WLToys K969 and K989 Steering Mod - The First Modification You Should Make | RC Racing Legends 

I know it's been a while since I've given the K969 (and the K989) any attention. My efforts have been pulled in different directions the last while, both on and off the channel. I do appreciate those who have subscribed to see more about those cars and what I have planned. I'll be turning my attention back to the K969 once I get my current build off the bench.

Glad you liked the vid and found it useful.

This mod doesn't work because the top hole is larger bore and doesn't have thread lol.

@@PhillyPyroKev I been thinking about this problem and have found a perfect solution that actually works. I used some very thin strong nylon rigging thread that was supplied with a R/C model Yacht (Volantex Compass) Its so tough even xacto blades need to be new to cut it. Anyway two time through hole and a reef knot screw in ball joint and it tightens down perfectly no slop no play and I think is best way to adjust steering throw for me. I have Both K989 and The Force Truck with same mod! Both work great!

@@PhillyPyroKev my K969 is like yours as well, the top hole can't be used. you can see in this video that his has a different colored servo arm, black, while mine is white.

Great tip! Haven't experienced this with any of mine, but that's not to say it hasn't happened to others.

Glad to hear it worked for you!

You're very welcome! I'm glad you found the video useful. Enjoy your new K989!

thanks dude i am

@@unfierce1514 so the screw fit ? mine fell out while driving , seems the upper hole is bigger , cant screw it in .

@@dbelv66 same here the upper hole is bigger and the screw didn’t fit

@@jjhomie8893 If you recently purchased your WLToys K969 then this mod won't work as it's shown in this video. WLToys changed the design of the servo horn where the outboard hole is bigger. The only thing you can do is either get a larger screw that fits the larger hole (I don't know what size you will need, you'll have to experiment yourself) or you can use a plastic filler to fill in the larger hole, let it dry completely, then put in the included screw.

You're probably right. I just wanted to avoid any additional dismantling 😀

Just turning the servo makes it way easier

@@kellypg how do you turn the servo???

@@breadclips7366 just turn the wheels manually with the car turned off. The servo will stay where it's turned to

For a $50 RC the servos are decent. Are they competition grade responsive? No. But for something out of the box to get you started in small scale RC, they're not bad. Would I spend the money on better electronics for one of these RC vehicles? Probably not, and instead consider getting a higher grade 1/28 RC from the likes of Atomic or MWX or TG Racing.

I found a very simple way to do that. Just remove the front differential. The front drive shafts spin loose and make a small noise, but it makes it rwd and the dif can be put back in whenever you want it to be awd again

That's a great question. And the answer really depends on the surface you're running the car on. Assuming a completely stock K969 with locked diffs, if you're running the car on a relatively low-traction surface like hardwood or high-gloss tile, the car will have a tendency to slide or push in some instances, and oversteer in others. The locked diffs combined with the slightly higher traction from the rubber tires will "fight" one another making the handling of the car somewhat unpredictable. This most likely won't damage the car, but it will be a frustrating experience for you as the driver. You could live with the locked diffs in this case, but you may not find it as much fun. If you're running the car on high traction surfaces like rough concrete or even low-pile carpet, the car will behave very much like a normal RC car (like the K989 for example). However, the locked diffs will most likely not be able to overcome the high traction resulting in issues like the motor overheating or the stripping of gears. In this case a locked diff would not be advised. My overall advice in either situation would be to replace the locked diffs with adjustable ball-diffs. An adjustable ball diff can be tightened up enough that it will behave like a locked diff (for running low-traction drift tires) but then be loosened a bit for high-traction situations, avoiding the driveline binding that causes overheating and/or stripped gears. I hope that helps.

Yeah I don't think the sound track is much of a hit with viewers. I think going forward I won't be using music in my videos. But I'm glad you found the video useful.

You're very welcome. Glad you found the video useful.

These are fun cars, you're really going to enjoy it. The steering angle mod is a good one - easy, and quick without much hassle at all. And it makes a big difference when driving the car. I noticed it right away.

@@RCRacingLegends cool, I cant wait. I'm already excited because of the metal chassis, and boy are they popular, I had trouble finding one. I may get the rally one too..

@@freemario6352 I'm surprised they're that hard to find. Last I saw, banggood.com had them in stock ready to go. Check the links in the description of the video to see if they have them available. Both cars are awesome in their own unique way. If you can swing it, get both - you won't regret it.

Thanks for the tip. I may do that for the battery hold-down. I'd do the same for the body, but my plan is to replace it with a Kyosho Mini-Z body, which don't use the body pins.

