Broke car

[Pikey1978]

Just got my first digital set after a number yours of being scalextricless it’s a second hand set “digital super gt” the cars have had a hard life and the Aston Martin is dead!  I have noticed that the 2 outher cars light the head lights when first put on the track but nothing with the Aston. The Porsche didn’t work at first this I traced to metal plate the breads rub on had come off so iv repaired that and now the Porsche and the viper run great and switch lanes. I must say with have had a lot of enjoyment so for. Can anyone offer any advice on what to look for all connections look good I suspect the chip is burnt out not sure if this is possible or even plorsable tia

[woodcote]

Digital cars do get a real bashing - good job getting the Porsche and the Viper going! It sounds like you've checked all the obvious things inside and out with the Aston - wheels rotate, no loose wires inside, motor and axle bushings all pressed into the chassis etc. In that case it's most probably either a dead motor or a faulty chip.

 

Those older cars have wired-in chips rather than the C8515 Digital Plugs. Have a good look at the chip with a magnifiying glass (or a macro shot with a camera) and if you can see melted components or scorch marks on the circuit board, then that's a bad sign.

 

If you have a soldering iron, you can desolder the chip from the motor (remembering what wire goes to which side - always good to take a photo before you remove anything). Then put a 9V battery across the terminals on the motor.  If the motor is struggling to move the rear wheels, they check again to see if anything is binding. If not, the motor could do with replacing with a new one. If the motor sounds strong and the wheels are spinning nicely, then that's all well and good for the motor, but suggests the chip is dead.

 

A dead chip can be revived by GregK (find him on Slot Forum) for about £5 plus postage or you can fit a new C7005 Retro-Fit chip, which cost around £15.

[Pikey1978]

Thanks for this I'll try the motor. the wheels and motor turn well so not sized. I have a volt meter and could check to see iv it's getting power. What voltage should I get? I'm guessing 9v battery is just to test and it would be a higher voltage from track

[woodcote]

You should be getting in the region of 13 volts from the track - digital track is 'always on'. It's the chip that controls the power level going to the motor.  If you're using the volt meter without disconnecting the chip, do be extremely careful not to short out anything and risk damaging the chip.

 

I forgot to ask if you tried ID-ing the Aston to one of the controllers you already go to work with the Porsche or Viper. That's just in case you have a controller or powerbase issue.

[Pikey1978]

I didn't try and repair. I'll try this next. Both of the other cars light up briefing as they make contact with the track, the Aston dose not do anything