Any parent knows that young boys love playing with cars, In fact, they are one of the most popular toys available and have been for countless years. But as children get older and harder to please (over three years old say), the ‘push and go’ model cars get a bit boring and many kids develop a longing for something that moves on it’s own! Remote control cars therefore fit the bill nicely and that is why they are growing in popularity, year after year. And it’s not just kids driving the trend, but adults too! There is a whole plethora of information about the hobby on the web, but little for beginners and that is why I wrote this article.
When trying to make sense of all of the different remote control cars available, a good place to start is understanding that there are two grades of remote control cars (or radio controlled cars as enthusiasts call them). The two different types are hobby grade cars and toy grade cars and both can provide hours of fun and enjoyment, for the right person.
Toy grade remote control cars are ideally suited to younger children because they cost less and if your child’s interest fades, you will not have spent the earth. Toy grade remote control cars are also safer for younger children, as they are generally not as fast, compared to say a petrol or nitro powered car (these can hurt if they hit you at 60 km/h!). Toy grade cars have other benefits too, such as;
- Unbelievably detailed replicas are available, suitable for little & big boys who want to own their dream car.
- Many are officially licensed by manufacturers like Range Rover, Land Rover, Audi, BMW, Ferrari etc. & they are generally cheaper than the replicas you can buy in most car show rooms.
- Generally, they do not need to be built and are ready to use from the box.
- They are an ideal gift & are cheaper than most hobby grade remote control cars.
- They are safer for younger children (generally three & up) compared to faster hobby grade cars.
A great selection of toy remote control cars is available on Ebay. Some of the best can be found by clicking here.
Hobby grade remote control cars are different. They are more expensive, but offer several benefits if you are looking to take your hobby more seriously. For example, spares are often available & you’ll be able to make repairs yourself (or even get your car serviced in a specialist shop). Hobby grade remote control cars are also generally faster, as they are powered by either high performance electric motors, petrol or even nitro engines! For this reason hobby grade remote control cars are not suitable for younger children, as they can reach speeds of up to 60 km/h. In fact, most reputable brands recommend that nitro powered cars are only suitable for teenagers and adults, due to their speed and the toxic nature of nitro fuel. You can also upgrade a hobby grade remote control car to make it faster, stronger, more adjustable or just to make it look better. Some even have optional bodies that you can replace whenever you want.
If you decide to opt for a more expensive hobby grade remote control car, you will have a few decisions to make, such as;
On Road Versus Off Road…
The most popular type of remote control car is the Off-Road Buggy. These normally have larger tyres with spikey treads, full suspension & go on almost any terrain. On-Road cars are usually lower, have slick tyres & sleek sporty bodies.
Kit Form or Ready To Run…
Some hobby grade remote control car companies specialize in producing kits that you can put together yourself. Although this can be rewarding if you have the patience, it is not really an option for younger children, as some models may require a small amount of finishing, for example bodyshell painting and fitting. Kit form remote control cars can cost more at first, but they can also be more durable and therefore economical in the longer term.
Electric, Petrol or Nitro Powered…
Electric remote control cars are typically powered by rechargeable NiCad, nickel metal hydride or lipo batteries. Electric models are the entry grade within the hobby class cars & this power source is considered to be safer compared to petrol or nitro powered models, particularly for younger drivers. They are also quiet and can be used indoors.
Petrol remote control cars are normally powered by small 2-stroke engines, similar in capacity to chain saw engines. They can be faster than electric models, but they are not particularly suitable for younger drivers. Petrol power is often used for larger cars.
Nitro remote control cars are usually powered by model 2-stroke engines that run on specially formulated model fuel, which is available from specialist shops and websites. They require more user knowledge, and are also not suitable for young children, as they are seriously fast and nitro fuel can be dangerous stuff! Nitro powered remote control cars can also be more difficult to start.
Scale – Big, Medium or Mini…
A whole plethora of different sizes (or scales) is available and it doesn’t really matter which you buy, unless you intend on racing your car at a club in a specific category. Generally speaking the huge monster sized 1/5th size cars are petrol powered and are not really suitable for children due to their bulk. A good option for most and probably the most common sizes are either 1/10 or 1/12 scale. These cars are widely available with either a nitro or electric power source, and are small enough for most to carry. Smaller ‘mini’ sizes are also now quite common too, particularly in 1/18 scale.