You can also use strong small magnets on the frame of the car and use any magnetic metal on the shell for a easy removal. For the most part it’s strong enough to hold the car up by its shell and not pop the magnets

Thanks, glad you liked the video.

If you read the video description there's a note that mentions this is a mod that can only be carried out on earlier WLToys 1/28 scale cars. About a year or so ago they changed the servo horn on these vehicles and you can't perform this mod the way it's laid out on the video. Instead you have to use some additional hardware. There's a link in the description to it.

@@RCRacingLegends Thank you! I did grease the differentials and that did smoothen things out but it seems like the tires are still stiff. So I guess I've to look into more ways to making this smoother because I'm unable to have smooth slower drifts and this also overheats the motor a lot.

If you recently purchased your WLToys K969 then this mod won't work as it's shown in this video. WLToys changed the design of the the servo horn where the outboard hole is bigger. The only thing you can do is either get a larger screw that fits the larger hole (I don't know what size you will need, you'll have to experiment yourself) or you can use a plastic filler to fill in the larger hole, let it dry completely, then put in the included screw.

You'll find that most of my videos are on the longer side. Some folks like that, others simply don't have the patience for it. Thanks for the sub!

Your cars have what's called a "sticky drivetrain". Very common with these small scale cars from WLToys. My K989 suffers from that a bit. You need to dismantle the differentials and use a small jewelers file an Xacto hobby knife, or sand paper to clean up any plastic flashing that there may be on the gears. Then use some grease and reassemble. It's a bit of work, but it'll fix the issue.

Thanks!

Unfortunately, I don't have any experience with the A989 (or any of the A-Series of cars from WLToys) so I don't really know if this mod will work with those vehicles. You could potentially use a plastic filler in the larger hole, then once it's dry thread the screw into it. That might give you the same result.

@@RCRacingLegends same thing just happened to me, and I have the k969. Gonna order some plastic filler and see if that helps.

When did you get your K969? I'm wondering if WLToys has changed the servo arm on newer cars.

@@RCRacingLegends Just a few days ago. My arm is a tan color, but yours and a few other videos I have watched are black. The higher hole is visibly a little smoother than the bottom postion hole. Don't know if I should find a bigger screew or use plastic puddy.

From the sounds of it either WLToys has changed the design of the servo horn or they've changed suppliers. You're not the only one who is having this issue. A larger screw may work but you'll have to experiment a bit to find the right size. You could try a plastic filler to fill the hole (maybe some JB Weld?), but if you go that route I'd strongly suggest getting a set of micro drill bits and drilling a small pilot hole into the filler once it's set. That way you'll avoid the filler cracking when you insert the screw.

The scale isn't important. It's the wheelbase that matters. You want a body that has a wheelbase that matches the WLToys cars. The cars do have an adjustable wheelbase (which I mention in my video) so keep that in mind as well.

Thanks, glad you liked the video. As for body kits for these cars, there are a few options that look more "realistic" than the bodies which come with the WLToys cars. Probably the easiest option is to go with one of the many Kyosho Mini-Z bodies available. It's a relatively easy job to fit one onto either of these cars, and they look extremely scale and accurate. Be forewarned though, there are a few caveats to going this route: 1. Not all Mini-Z bodies will fit these chassis. The big issue is clearing the suspension (Mini-Z cars use a different suspension design which takes up less vertical space). You can modify the WLToys cars to make them work, but it's typically not recommended unless absolutely necessary. So look for bodies that have a relatively high clearance near the front and rear suspension. 2. Wheel clearance issues. Some Mini-Z body sets come with wheels that may or may not clear when fitted to a WLToys car, so you may need to get wheels with different offset(s) to suit. 3. Mini-Z bodies can get pricey. Kyosho seems to make Mini-Z bodies in batch runs and when their production stops, they typically aren't re-introduced. This results in a sort of collector-car market for these bodies with rare examples getting into the hundreds of dollars. So don't be surprised if you pay more for the body than you do for the entire WLToys car. Kyosho offers the Mini-Z bodies in either finished body sets (painted, and ready to use out of the box) or as unassembled and unpainted kits. The kits are obviously less expensive than the painted variants but they will need a bit of assembly and/or painting before installing. I don't know off-hand if Kyosho offered a Ford Fiesta like Ken Block's car, but I'm sure you'll find something you'll like from their lineup. I'm planning to put a Mini-Z body on my own K969, and I'll be making a video about how to do it so stay tuned for that. Another option is to fit a 1/25 plastic scale model body to the chassis of the WLToys cars. This does require a lot more work and a lot more skill on your part. You'll need to find a model where the wheelbase will fit these chassis (the WLToys chassis wheelbase is slightly adjustable), and then you'll have to do a fair bit of work with styrene to mount the body to the chassis itself, and that's to say nothing of the painting, sanding, and detailing you'll need to do to the body to make it look scale. This is a very good option, but it's also one I would only suggest to a very seasoned modeler. I hope that helps.

