TROPHY TRUCK TECH Short Course 2WD Vs.Trophy Truck
Both trucks use 400+ cubic inch V8s that produce over 700-horsepower. They take jumps like no-ones business and they are both bodied like Ford Raptors. However, despite their similar looks, the Ford Raptor of the desert is not the same as the Ford Raptor in the Short Course 2WD class. Let’s take a look as some key differences between the two chassis.
Ride Height
Trophy trucks hit a large variety of terrain, boulders, and more while the short course truck will see a laid out course that features a variety of jumps. While both courses will change over a day, the short course will be groomed back to race condition while the desert trail will go back as Mother Nature wants it to. Because of these differences, a trophy truck will sit far higher than the short course truck, which is more concerned with handling and weight.
Suspension Arms
Along with the changing trails, trophy trucks encounter some very unforgiving, and sometimes very stationary, obstacles. The short course trucks obstacles of misfortune are walls and other trucks. Thus, the arms of the trophy truck will much bigger and beefier than those of the short course truck.
Coilovers/Bypass
A trophy trucks suspension is in constant motion and the fluid inside will heat up much faster than that of the short course truck. That’s why you see the massive bypass shocks on the trophy truck but the bypass shocks, if they are even run, are far smaller.
Suspension Travel
Since a trophy truck will not see much air, it is designed to have a large amount of up travel in the suspension as it runs over ruts and rocks. The short course truck sees far more air and will sacrifice up travel to get more droop to handle the larger jumps and big air. Though, flat landing is still rather painful.
Engine Placement
A trophy truck will normally run in a “front, mid-engine” design where the majority of the engine is still in front of the cab. That way, engine weight is still as close to the center of the chassis as possible while still giving room for a navigator. Short course trucks actually place the right side of the cab, where a navigator would have been.