Q&A for How to Adapt a Mousetrap Car for Distance

You should use something that has good grip and little friction. For example, yarn isn't a good choice because it is prone to getting caught and has lots of friction. Strong fishing line or even dental floss would be better choices. Both are smooth and thin, but also strong enough to turn the wheels without snapping.

Yes, but some friction is nessecary to make the car go forward in stead of skidding in place.

The car would travel further with bigger wheels and faster with smaller ones.

A skinny one, to reduce air friction. But not too skinny, or the mouse trap may break your car when it goes off.

A long body is best because it gives some weight to your car and it will move further and faster.

You want the body to be long and narrow. Don't have it be tall because of aerodynamics.

It is based on what you think works best. Thin wheels increase longer distance, while others increase traction.

It should be as light as possible without being too fragile. Disks work great as wheels, but are thin and could break if you have too much force. A wood frame works the same way: it's light, which is good, but it could break if it's too thin.

It's probably best to use 4 wheels. The CDs are a good choice for both sets of wheels.

The arm should have a string attached to it, with the other end of the string wrapped around the back axle (which will spin the axle when the arm snaps forward).

Yes, it can slow down the wheels when they are driving.

Distance is better for a race. Speed is good, but if the others are faster than you, they will travel a short distance. Yours may be slower, but it will move farther than the others.

If you want lower air resistance, go with thin (although the air resistance won't be affected too much unless the lever is massive).

If you want for your car to go further, you should use larger wheels.

The measurements can be what you want them to be. Just be sure to only make the lever arm so long that it touches the axle, to get the car moving.

When the mousetrap is set off (assuming you built it and set the mousetrap up) the string attached to the dangerous part of the trap will fly forward, spinning the rear axle which leads to the car to start moving.

Cut some part of the balloon to make a ring and then stretch it around the outside of the CD.

About 2 inches longer than the distance from the top of your lever to the axle. If for speed do 2, if for distance do 3.

Add a lever to the mouse trap, then add string to the lever, then tie it on the axle.

Your best bet is to get a longer string.

It depends on your preference. When the chassis is heavy, it will decrease the speed of the car, and a light chassis will increase the speed.

If you can make the car accelerate fast and stay a constant speed with a light frame, your car will continue to roll.

Gradually remove string from the axle until you reliably get the distance you'd like.

Try to find mini-discs -- these are smaller and cheaper than compact discs. They might be hard to find though.

You will need to make sure that the wheels are straight and as perfectly aligned as possible.

You do not need to buy a special mouse trap. You can simply use a wooden rod to attach to part of the spring with zip ties and a hot glue gun.

The wood should be fairly thin.

Yes but not too much with the axel, because it needs to stay in place and move at the same time.

Just long enough to touch the front axle if string is at the back. This will maximize power and the pull. Also add a rubber piece to the axle to slow down slippage

The are all the same size.