Generally speaking, hobby grade remote control cars are sold at specialized hobby shops or websites. A great website for beginners is www.remotecontrolcarsdirect.com” target=”_blank”>www.remotecontrolcarsdirect.com”>www.remotecontrolcarsdirect.com where you can find more information, videos, and details about magazines and clubs.
In summary, whichever type of remote control car you decide to buy one thing is guaranteed regardless of your age, you will have lots and lots of fun!
Watch the video related to remote control car
iDriver is an iPhone application to remote control a car. Go to www.spiritofberlin.eu for more information on “Spirit of Berlin”, a completely autonomous vehicle by the Freie Universität Berlin. It is equipped with various sensors and a drive-by-wire system for unmanned driving. iDriver is an addon to remote control the car with an iPhone. Powered by Appirion UG (http
Help answer the question about remote control car
where can i find a remote control car kit?Hi, I am working on a project and I was wondering where i could find a remote control car kit that can handle a lot of current. I was hoping to use a 12V car battery to power a very large actuater and mobility chair transaxle. Any comment is appreciated! Thanks in advance!
Or if you could show me a schematic of the layout, that would also help!
About Author
The author is a remote control (and radio controlled)car fan!
wow, the bird in the backround must be going M-10. CHEESE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
fake at the end,u can c it because everything else speeds up as well.Including the 200mph birds in the background
Oooook. Short answer, is you can't. Long answer is; Each remote car, and remote car radio handset has a crystal in it. The crystal in the remote car, and the handset it came with are identical, producing the same frequency and running your car. However, the cheap remote car radio handset your purchased has a very slightly different crystal, it is still 49mhz, but it may be 49.174 while the one you had before was 49.566. Basically this means that you wont be able to get control of the car with a different handset. However, hobby grade cars have the crystals visibly on the outside of the radio handset. IF this is the case, you can remove the crystal from the handset, and switch it with another. Same with the car, IF ITS HOBBYGRADE you can take the top of, the crystal will be poking out of a small black box, the reciever. IF this is the case, you can swap the crystals around. However if what you've got is two toys cars, im sorry to say it, your stuffed. If you need more info, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remote_control_car#Toy-grade_radio_control
Unless you are "allowed" to build your own RC remote/receiver, hacking an existing RC remote will be a pain in the butt. Of course if you are allowed to build from the ground up, you have tons of options.
you can see the wings on the “flies” around 0:56 the light under the flag starts to blink really fast too, but who knows.
i would be scared to be the guy that starts it up
OMG!!!!!
200 MPH eh? Goes well with the 200 MPH birds flying in the background.
If it was just an electric toy car, you would increase the voltage the motor is getting and it would go faster. But being remote control, it has some electronics in it that could be damaged by higher voltage.
But there is always a way. Do you know much about electronics? You need to wire in a relay between the motor and the control box. You wire it so that the control box doesn't send power to the motor any more, it just sends a little power to the relay to "trip" it (a relay is just a switch that it turned on by electricity – you can get one at Radio Shack).
Say your car runs on 6 volts. You would hook up some batteries with say, 12 volts, and connect one of the wires to the relay, the other wire to the motor, and then run a wire from the relay to the other motor wire. Now, when you press the button on the remote to make it go, the controller in the car will turn on the relay. The relay will connect the 12-volt power to the motor, and off it goes, twice as fast as before.
You might even consider running it at 18 volts. To do this, get 4 or 6 rechargeable 9-volt batteries. Connect them in series pairs – two batteries to make 18 volts, then two more in series, with this series connected in parallel to the first. The more batteries you have in series, the faster it will go. The more you have in parallel, the longer it will run.
Hope this helps!
Rick (engineer)
that was light speed or i have bad seeing
Get a life!! This has to be the worst hobby anyone can think of. Why don’t you get someone to jump-rope as the car (thing) goes round. That wuld be entertaining to watch somebody jump like a GD fool!
Go to a prof. hobbies shop, if they don't have the whole kit they should have the control transmitter and receivers you need.
Try BestBuy or Radio Shack (if they even still sell things like that).
William Pirkey
http://dealchalet.com/menu.php?category=toysgToys
oh my fucking god its smokeing
With a very good sense of imagination..
first if it has a a starter than put batteries in it
then put the nitro in the vehicle
then try starting it with the starter
(if problem persistce than wiggle the exauhst pipe until exauhst is moving out freely)
if this still does not help than im sorry i cant help