@@RCRacingLegends Wow. Thanks for the detailed answer. You got a new subscriber :-) As for the bodykits, I'd prefer out of the box fitting chassis because (as the proverb goes) I have two left hands and hardly any mechanics skills. Lol

I completely understand...LOL!!

@@RCRacingLegends where can I find mini z bodies?

I normally get mine off eBay. You sometimes get lucky and find good deals or hard to find bodies. Local hobby stores - especially any that specialize in Mini-Z - will definitely carry them. You can also buy them direct from Kyosho online too. Shop around to find the best price as they can vary. The most expensive typically are the pre-finished body sets; I tend to stick with the ones you paint yourself to keep my costs down, but you can decide how much you want to spend. Just keep in mind, not all Mini Z bodies will fit these WLToys cars. The front suspension in some cases hits some bodies, requiring that you modify the chassis/suspension to clear. And in many cases you'll also need to use different width/offset wheels to really make the car look correct.

Thank you! Cheers!

Have you adjusted the steering trim on the radio control?

In the video description, I mention that newer k969/K989 cars have a larger hole in the servo arm. I also mention a potential solution too.

@@RCRacingLegends ah, I missed that. thank you. so you think that one ball screw in the parts kit you linked will go into the upper hole? hm, might be worth a shot...

If you read through some of the comments, a few folks have suggested a few different potential solutions, but the ball screw in the linked kit is probably the easiest and most straight forward solution. The link I posted is to buy the set off banggood.com but I'd suggest searching eBay for the same product to see if you may be able to get it delivered a bit quicker if you're in a hurry.

@@RCRacingLegends word, thank you so much and happy racing

When did you get your car? I have a sneaking suspicion WLToys has changed the steering servo horn design on newer cars with a larger hole that won't accept the existing screw.

@@RCRacingLegends It came today, was so hyped but it just wont work :(

Yeah from the sounds of it they've probably done exactly that - changed the servo horn design. You could try a larger screw, or possibly get some plastic filler and fill the larger hole. If you do that I'd suggest using a a small.micro drill bit to create a pilot hole once the plastic filler is set to avoid cracking or splitting the plastic filler itself.

@@RCRacingLegends That could work, but I sadly dont have screws that small laying around xD. I tried my luck with Locktight but that didnt worked out aswell. But thank you so much for the Info.

Another option might be to try and find a replacement servo arm on a site like banggood.com, but there's no guarantee you'll get the old servo horn or just the current one you have. It might be worth a shot if the price is low though. Sorry I couldn't have been more help.

Try banggood.com, you might be able to get one there. But your best bet would be if you have a local hobby shop close by, you could take the car there and they may have something that will work.

I mention this in the video description

I have another video posted that talks about the differences between the two cars in more detail, but basically the differences are: 1) body 2) tires 3) differentials The differences in the body are obvious, the K969 is a Porsche 911 and the K989 is a Ford Focus/Fiesta. The K969 drift car has hard plastic tires which are great for drifting but have very little grip on just about any surface; the K989 touring car has knobby soft rubber tires which offer a lot more traction and grip, but don't drift as easily. The K969 drift car has locked differentials both front and rear making it far easier for the car to drift but more difficult to control in general; the K989 has open differentials front and rear making it more easily controlled in "regular" driving, but takes a bit more effort to drift with. Everything else about the cars is basically identical. The electronics seem to work and hold up rather well. Both cars are fully proportional and use a 2-in-1 ESC and receiver. So far I haven't found too many issues with overheating but I also haven't raced the cars competitively either. I hope that helps.

@@RCRacingLegends thanks for the info... one question is the steering linkage less slop than wltoys a959 buggy which i have... i did some mods ..adjustable steering links,oil shocks,ball bearings...changed esc and servo to use with my flysky gt3b...which make it pretty nice now..and the little bugger does 36mph plus on on a little 800mah 3s i had...but this car would be nice to set up cones on driveway...thanks

@@roadstar499 Unfortunately, I don't have any experience with any of the A-series vehicles from WLToys (like the A959), so I can't really comment with respect to any steering slop between the two vehicles. I can say, that the two K-series vehicles from WLToys I have don't show any sort of slop or play in any of the steering linkages. Are you finding slop in the steering linkage of your A959 after all the upgrades you've made?

