transverse vs in-line battery mounting

[Saito2 6686]

I recently threw together some Madcap/SA parts I had in my stash to make a runner. Its using the old Astute transverse method of battery mounting. How detrimental is that to handling? A lot of older Kyoshos and Tamiyas used this method before mostly switching to in-line for their performance buggies.

[Fruitfly01 596]

From what I've read about the Astute, it was prone to under steer because it's rear heavy.  Although, the few I saw in action seemed easy to spin out - maybe because the diff was too tight out of the box.  My Madcap always takes a wide turning arc on a hard surface unless I slow down a bit.  It's the opposite on grass where I have to be gentle on the steering as it will grip roll or turn very sharply.  I can tame it a bit with the right tires.

Mounting the battery longitudinally was probably a way  of overcoming those problems.  It was also the 'in thing' as every other company was starting to mount their batteries lengthwise in the chassis.

At least you can alter the position of the battery pack in the Astute to alter its handling a little.