Solar Freaks

Hi everyone,

I have been wondering for a long time, does the actual gear ratio really make a huge differance in the cars performance?

Last year i used 6/1 ratio, only using a 18 teeth gear the whole day without changing it. My school has told me that on sunny days, doesn't matter what your ratio is, use a pinion with more teeth, so about 36 teeth for 100% sunlight but a 8 teeth pinion for days that are raining, overcast, around 10% or lower. Is this really the case?

Thanks!

Hello Karo,

In short.....

If you have the right gear ratio to start off with and are using electronics, then changing gears for different conditions won't make a great deal of difference for the most part.

Yes, in overcast conditions where cars are struggling or failing to make it over the overpass then a smaller pinion with fewer teeth will certainly help.

Have you had a look at this thread yet? http://www.solarfreaks.com/electronics-talk-t214.html
Some of your questions should be answered there.

miseli

The differences may not be massive, but yes, changing pinion can make the difference between winning or losing a race. The biggest change is when there is very little light and cars are struggling to get over the hill, since the cars with smaller pinions tend to make it over, albeit going more slowly.

I recommend playing around with Ian Gardner's simulator if you want to see what can be done with gear ratios.