No throttle response; Cold weather blues or something else?

[87Warrior]

Rig Info: RTR Honcho with stock electronics.

I have had a reoccurring problem with my truck when crawling below freezing (no snow). After 15 minutes of run time the truck stops moving forward and will not work properly until the following day, when it happens again.

Here are a few of my observations: Steering controls work 100% of the time. The light on the ECU is green and stays green when operating the steering, it turns red when I press the throttle (nothing happens).

I have pulled all of the plugs and checked for corrosion and a tight fit with no fix to the problem. What could the the issue? ECU? Radio? Motor? I never experienced this o anything like it before the winter weather set in.

Thanks for the help.

 

[hvydty1]

Just wondering, what turn motor are you running? What type, and how do you charge your batteries? When your truck stops, are you sure that the battery is not dead? It will not go forward or reverse? When it stops, does the steering lock in whatever direction it was pointed? How old are/is the battery pack(s)? Could be anything from motor overheating the speed control (thermal shutdown), to having a bad battery pack (pack could have a shorted cell. Even charging the pack at the correct rate and time, the one cell might not be taking it's full charge). If your running the stock 27 turn motor (or is it a 21 turn?), your not going to get alot of runtime out of a pack. You could change to a 35 turn motor and extend your runtime a little more. I run a 55 turn Venom in mine and can get 2 to 3 hours runtime. Cold can thicken grease in the diffs and make them harder to turn, causing the motor to have to work harder, draining the pack quicker. It's hard to call, but it can really be a number of things. Don't know how many you have, but have you changed to a different pack to see if that could be your problem?

 

[87Warrior]

Still running the stock 27t motor. I bought the truck lightly used and it included a battery. Its an Orion Rocket Pack 2700 Ni-MH, unsure of age. I purchased a digital charger (dynamite vision ultra) from my LHS and have it set to charge at 4amp, battery indicates a maximum of 5amps. It usually takes 30minutes to get a full charge and in the last 4 months usually gave me 30-45minutes of run time.

When it stop, it will not go forward or reverse. It doesn't even try. The steering does not lock and can be operated with no issue. Today I was simply doing some very low speed backyard crawling when it shut down which is very mild-mannered compared to most days. The stock headlights and tail lights still burn bright when it stops working, not fluttering at all when operating the steering or attempting to operate the throttle. The truck is stored in my garage (around 50degrees) so I can't imagine the diff grease would cool/thicken that much in 15-20 minutes, while being used.

Now that you have questioned the charge rate/time/style, I do recall charging the battery after it sat for a couple of weeks and it only took about 15 minutes. This seemed odd, but it seemed to work fine the next day. Is there any way to test a battery/cells? Seems like something I should start researching. If she is toast it would be a good excuse to start upgrading the electronics.

 

[hvydty1]

Well, you say steering and headlight work fine, so I might steer away from the battery. Might. It's always good to have a spare. You might have a bad place on the motor com. Next time it happens, try spinning the spur gear by hand and try the throttle again. Just give it like half a complete spin. If it starts working again, it's the motor. You might try blowing the motor out with compressed air also to remove any dirt in it. Kinda sounds like what it might be.