RC Car Types
- Interactive, amphibious and children's - great for anyone who loves cars and having fun. Here you will find RC models with various technical tweaks, popular cars from the animated movie Cars, or RC models specifically made for young kids.
-
Off-Road - most RC cars belong in this category. It is further divided into:
- Buggies - classic racing buggies. They have a low chassis and usually larger rear wheels. Suitable for landscaped field or forest roads, parks, and other relatively flat terrain.
- Monster Trucks - have a high chassis, so they can handle difficult terrain and can climb over rocks and roots.
- Truggy - as the name suggests, these cars look like a cross between a buggy and a monster truck. Flexible and tough.
- Short Course - based on real off-road racing vehicles and unlike the above-mentioned RC cars, they have wheels hidden under the fenders.
- Crawlers - adapted for technical driving on extremely rough terrain. They are usually a bit slower than other cars.
- City Road - suitable for driving on paved surfaces like asphalt, park roads, forest roads, or playgrounds.
Children's
Buggy
Monster Truck
Truggy
Short Course
Crawler
City Road
RC Car Racing Indoors or Outdoors
Small remote-controlled cars with a scale of up to 1:32 or cars with a speed of up to 15 km/h are suitable for some exciting indoor racing. Even some larger and faster models have an adjustable speed limiter, which makes them safe if you decide to try them out at home. A 1:24 RC car, for example, won't demolish your apartment if you're careful. These modestly sized cars are also suitable for lighter terrain, such as a dirt roads, maintained lawns, etc. For rougher terrain, consider cars with a scale of 1:14 or ideally 1:10 or 1:8.
RC Car Scale
The larger the RC car model, the better it can handle off-road driving. However, larger cars are harder to transport and demand more space.
- 1:32 (length approx. 10–12 cm) - suitable for playing with at home.
- 1:24 (length approx. 15–20 cm) - can fit in a backpack for a trip.
- 1:18 (length approx. 20–30 cm) - can also fit in a backpack.
- 1:10 (length approx. 40–50 cm) - the most popular scale, suitable for outdoor drives.
- 1: 8 (length approx. 60–70 cm) - unleash them on a field or a country road and enjoy. Typical for RC buggies and monster trucks.
- 1:6 and 1:5 (length approx. 80 cm and more) - giant cars with an internal combustion engine that sounds like a chainsaw. These are fast and noisy, so you should drive them away from residential areas, unless you want to contend with some really disgruntled neighbours.
Engine Type
-
RC cars with electric motor - suitable for both beginners and very advanced drivers. They are easy to maintain, relatively quiet, and don't require additional fuel. They do, however, include a battery that needs to be recharged. A spare battery will ensure that you will be able to drive even after the main battery has died. Electric motors are further divided into:
- DC - can reach a speed of 10-50 km/h depending on how powerful the motor is.
- AC - regularly climb above 50 km/h. Compared to DC motors, they are more expensive, but have lower power consumption and can therefore last longer with the same battery size.
- RC cars with internal combustion engine - suitable for very advanced drivers. These cars reach truly impressive speeds of up to 100 km/h. With authentic sound, you'll feel like you' re driving a real car. However, internal combustion engines are more difficult to maintain and require extra fuel. You will need to properly adjust the RC model at first to make sure everything runs as it should, which means these cars like you to start nice and easy.
Maximum RC Car Speeds
- Up to 15 km/h - RC cars with this speed are suitable for children and preschoolers and for both indoors and outdoors.
- Around 20–30 km/h - fun time for both children and adults. Especially suitable for outdoor use.
- About 50 km/h and more - for more experienced or older drivers. The high speeds means these should be used exclusively outdoors.
Proportional Control
It is a steering system that allows you to continuously increase or decrease speed and choose how “sharp“ your turns will be, delivering a more authentic driving experience. Expect to see it in the mid to higher priced RC cars. Models without this control system usually do not allow you to slow down or accelerate smoothly or turn exactly in the desired direction.
Frequency
RC cars operate at a frequency of 2.4 GHz as standard, which allows you to operate multiple models at once without them interfering with each other. RC models with a frequency of 27/40 MHh are designed primarily for children' s or beginner models. They are equipped with a retractable telescopic antenna. However, they may suffer from interference, which makes it more difficult to operate multiple models at once.
