A bodyshell
is part of the identity of a car and the Cougar SV one is no exception.
And in the present case, the kit contains a body, a wing and a tray, all
of them already cut - minor cuts requested - and so ready to paint.
The wing is over 6.5” wide
and presents a slightly complex shape in its lower/forward area to give
some space to the rear shock tower when shocks are mounted backward. But
the most noticeable point is the shape close to the side, allowing some
wheel clearance when the suspension is up, socket touching the bottom
cap.
Electronics setup
Probably not the easiest to
describe as there is a large amount of possibilities depending what gear
you use. As per designed, the pack is located in the centerline of the
car. A Brushless system will be used as it is the current standard, the
ESC may sit on the right hand side and the wires must be short as both
motor and battery connectors are near. The space is enough for all
current ESC. The receiver goes on the other side which makes the wire
connecting with the ESC run below the battery. Be sure to secure this
wire properly. As the receiver is lighter than the ESC, you may consider
balancing the car from right to left. Last point, the servo's wire will
also run on the low desk and once again, make sure to do a good job with
it - it’ll make things easier to work with afterwards.
On the
track by J.M. & N. Risser
Arriving at the track, the
car looks pretty and drivers around can't stop looking at it. Even
though the Cougar SV uses a Mid-Motor architecture, it is a fresh design
seen no where before, totally different from what is available on the
market.
Our first run took place on
the MBV Kampenhout track, the famous
Astroturf track host of the Belgium GP; we know this track well and get
some points of comparison to evaluate the SV. The car is built per the
kit instructions with 35wt oil in front, 30wt in the rear end, the sway
bar is on and the rear shocks are mounted forward. The motor is a 7.5T
brushless, gear 24/83 (Ratio: 8.98), an 8.5 or a 9.5 motor would have
been preferred but we do not have the extra pinions to gear those motors
correctly.
Under acceleration the car
provides excellent traction and we were surprised to have it run so
easily with the amount of available power. Next, a miracle! The steering
is a dream, sharp and progressive altogether, much higher than what we
can get for the X6, even with additional weight on the front end. The
forward position of the servo makes all sense here, no need for wing nor
weight, it is perfect stock. With the stock springs, the car tends to
bottom out a bit, nothing major for the very first run; Schumacher
offers a range of springs that will help set up the car.
Back to the pits and the
rear shocks move on the back of the shock tower, this shock position
make thing easier to install and remove the bodyshell. We also changed
the rear shock oil for the upper grade (35wt), removed the sway bar and
back on track. The car is almost perfect, we
can push it really hard, more than with our former car which we have
almost forgotten about. The balance is excellent on jumps.
After those few runs, we
only have positive things to say and we still have to explore the huge
potential of the Cougar as there is a large amount of adjustment to play
with. We haven't suffered any issues or broken parts but another driver
also running the same car with a broken turnbuckle. Those are must-need
on the purchase list.
Conclusion
Building this car is
straight forward even if at first glance it looks complex due to a
higher number of components in comparison with other 2wd buggies,
something which seems consistent on Schumacher cars. But you must be
careful while putting everything together, that's what makes the
difference between a good car and an excellent racing machine. And
definitively, the Cougar SV belongs is this second category, providing
great handling, driver confidence and overall performance. As with every
new product, there is some points that are worth improving or refining
but, as the car is fast, reliability will be pretty easy to get, a
constant in motorsport. There is tons of
adjustments which can be made that will help to match both the track
conditions and your driving style. And so testing sessions and practice
is a mandatory step for every owner of this car
- even some
setups are already available - to get the best out of it, to
understand the handling as well as the effect and the reaction of each
change in the car’s behavior.
Many thanks to Robin
Schumacher and Racing Cars for providing a car for this review. Also, I
want to thank J.M. Risser and his son for
their first impressions about the car, Loic Desvaux
and Damian for their help.