But, why is my screw so loose

and is it also full throttle?

These are hobby-grade RC cars, meaning they have fully proportional controls for both steering and throttle. So if you turn the steering control a small amount, the wheels turn a small amount; turn the steering to full lock, the wheels turn all the way. Same with the throttle, pull the throttle a small amount and the car moves very slowly; pull the throttle all the way and the car moves at top speed. I hope that helps.

@@RCRacingLegends wow that really helped thank you fur the detailed reply :)

You're welcome. Glad I could help.

Unfortunately no, the wheels you ordered simply won't work. It sounds to me like you've ordered the 2WD Mini-Z wheels. You need 4WD Mini-Z wheels for use on these 1/28 scale WLToys cars. I wish I could have given you a different answer. Try contacting the place you ordered the Mini-Z wheels and either cancel or maybe change your order for 4WD Mini-Z wheels.

@@RCRacingLegends I can send you a pic of them do you have an email

@@krisstoney6892 you can email me at rcracinglegends@gmail.com

@@RCRacingLegends what if I use bigger nuts I have seen one or two RU-vid vids with similar wheels that aren't 4wd

@@RCRacingLegends thanks mate just sent email

Yes, you can. I would suggest you turn on one controller first, then turn on its corresponding car. Make sure they are bound. Then turn on the second controller and the second car. You should be good to go after that.

@@RCRacingLegends thank you for actually replying, i’m planning on building a custom rc car with the xmod frame and the wltoys electronics

@@steezzyyo That sounds pretty cool. But, if you're going through all that effort, why reuse the WLToys electronics? There's much better electronics out there.

@@RCRacingLegends i’m sorta on a tight budget

@@RCRacingLegends i mostly just want it so me and my stepdad can race

Odd that it only understeers to one side. Have you adjusted the steering trim? That would be the first thing I'd suggest trying if you haven't done so already. Second is to check and make sure the amount of steering travel is the same from one side to the other. Make sure the battery wires/connectors aren't getting caught in the steering linkage; I've actually had this happen. If the steering angle/amount isn't the same from one side to the other you may need to remove the servo horn from the servo, set the steering trim to zero, "zero" the servo, then reinstall the servo horn. That should result in the amount of steering angle from left to right being the same. Another thing to check would be for any sort of binding in the steering knuckles themselves (remove the steering rod to do this). If they're tight, you may need to take the suspension apart and apply some grease to the joints and maybe hand-work them to loosen them up a bit. None of my cars suffer this issue, but these are the things I would tackle first if they did. I hope that helps.

Your front diff is probably very tight. Both mine were out of the box. Break them open and free them up and give them some grease. Check out beavers hobby channel for a tutorial.

I've had others claim their car does the same thing. I don't know if the slight steering to the left is a "common" issue or if it only happens to only a small number of cars. Is this happening with drift tires or with rubber grippy tires? If it's with drift tires, that may be the issue - the plastic drift tires have zero give, and if they're not shaped absolutely perfectly, it could cause this problem. Try taking the wheels off the left side of the car and putting them on the right and see if the car steers slightly to the right. If so, you've found the issue. And if that's the case, I'd suggest getting a new set of wheels and a higher quality set of tires from Kyosho or DSRacing.

@@RCRacingLegends you could be right, sadly I haven’t got rubber tires with the car. I will change the sides of the tired and just hope that it’ll get better

Another potential issue may have to do with the bearings in the front hubs. You may have one that's not spinning smooth. It might be worth pulling them both, spraying with a contact cleaner, and maybe re-oiling.

@@RCRacingLegends that’s a great idea, will do that

@@RCRacingLegends I just celaned the bearings, nothing changed. My last action was to higher the chassis, idk why I thought of that but that somehow worked. Looked like the Carrosserie was "blocking" a wheel somehow

And I mean like the parts you adjusted and stuff

@@randysanchez1397 If you just got yours then you may not be able to perform this modification as it comes out of the box. It's my understanding that the folks WLToys changed the servo arm earlier this year on these K-series of cars, and you can no longer move the screw from the lower hole to the furthest one as the whole is a bit too big. You can still perform this modification but you'll need a 3.5mm ball stud with an M2 thread, or you'll have to fill the larger hole with a plastid filler and reuse the old screw that came with the car. I have a link to a 3.5mm ball stud kit I bought on Banggood.com in the video description. I hope that helps.

