or if you want a simple upgrade you can get the Wltoys 1/14 144001 124018 124019 Front Wheel Seat Upgrade Metal. Please note this part has been improved since my early review on metal parts. The new units linked here fit with all wheel options including the Remo P6973
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The highest quality parts for this upgrade however is the LC racing CNC Metal front spindles. If you do go down this track though, you will also need the LC racing bearing kit which have a larger outside diameter. ​

​Stock front steering knuckles for the 124016 and 124017

Wltoys 1/14 144001 124018 124019 Front Wheel Seat Upgrade Metal

Shown here are the LC racing CNC Metal front spindles and also the CNC metal front hub carriers from the Stage 1 124018 mod article

My pick? I'd go with the updated metal WL Toys steering knuckles as above as they are cheap and come with useful spare hardware. Unlike earlier metal knuckles, these do fit all wheel options.

Mod 2: LC Racing CVDs
The next most commonly damaged (or lost) parts are the drive shafts which for these cars are dogbones in the rear and CVDs in the front. Only every replace either with CVDs as the are most efficient and unlikely to be lost in a crash. As with the front knuckles you can get either direct replacements, an upgraded WL toys option or of course the stronger LC racing CVD drive shafts. All of these are direct bolt in options

Metal Drive Shaft 1315 Wltoys 144001 124018 124019

WLTOYS 1/14 144001 Upgrade Front Rear Drive Shaft CVD RC Car Parts - Black

LC Racing 1/14 RC Car CVD Drive Shaft For EMB-TG RC Car Vehicle Models Parts L6126

My pick? I'd plump for the LC racing driveshafts in the front and put the stock CVDs from the front into the rear of the car.

Mod 3: LC Racing Anti-Roll bars (124017 only)
With more power to accelerate or hold speed in a corner, the brushless car will encourage more body roll and so the car will tend to wash out more during high speed cornering. Assuming the shock absorbers are working correctly then the biggest improvement here is by installing the LC Racing antiroll bars which are a direct fit. This is the most underrated upgrade for handling improvement and better yet, having 3 different stiffness options for front and rear means these can be personalised precisely to your driving style.

Unfortunately these are not an option for the 124016 because the anti roll bar mounts on the 124016 are used for the lower shock mount.

Unfortunately the anti-roll bar won't fit on the 124016 since the rear arms are flipped - same reason you can't used the droop screws as circled. See this article for more difference between the 124016/8 and the 124017/9

I've got my LC Racing anti roll bars! The aliexpress seller I linked has been fast and reliable for me. I put this on my 144001 which is identical mechanically to the 124016 and 124017

Installed on the front - no mods needed

Installed on the rear - no mods needed

My pick? Definitely get this one, it improves the handling quite significantly

Mod 4: Better wheels and tyres (on and offroad)
Stock tyres on the 124019 were pretty awful but the design on the 124017 and 124016 looks to be better suited for offroad. Regardless I am still expecting the Remo P6973 wheels and tyre set as reviewed here to be a stark improvement that does not compromise effective gear ratio.

For onroad sponge is the best and these drag fronts are the perfect diameter. There are a range of different grip levels available denoted by "shore" rating. The lower the shore number the softer and more grippy (but less durable) the sponge tyre is and vice versa. I recommend getting them from Amain Hobby - they are fast and the shipping prices are really fair.

Remo P6973 wheels and tyres (with sponge inserts) are sold in pairs. Hands down my favourite bashing wheels on this car.

Contact drag racing foams are the best diameter for this car. 

I don't like the rear drag tyres as I feel they look too wide (fronts on all 4 corners here)

My pick? It's hard to go past the Remo P6973 tyres for bashing. Even on Tarmac they give improved grip. 

Mod 5: Hobbywing 2-3s ESC
The stock ESC will no doubt be built to a price. Unfortunately this means that it is a compromise on it's ability to manage 3s reliably, the smoothness of the power delivery and the adjustability of the settings. For those who wish to have these benefits I strongly recommend the hobbywing range of ESCs for this car. At the lower end the Quicrun WP 16BL30 30A ESC would be able to run the stock 2845 3400kv motor on 2s or 3s without too much fuss but would probably recommend the Quicrun 10BL120 120A ESC instead due to the overhead if you wished to run a bigger motor at a later time. If you do decide to get a different ESC be wary and remember they space available is very limited - both of the ESCs mentioned here are physically small and fit well in this chassis.

This is a mod I would probably consider last.

​Hobbywing QuicRun WP-16BL30 Brushless Waterproof 30A Sensorless ESC. This is a surprisingly strong ESC for the size and should handle the stock 2845 3400kv with ease

Hobbywing QUICRUN 10BL120 Sensored 120A 2-3S Lipo Speed Brushless ESC. With stock motor you can easily remove the fan as I've done here.

My pick? Let's give the stock ESC a go first, it may well prove to be fit for purpose. If you do want to upgrade I'd recommend the Quicrun 10BL120 which has proven itself for me over several builds as a compact, precise and reliable ESC.

Bonus round mod 5 and a half - 3s battery
Upgraded to a Hobbywing ESC? Then this mod is a no brainer. This *should* be possible with the stock ESC as well but of course I will need to confirm with testing first. This upgrade would be the single biggest power improvement you can make to this car - and instant 50% over and above the stock 2s battery. I really like the CNHL 3s 2200mah pack which fits beautifully in the stock location as below:

My pick? Do not attempt this on the stock ESC until we have more test data. If you've chosen to upgrade the ESC to a reliable brand like hobbywing though then 3s with a 3400kv motor will be a beautiful thing.

Conclusion
This brushless car will start to push the limits of handling and durability which is why most of top 5 mods (well, 6 really) revolve around improving handling and durability with just a splash of power. My recommendation is to drive the car and get a feel first before you choose your handling upgrades but please consider at least key spares first because the biggest shame is to break a part on a barely run car only to wait weeks for parts out of China if you don't have a local reseller.

Full list of parts recommended here:

Wltoys 1/14 144001 124018 124019 Front Wheel Seat 

LC Racing 1/14 RC Car CVD Drive Shaft For EMB-TG RC Car Vehicle Models Parts L6126

LC RACING Anti Roll Bar EMB-1 #L6134

Remo P6973 Rubber RC Car Tires​

Hobbywing QUICRUN 10BL120 Sensored 120A Brushless ESC

CNHL 2200mAh 3S 11.1V 30C Lipo Battery with XT60 Plug

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