What Types of RC Cars Are There?

RC cars are known as remote-control cars or radio control Cars in common. They are among the rare things that have stayed alive through all these old generations. Most people support the benefits of RC cars for kids; however, they are equally entertaining for people of every age, including adults. In most Asian and European countries, RC auto racing is considered an actual sport with players of different ages in the competition. You might think that buying an RC car is an easy task, but there are various components to think about before getting the right radio control car for yourself. Let’s discuss some most important things to consider while buying a radio control car.

Hobby-Grade and Toy-Grade RC Cars

It is essential to know the difference between an RC car for a child’s entertainment and a car for competitions. RC cars come in two different categories in the market. 1- Hobby-level RC Cars Hobby-level RC cars are commonly used in professional RC racing competitions. These cars, with more features than toy-grade RC cars, can be customized and upgraded. Because of their challenging functional needs, hobby-grade RC cars have a more durable body, better precision, and are faster than other cars. 2- Toy-level RC Cars Toy-level RC Cars have economical prices. These cars are produced with a combination of spare parts that you cannot find easily in the market. The steering wheel of these cars only has three positions- full left, straight, and full right. These cars are not only perfect for kids aged 5-10 but also exciting and entertaining for adults.

RC Car Sizes

RC Car sizes can be confusing. They are a scale system to measure the size of the RC car with a full-size car. The most famous sizes of scale are 1:6, 1:8, 1:10, and 1:12. 1:10 is the most general size used because spare parts of this size are widely available in the market.

Types of Motor

Radio control cars have only two types of motors: 1- Brushless: These motors are fast, durable, powerful, and more efficient. They don’t have an expiration date. 2- Brushed: These motors are economical but not that efficient and have a tiny amount of power. They last for around a year.

RC Cars Kits

RC Cars come with a lot of different types of kits. Let’s discuss them in detail: 1- Assembly kit: Cars that come with this kit need to be assembled completely. This kit comes with a hundred or more components and an instruction manual. The process of assembly might be as long as 5-10 hours. 2- Ready to run: This term explains itself. The car comes ready to run, completely assembled with only batteries required. 3- Almost ready to run: This is when the cars come almost completely assembled, and just a few parts are required to be purchased.

Types of RC Cars

The essential thing to consider and remember is the various types of RC cars. Below, we have listed the most common types of RC cars you may encounter in the market. 1- RC Touring Car This car is a four-wheeler. It has an independent suspension, and so it involves upper and lower arm control. This car system is made for drifting and works on smooth surfaces, thus making this car the perfect option for your on-road experiences only. No doubt, this is first on the list of fastest RC cars on-road. This car has two types of tires: rubber tires and foam tires. Most people prefer the rubber ones. 2- RC Trucks These trucks are credited as one of the most popular radio control models. They are mainly used to on-road running at a slow speed because they are likely to flip at high speed. RC trucks are particularly known for off-road surfaces. If you have a knack for competitions or you want to drive on grassy and woody surfaces, this is a very good option for you. RC trucks are further split into two different types:

• RC Monster Truck:

The RC model is high-powered, works on all surfaces, and is also known as one of the best RC cars available on the market. The RC car is powered by high-quality lipo batteries with a high discharge rate and energy density. This truck works perfectly on surfaces like grass, puddles, and dirt, and can do all the stunts to entertain you.

• RC Short Course Truck:

This RC truck can work efficiently on all types of surfaces, whether rough or flat. All the wheels of this RC truck are secured by the shell and the bumpers, giving strength to the frame it has. This type of truck is specifically great for people fond of customized RC cars. Overall, short course trucks are durable, versatile, and powerful. 3- RC Rock Crawler As its name says, these cars are invented to work on surfaces that no other remote-control cars can, including mountains, rocks, and all the other rough surfaces. These cars can also move as the name tells; they can crawl. 4- RC Buggy RC Buggies are a cross between off-road and on-road models. They are second on the list of fastest RC cars on-road but are the slowest off-road cars because they have a narrow wheelbase. As they are stable on all surfaces, RC buggies are considered the best option for people who don’t like a specific RC model. 5- RC Truggy RC Truggy is the same as a buggy. They are built to work better off-road, made with a monster truck’s tires, and have a buggy frame. They are third on the list of fastest on-road RC cars and second on the slowest cars off-road.

Best RC Cars for Beginners

There is no specific RC car that is best for beginners. But let’s talk about a few things to consider while you buy your first hobby-grade remote-control car.

• RTR (short for Ready to run):

Firstly, it is essential to get an RC car that is fully assembled, with every required component in the car, which will be helpful for a smooth start.

• Durable:

As a beginner, it will be a bumpy process of getting used to these cars. The learning process may be full of accidents. So, it is essential to get a strong and durable RC car.

• Electric Powered:

These cars are convenient to use and clean. They don’t require a lot of hassle of having to buy and fill fuel.

• Preferred usage:

You must know where you need to use the car mostly. If you need to use it on rough surfaces, RC cars that are good at off-road surfaces are best. Similarly, on-road RC cars are perfect for usage on flat surfaces.

•  Popular Size:

With more possibilities of accidents, it’s very likely that you might need spare parts more often. Picking out a scale size popular can help you make sure the spare parts are available easily. Eventually, beginners need to keep everything easy from the beginning. A lot of time is available for them to upgrade their cars to better models and high maintenance.

Power Source

The most common question that lovers of hobby-grade RC cars face when buying a car is how to choose the best power source. RC Cars are designed to have three ways of power that I have listed down:

• Electric:

This means battery usage. Electric RC Cars get powered with batteries that can be recharged. They are convenient to use, fast, make no noise, and have low maintenance costs. Production of extra fast RC cars used on batteries has been blooming because of the development in battery technology. They also don’t require any maintenance cost over time.

• Nitro:

This fuel is a mixture of nitromethane, oil, and methanol. Nitro-fueled RC cars are available in the market and are less expensive. But they are heavy, easily breakable, and need more maintenance time than RC cars with electric power.

• Petrol:

Two-stroke petrol is the power source for RC models. This fuel is made from combining two-stroke oil and unleaded fuel. RC Cars with petrol as fuel are reliable, upgraded, and run longer. Petrol is easily available and economical than nitro. But, the engines of petrol-fueled cars are larger than others, so they are not available in regular sizes like 1:8 and 1:10.

Conclusion

You must be clear now that RC cars are complicated, and how to choose the right RC car is not as easy as it appears. Many factors should be taken into account before buying the perfect one. But as lovers of RC cars worldwide would promise that the entertainment coming from these cars is worth all the time, effort, and research.