koolie

I am looking for a decent electric RC car for my son. I am hoping to spend $80-$150 dollars. I would prefer an offroad type rather than the onroad. My son is pretty responsible with his toys, but I would assume he will still crash into stuff so the more durable the better.

I know next to nothing about this subject, so any guidance is appreciated. Any direct links to products would be great.

Thanks,
Pat

Radiner

There are many off road Rc car for that price. You should really check your local hobby shop first though. Anyway, the Duratrax Evader EXT2 is a great beginner car for a really cheap price, $119.98. It's not too fast either, but I can assure you its a great car.
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...=LXAAMW**&P=ML
Then there is the Duratrax Evader Dt. This truck can take a beating for a great price.
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...=LXYYT0**&P=ML
For Mini and Micro, there's the Mini-t for $99.99 which is a good car for beginner but it needs upgrade in order to be fast and durable. As for Micro, Micro-t and Micro-DT which is great for indoor fun but not too fast outside, and these little things are very durable.
http://www.amainhobbies.com/product_...dium-Truck-RTR
http://www.amainhobbies.com/product_...dium-Truck-RTR
http://www.amainhobbies.com/product_...sert-Truck-RTR

hnasdad

Iwould go and check out your Local Hobby Store (LHS) and see what they have in stock. Make sure that you can find replacement parts, for whatever you get. Asking what's best in here is like asking "whats the best ice cream".

Does your town have a club, or a local track? See if they have a website and find out what classes they run.

Ipurchased aSC10 about three weeks ago, and my 8 yr old ran in the novice class yesterday. It was only 5 bucks for him to race. It was cool for both of us to do. Everyone there is super helpful and will really go out of their way to help you.

ITS ME DAVID

Just bought my 7 year old on friday for christmas the Traxxas stampede xl5 on sale at
Pep boys for $149.99 sale ends today.

hasek1616

i would personally choose the duratrax ext2, its a good, durable, cheap truck that will surely fit into a class if your son ever wants to race, plus, to my knowledge it is brushless and lipo ready, for when your son is ready to go a bit faster

koolie

I didn't ask for the best, just decent :-)  You could show me 3 different cars where two are complete pieces of garbage and I would have no idea.

I do have a hobby shop in town and they do run an RC track; however, I've had issues with the staff in the past and I am slow to give them my money.  I'm all for think local first, but not at the cost of a good service experience.

The Duratex Ext2 seems decent and was one I had been eying up before.  The truck seems good too, but I'm pretty certain my son wants a car/buggy type vehicle.  Any other suggestions are certainly appreciated.  Thanks for the fast replies

Barber420

My Feedback: (1)

Don't forget about Tamiya Nostalgia models too! The Lunchbox/Midnight Pumpkin, Frog, Hornet, Grasshopper, and Blackfoot are all great starter cars for a kid that age. My first real RC was a Lunchbox when I was 7. My dad and I put the kit together and I've had tons of fun with it. I still have it after over 22 years!! These models are VERY durable, parts are cheap, and basically every LHS carries Tamiya stuff.

SyCo_VeNoM

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...=LXRLP3**&P=ML $169.98 shipped every hobby shop carries parts for it.
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...=LXNJH9**&P=ML $179.97 same thing as the bandit but a truck which is a little wider

Tamiya stuff is pretty decent too, but sold in unassembled kits so you will need a battery, and controller though

koolie

A little off topic, but is NitroRCX.com a safe place to buy from?  I read a number of questionable reviews...

hasek1616

i would try and stay mainstream, for the sake of getting parts once it breaks, and apparently their 10th scales are crap but their 8th scales are ok. if you're talking about whether their site is safe to buy from then id say its better to be safe then sorry if you have read questionable reviews. websites like towerhobbies.com, amainhobbies.com, and horizonhobby.com are good places to buy from and have some pretty good reviews

koolie

Thanks!

msdtyu

dont forget your going to need batterys. as for the truck the evader ext/ext2 are great starter trucks i have an ext1 and its pretty tuff its not going to be to fast or to slow for an 8 year old i highly recomend it

hnasdad

Not only will you need batteries, but a charger as well. The buggy style car has the wheels and A-arms exposed to anything you hit. Iwould really look at the SC trucks. Keeping those wheels tucked inside the body will be a little more forving for a beginner driver.

Smiff 24

Congrats on your Stampede, youve bought a great truck!
It comes with a charger & 1 battery (7 cell) but, an extra battery would be nice so he could run while the
other is charging.
Let us know how it goes!!!

rcflyingnut

My Feedback: (9)

Koolie,

I am usually on the plane side of RCU, but my daughter just turned 7 Monday and this is the one she got (see pics).

This is a 1/10 scale stadium truck called the Circuit by Horizon Hobby. I picked it up from my local hobby shop. It does not come in this color. My daughter is all about pink and this is as close as I could get. In sunlight; it actually looks pretty close to pink. It is totally ready to run out of the box for $119.00. She has already run it into everything with no parts breaking yet. We took it to the hobby shop where they have a dirt track and jumped everything with no problems. You can get about 10 minutes of run time.

Matt, the owner of the hobby shop, said that this is the entry level car. Parts are inexpensive too. An extra battery can be picked up for $10. If you don't have a quick charger; you might want to think about one. The charger that comes with the truck would take several hours to charge the battery. The charger that I use for my planes will charge it in 20-30 minutes.

Just my 2 cents, but I am pleased with it so far.