Which basic electric car for the garden??

[ukdavvy12]

Hi

Once again I have found a corner of PH's I didnt know existed

Right, this has been inspired by the Tamiya thing in this months CAR
For Christmas and my birthday in 1981 I got a Rough Rider kit and spent several of the next months paper round wages on radio gear and batteries

I still have it and the Acoms radio, even if it doesnt work any more
After reading CAR and having a quick Google I can see that a similar car and radio gear costs the same in pounds as it did when I was 15 as it does now Im a bit older with a slightly better paid job LOL

I admit my kids are occasionally spoiled however Im tempted to buy a new one just for me and bks to them
Sadly they will demand a go which is where I need help

Instinctively I am tempted to buy the most expensive fastest and most uncontrollable r/c kit available
Well you just have to dont you?

However if I do then the bairns are never going to master it quickly so I need something a bit more 'entry level' to play with

And theres the problem - which boggo kits should I look at?
Id prefer something that looks like a car not a buggy which excludes the Frog
Id also like it to run in the garden so as to avoid trashing the skirting boards
The Tamiya Imprezzas etc look good but are potentially a bit quick and Im not sure of ground clearance

So if I may ask the PH collective...

Which electric r/c car looks like a car, has sufficient ground clearance to run round the garden and is slow enough for a kid to play with when I let them?

Ta

PS the Fiat 500 in CAR looked good but I cant fnd any on the web and it really looks like an indoors only model, which may be OK if it was throtted back and slow

[thehos]

rc kits that look like a car wont have enough ground clearance for grass, my buggy runs on short grass only.

maybe look at truck kits, hilux etc or what about a lunchbox

[bumrar]

or a traxxas slash....not as nice looking as some of the tamiyas, but very good value, very tough, perfect for backgarden fun!

[FEZZA_RS]

You want a truggy like a tamiya blackfoot or wild dagger or even a lunchbox or midnight pumpkin big fun easy to build and pleanty of upgrades available!

[Viper_Larry]

As said above, car type vehicles will all have low ground clearance. What about the Tamiya Twin Detonator truck which I have. Relatively cheap, robust and not too fast and will go over most surfaces.

http://www.modelsport.co.uk/?CallFunction=ShowSpec...

[Emsman]

Tamiya lunchbox.

I wanted one for years, finally got one last year ( aged 34) for my son to learn on (he is 3)

Best fun in ages. Not too quick, fun to build, lots of spares and upgrades, and runs easily on long grass.

[Holst]

Emsman said:

Tamiya lunchbox.

I wanted one for years, finally got one last year ( aged 34) for my son to learn on (he is 3)

Best fun in ages. Not too quick, fun to build, lots of spares and upgrades, and runs easily on long grass.

This is what I would buy, they are simple to understand and can drive on anything.

I didnt have one when I was younger but a friend did and it was awesome.

[VX Foxy]

Emsman said:

Tamiya lunchbox.

I wanted one for years, finally got one last year ( aged 34) for my son to learn on (he is 3)

Best fun in ages. Not too quick, fun to build, lots of spares and upgrades, and runs easily on long grass.

How is your son managing? My 2.5yr old struggled with the 2-ch 'copter so was thinking of a return to terra firma

eta: is this any good? http://goldstarstockists.net/live/catalog/product_...

Edited by VX Foxy on Wednesday 11th March 15:42

[Emsman]

He gets on ok, the secret is an area big enough that he can't crash into anything!!

That one looks ok but tamiya stuff is good and great fun to build.

I think i got mine from from model shop Leeds and they were great to deal
with

[thehos]

eta: is this any good? http://goldstarstockists.net/live/catalog/product_...

that will be fine, more of a toy though, by the description

[HereBeMonsters]

I can heartily recommend the Lunchbox, just I run a 9T Brushless system in mine, so it does over 35mph, and can backflip from standing.

I was going to suggest a cheap Tamiya buggy, something like a Mad Fighter or even retro like a Grasshopper.
If you can't stand the buggy format, but want something that will run off-road, the new DF-03RA Impreza is a good choice, but a bit pricier.

You will never regret buying a Lunch Box, or, if you prefer a Midnight Pumpkin, on the same chassis.

[VX Foxy]

HereBeMonsters said:

I can heartily recommend the Lunchbox, just I run a 9T Brushless system in mine, so it does over 35mph, and can backflip from standing.

I was going to suggest a cheap Tamiya buggy, something like a Mad Fighter or even retro like a Grasshopper.
If you can't stand the buggy format, but want something that will run off-road, the new DF-03RA Impreza is a good choice, but a bit pricier.

You will never regret buying a Lunch Box, or, if you prefer a Midnight Pumpkin, on the same chassis.

Buggy or truggy appear to be more crash proof, no? Where's a good place to get a complete RTR jobby inc TX etc?

[Emsman]

Lunchbox doesn't break when you roll it- I have tried to no avail!!

Not sure on ready to run kits, I would suggest building one they only take a few hours

[Holst]

Emsman said:

Lunchbox doesn't break when you roll it- I have tried to no avail!!

Not sure on ready to run kits, I would suggest building one they only take a few hours

The big tires also offer quite a bit of crash protection and the big body protects the suspention when you roll it.

[thehos]

only thing really that breaks on a vlb is the body mounts.

best to buy a kit then you know how to take it apart when you need to fit spares/upgrades

[eliot]

Doh - me too found a corner of PH!
My 5 year old is currently outside playing with a little 4x4 buggy my mate loaned me last night - cant get him of it now! I'm amazed how much they have come on from like 25 years ago!
Quite like that Tamyia linked above...

[HereBeMonsters]

Depends where you live - check out your local hobby shop, bound to be one near you.

[morgrp]

Anything Tamiya - They're super tough and excellent for beginners. If you're going second hand - get a Super Hornet (2wd buggy) or get a Wild Willy 2 - superb fun for the gardnen and wheelie all over the place! both cheap, tough, run for ages on a battery and easy to build and maintain. If you're feeling nostalgic - Tamiya have also re-released the original "Hornet" as a new kit:

Super Hornet:

Wild Willy 2:

The original Hornet:

[HereBeMonsters]

morgrp said:

Anything Tamiya - They're super tough and excellent for beginners. If you're going second hand - get a Super Hornet (2wd buggy) or get a Wild Willy 2

Super Hornets are actually fairly rare in good condition, so there are lots more capable buggies for the money.
A Wild Willy is good fun little truck, but the LunchBox has that little bit of extra wheelbase which helps it run a bit faster.

You'll never regret buying a LunchBox!

[Emsman]

Confession time.

I bought 2 Lunchboxes.

One is bog standard, and used frequently.

The second took bloody ages to build, has chrome effect wheels, upgraded suspension and a darker yellow metallic paint.

And im never going to use it.
It just sits being looked at