Hi, Just bought a Challenger from HobbyZone and put together,but I noticed once I charge the battery and spin the motor up it lose's power in about 3 minutes. Just wanted to know if it is my battery or if I am doing something wrong. I am charging it on the car lighter as it calls for and letting it charge until the charger stops flashing and goes solid red. So can any one help me get off the ground please??????????????

I have a Comander and a couple of scouts. I haven't messed with them in a while but they came with a wall charger and I bought the car charger seperatly.
The car charger is a fast charger, the wall charger charges slower. Nicad batteries require a forming charge the first time they are charged which is done slowly.
Try charging with the wall charger after discharging the pack and see if that helps.

I had the same problem with my Aerobird Challenger when I first bought it. The car charger would "false peak" and shut off before the battery was charged all the way. I bought the AC charger for $9.99 and I used that to charge the battery (3 hours?) at home. I could then pack the plane in the car and use the car charger to "top it up" before flying.