Choosing Your First RC Car

Traxxas Mustang Boss

RC cars are a hobby that many people are attracted to at some point, but many people don’t follow through because it can seem like a difficult and expensive pastime to become involved in. RC cars do not have to be expensive or complicated, and with the right information anyone can choose an excellent starting RC car or truck for their particular situation.

Traxxas Maximum Destruction

One of the first choices to be made is what kind of RC vehicle you are interested in. Certain types of vehicles are better for certain situations, and some handle very differently despite being internally similar. For “off road bashing”, or generally mucking about in the great outdoors, RC monster trucks are generally the best choice. They have excellent ground clearance, large wheel bases and large rubber tires. These make them ideal for handing rough terrain. Monster trucks are great for jumping as well, because they are durable and can be made very powerful.

Redcat Racing Backdraft Buggy

Those interested in racing dirt tracks with be looking at buggies, stadium trucks and truggies. Both race in their own class so performance is really more of a personal preference. Buggies are lower the ground and are more precise. They cut into corners quicker than stadium trucks and are more nimble. Stadium trucks, however, run better on rougher tracks. They are also more forgiving and easier to learn how to drive. Truggies are a combination of the stadium truck and buggy, and their performance lies somewhere in between.

Losi Micro-T Stadium Truck

Those wanting to race on-road will be looking at street racers. These cars are extremely powerful and some can reach speeds of over 100mph. There are models available based on just about every real life car one can think of, and of course price and performance varies drastically. These are the kind of cars that can be converted into drift cars as well. Redcat Racing has a large selection of on road cars geared towards beginners.

Redcat Racing Shredder XT

Another important choice to make is whether to purchase a nitro or electric RC car. Electric is more recommended for beginners because electric RC cars are both safer and easier to use. Nitro engines work basically the same as an old car engine. They have spark plugs (sort of), carburetors, need the proper air to fuel ratio, produce smoke and need some way of cranking the motor over. All of these things can be very fun, and those who know a lot about internal combustion engines will probably enjoy nitro RC cars. For the average person though, electric cars will be much easier to learn. Nowadays electric cars are just as, if not more, powerful than nitro cars.

Traxxas Slayer Pro Nitro

Cars come either ready to run or with assembly required. Assembly of an RC vehicle is different from normal model assembly and can be very complicated for those who are not experienced. For this reason, ready to run (RTR) vehicles are recommended for beginners. This allows the user to skip the hassles of assembly and simply get to running the vehicle immediately. As with the hassles associated with nitro motors, some people find this is one of the draws for them. But while I would recommend someone getting a nitro car provided they have the dedication and time to put into it, I think that ready to run really is the way to go for a first car.

HPI Blitz

Once all of these decisions are made, choosing an RC vehicle should be a simple process. Simply click the appropriate category on the Hobbytron website, set the search filter to the appropriate price range and make a pick. With RC cars you mostly get what you pay for, but brands like Traxxas and HPI have been around for years and are well-trusted but the hobby community. Anything from these and other major brands is likely to be a good investment.

Mini Fire Fox

Check out the latest and greatest in RC vehicles at HobbyTron.com.

Wild Wolf Off-Road Electric RC Truggy

Truggy is a hot word around the RC community right now, it’s a vehicle that is currently seeing a major surge in popularity. Truggys are similar to buggys except they are based on a truck instead of a Volkswagen Beatle. In the RC world buggies tend to be just slightly faster but are also slightly harder to control, and many of the people in the know claim that truggys are just more fun. They are extremely hard to flip, they do not bottom out much, and they handle jumps very well. This is due to a low center of gravity, large off-road tires, and independent suspension. The Wild Wolf RC Truggy is an entry-level truggy that comes at an affordable price and anyone can pick up and use right out of the box.

The Wild Wolf has many features that allow it to go anywhere at any time. Fully working plastic independent suspension is chief among these features, and it really does let the Wild Wolf handle almost anything you can throw at it. Big off-road tires help with this as well and they add traction in sand or other loose surfaces. The Wild Wolf’s light weight also helps a lot on these loose surfaces. I took my Wild Wolf to a local national park and was able to conquer anything I came across. For an entry level RC vehicle I was very impressed with how well it handled large rocks and sand. The suspension is tremendously springy and coupled with the off-road tires soaks up bumps like nothing. The front and rear bumpers are nice as well, they made me feel safe from accidentally jamming a rock in to the internals because they are attached like skid plates. They also stop the Wild Wolf’s body from being destroyed when you land hard after a big jump.

The Wild Wolf would make a great truggy for anyone looking for a first RC car, because it has an affordable price and is simple to run. There is no assembly required and they even give you a 9V battery for the remote and a small screwdriver, so you literally have everything you need right in the box. The remote itself is a very simple pistol grip design, no extra crazy knobs or anything to fiddle with.  Just pull the trigger and turn the wheel to steer, you’re on your way. Of course you can push the trigger forward to go in reverse, do J turns, or whatever else you can come up with. The Wild Wolf features a Lexan hobby style body as well, which means if you break the body or just get tired of the colors, you can switch it out for a new one. Or you can take off the body and run it naked, although it does look a little funny.

For an entry level RC car the Wild Wolf Truggy gives you a plethora of options. Many entry level off-road RC vehicles look like they would be capable of tough going, but lack the features to back up the visual claim. The Wild Wolf actually has fully working suspension and bumpers, and big, heavy traction tires. So it can actually go off-road like it’s supposed to, and is just a lot of fun. The first time you send it careening over a jump you’ll realize that you made a good decision.