@@RCRacingLegends wow you don’t understand how much I appreciate your fast reply that makes sense okay I thought the change was to the part itself I was confused like well my arm looks like yours I’ll check it out see how it fits What do you suggest I do for wheels and stuff idk where to even start on finding reliable info everyone shows you what they did but not really how lol I even bought a hb toy 86 to body swap

@@randysanchez1397 I would suggest checking out Beaver's Hobby Channel here on RU-vid. He has a lot of great information re: these WLToys (and other 1/28 scale) RC cars. As for hop ups and upgrades, I tend to get mine from sites like Banggood.com or even eBay.com. Mounting scale bodies and things of that nature typically require that you have to either build or modify parts from spare plastic so that you can get them to fit. There's good groups on Facebook around these cars that can help you with that. But before you run out to start buying upgrades, I would suggest that you first learn to drive and drift the car as it comes out of the box. Then, when you reach the limits of what the car can do stock, start looking at buying upgrades and things of that nature. Otherwise, you could end up spending 3 times what you bought the car for in the first place only to be disappointed in it, not because the car is crap but because your skills aren't up to par.

@@RCRacingLegends oh yeah I hear you lmao I’ve been having a ball with it stock an sounds good thank you so much for the tips I am pretty handy with kydex/abs plastic Im just not sure what mods are even worth getting I just want some wheels right now 😭

Yes, unfortunately it seems the folks at WLToys has revised the servo arm on the later vehicles with one that has the upper hole slightly larger making this mod only possible on earlier versions.

i saw that in other comment as well. i used a ball jointed that i sanded down a little. finding a 3.5 mm ball screw is impossible. there are a few more differences as well.

@@Koto-Sama What other differences did you find? I'm contemplating buying a new K969 or K989 to see what those differences are and maybe do a follow-up video. If the changes are permanent to these two platforms then this video won't be all that helpful to folks who are new to these WLToys cars.

@@RCRacingLegends the motor has a metal gear. the differential and gears are made of a different material and they don't work. a lot of sanding was necessary. i ordered multiple. the receiver were slidlie different betwen them. one has a jst conector and one is faster. they also dont work with other remodes. a litle bit annoying.

I don't think it does; WLToys changed the design of the servo arm on their newer 1/28 scale cars, including the 284131. There a link in the video description to the parts you'll need to do this mod.

@@RCRacingLegends thanx

Not just yet. I'm focused on getting my Team Associated RC10B6.3 buggy finished up and off the bench so I can turn my attention to this (and other) projects.

@@RCRacingLegends great can’t wait to see future videos on the k969 !

When working on my K969 or K989 I use a relatively inexpensive Husky 6-piece precision screwdriver set I picked up at Home Depot. Here's a link to the exact set I have: www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-Precision-Screwdriver-Set-6-Piece-246300060/204663493 I'm sure you can find similar sets at places like Lowes, Harbor Freight, or even Walmart. And with the exception of the wheel nuts, this set is basically all you need to work on these cars.

@@RCRacingLegends thank you I have my k969 coming in the mail and wanted to see what tools I needed to work on it

@@jaxonborell6581 No problem, glad I could help. If you pick up a similar set of screwdrivers you'll be off to a good start. I would also strongly suggest getting a small cross wrench so you can remove the wheel nuts. These cross wrenches typically come included with most RC cars (like Tamiya or Kyosho) but for some reason, it isn't included with these WLToys cars. But you can find them on eBay or any decent hobby shop. www.ebay.com/itm/352819931282?hash=item5225b4e892:g:xbUAAOSwgitdn~GA

Not as much as I did when I first got them. My RC collection is rather large and they all command my attention to one degree or another. Plus, I have several RC projects on the go at any one time - some make it to the channel, some don't. I'll try to get back on these soon.

@@RCRacingLegends cant wait to c some videos of them cuz I need to c whats going on with mine cuz im having crazy gear trouble

That's because your probably have one of the later cars. WLToys recently changed the servo arm on later K969 and K989 cars such that this mod won't work as I've described it in the video.

@@RCRacingLegends ok thank you I ended up using a different screw

That's awesome! I'm glad you found a solution. You're not the first to discover this issue, and unfortunately I don't really have a good suggestion to solve it.

@@ignaciocastro8075 hi, i have the same problem. Can you suggest me what type of screw i Can buy? Maybe some kit of screws from Amazon?

If you look in the video description you'll find a link to a Sinohobby steering parts kit from Banggood. The kit contains 3.5mm ball head screws that will fix your issue.

Actually, this does work on earlier K969 and K989 models. It doesn't work on later models (with a beige/tan-colored servo horn). For later models, you'll need to use a larger screw or a 3.5mm ball stud. I mention this in the video description.

I discuss this in the video description, but ultimately this mod doesn't work for newer versions of the K969, K989, or the 284131.