Easy Drift Conversion For Tamiya TT-02 Touring Cars

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The Tamiya TT-02 has been a go-to touring car chassis for years—and for good reason. It’s fast, easy to build, affordable, and comes in more body options than most RC brands’ entire lineup. Whether you’re into realistic supercars like the stunning McLaren Senna (#58711) or real replica race cars like the awesome Subaru WRX STI NBR Challenge (#58645), there’s a TT-02 kit that’ll hit your sweet spot.

 

But if you’ve been running yours as a street basher or racing it, you might be missing out on another side of its personality: drifting. With a few inexpensive bolt-ons, you can completely change the way your TT-02 drives and turn it into a drift-ready car that can slide through corners with style. Here we will show you an easy drift conversion for Tamiya TT-02 touring cars and none of the changes are permanent, so you can always revert to the original touring setup.

This conversion guide is based on a bone-stock TT-02, but the same upgrades work with TT-02 variants and most other touring chassis. You’ll need six main items:

• A hotter motor
• A motor heat sink
• Anti-wear grease
• Oil-filled shocks
• Drift tires
• A full ball bearing set

1. Tamiya RS 540 Sport Tuned Motor — #53068

The stock TT-02 comes with Tamiya’s silver can 540 brushed motor (27-turn). It’s fine for casual running, but drifting calls for more wheelspin. The RS 540 Sport Tuned (23-turn) delivers faster acceleration and a higher top speed, making it easier to break traction and keep the tires spinning through long drifts.

Installation Steps:

1. Remove the gear cover protecting the spur and pinion gears.
2. Unscrew the motor mount and lift out the stock motor.
3. Remove the pinion gear, then take the motor mount off the old motor.
4. Attach the mount and pinion to the Sport Tuned motor. It comes pre-wired with bullet connectors, so no soldering is required.
5. Slide the new motor into place, secure the mount, reinstall the gear cover, and plug the motor leads into your ESC.

2. Tamiya Motor Heat Sink — #54571

Drifting works the motor hard and doesn’t provide much airflow for cooling. A heat sink helps prevent overheating by drawing heat away from the motor can. This blue anodized aluminum model not only helps performance, but adds a touch of style to your chassis.

Installation Tip:

Slip the heat sink onto the motor before reinstalling it into the chassis. Position it so the fins don’t touch the TT-02’s center driveshaft—any contact here could cause interference during operation.

3. Tamiya Anti-Wear Grease — #53439

The TT-02’s gear differentials allow each wheel to rotate at different speeds, which is great for cornering grip—but not for drifting. To make breakaway and slide control easier, you want the diffs to act almost locked. Filling them with Tamiya Anti-Wear Grease is an inexpensive way to achieve this.

 

Rear Diff Procedure:

1. Unscrew the upper arms from the rear uprights and disconnect the top of the shocks.
2. Remove the spur gear cover and then the gear diff cover.
3. Slide the diff out and remove the gearbox joints.
4. Open the diff and pack it fully with anti-wear grease, working it into every gear and crevice.
5. Reassemble and reinstall.

Front Diff Procedure:

1. Disconnect the upper arms from the uprights and unbolt the top of the shocks.
2. Remove the gearbox cover screws and lift the cover away.
3. Slide the joints out, remove the diff, open it, and fill it with grease.
4. Reassemble in reverse order.

4. Tamiya TT-02 CVA Super-Mini Oil-Filled Shock Set — #54753

The stock friction dampers on the TT-02 can’t match the performance of oil-filled shocks. Upgrading to Tamiya’s CVA Super-Mini set improves chassis stability and helps keep the tires planted mid-drift. This kit includes all four shocks, so you can upgrade the entire car in one go. Since these are made of composite plastic, this is a more affordable option over aluminum oil-filled shocks.

Installation Steps:

1. Fully assemble the new shocks before removal of the old ones.
2. Unscrew each stock shock from the chassis and replace it with the oil-filled equivalent.
3. Adjust preload spacers as needed to maintain correct ride height.

5. Tamiya Drift Tires — #54021 or #54022

Drift cars need low-grip tires to initiate and maintain slides. Tamiya’s DriftSpec tires are made from a hard resin that resists wear and makes breakaway easy. Pre-mounted options save time:

• #54021: Metal-plated mesh wheel with Super Driftech tire
• #54022: 10-spoke metal-plated wheel with Super Driftech tire

These bolt straight onto the TT-02’s axles and hexes—no modifications required.

6. Tamiya TT-02 Ball Bearing Set — #54476

Replacing the stock plastic bushings with precision ball bearings reduces friction, improves drivetrain efficiency, and increases top speed. It’s not strictly necessary for drifting, but it’s a worthwhile upgrade if you’re already opening the chassis.

Note:

This is the most labor-intensive step of the conversion, as you’ll need to disassemble much of the drivetrain. To save time, perform this upgrade alongside the other modifications so you only tear the chassis down once.

Bonus Option: TT-02D Drift Spec Chassis — #58584

If you’d rather start fresh, Tamiya offers the TT-02D Drift Spec chassis which is preconfigured for drifting and you supply the body. There is also the option of picking up a Tamiya TT-02D kit which includes the chassis and body. At the time of this article there are seven Tamiya TT-02D kits that come with a body and are shown below.

Final Thoughts

The TT-02 is a fantastic all-round touring chassis, but with these upgrades, you can turn it into a slide-happy drift machine for minimal cost. Best of all, every change is reversible—meaning you can switch between grip and drift setups whenever the mood strikes.

For more information about Tamiya products, visit: TAMIYA

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