First electric vehicle for a 13 year old

[Triggaaar]

Hi all

My son is about to turn 13, and I'm hoping to get him an RC vehicle to have fun driving around the garden.

He's physically disabled: his hand skills should be fine with a controller, but he'll sit down while driving, rather than walking around watching the vehicle.
The garden is flat, grass and patio - about 70 feet long, by 20 feet.

Noting that I'm a newbie, I would guess that the most import requirements for us would be:
Obviously ability to navigate rough grass with ease
Decent battery life
Good stability (it will be harder work for him to go and right a vehicle that's tumbled)
Fun - I don't have any preconceived ideas on what type of vehicle would be the most fun - a moderately fast buggy, or a truck, tank etc. A flying vehicle would no doubt be fun, but I'm guessing a bit tricky to keep within a modest garden?

Budget: Anything from say £60 to £200. Happy to spend on the low side if that's all that's needed to meet the requirements, but will spend on the high side if everything cheaper falls short.

Any suggestions greatly appreciated

Thanks

 

[tntpoof]

there was a self riting rc made a few years ago not sure by who.not sure if it would fit in you budget either..

 

[Triggaaar]

Thank you. Although that would be a cool extra feature, it's not a complete necessity, so I wouldn't want to go all out for that at the expense of the other points. My son can walk with a frame, so can recover a vehicle if he has to, and he also has me to run around for him if necessary, so I figure as long as a vehicle isn't particularly unstable, it should be ok.

 

[TheOneTrueMorty]

I've done some research and it appears that the cheapest self righting car available is around 270£, without bateries and charger
I think a brushed 1/10 th truggy/ 4WD Buggy is the way to go for you

 

[Triggaaar]

I've done some research and it appears that the cheapest self righting car available is around 270£, without bateries and charger

Thank for that - yeah, that's a bit over budget at this stage, given that I've no idea how much he'll enjoy it.

I think a brushed 1/10 th truggy/ 4WD Buggy is the way to go for you

Thanks again. 1/10th sounds good, but I'd certainly also consider 1/16th. I assume you're suggesting that brushless will be over budget, so we should be looking at brushed.

Are they any specific models you could recommend?

 

[TheOneTrueMorty]

Brushless is too expensive and requires more skill, for beginners this not the best option.
Honestly I don't have a precise model in mind, but you should check those made by T2M racing
Simple advice, when checking the price always consider some extra budget for batteries and charger

 

[Triggaaar]

Brushless is too expensive and requires more skill, for beginners this not the best option.

Got it, thanks.

Honestly I don't have a precise model in mind, but you should check those made by T2M racing

Thanks

Simple advice, when checking the price always consider some extra budget for batteries and charger

I assume some cars will come with both, and others won't?

 

[TheOneTrueMorty]

!! Also check if it is Ready to Run (RTR) or as an assembly kit, as kits don't come with a radio and reciever all the time.
For RTR, most of the time you will have the RC itself, the manual ,the radio and some spare parts.
I recommend you search this way : RC car -> baterie type required for the car -> charger required for the baterie
Brushed cars usually runs on Nimh cells that are fairly cheap, it goes the same for the charger

 

[TheOneTrueMorty]

And if you have trouble finding what you are looking for, you should check at you local hobby shop as well

 

[TurboChargedHonda]

Some Traxxas 4x4 models have the self-righting feature (Stampede, E Revo, etc.), but it's pretty hard on the drivetrain. It self-rights by using rotational momentum so it goes from full throttle forward to full reverse and back until it's right side up.

As for other options, have you considered Arrma's 1/10 scale 4x4s (Granite, Senton, Typhon)? The brushed versions could fit your budget. If you want something slower or requires less running space, you could also get 1/10 scale trail truck/crawler (tops out at 5mph, but climbs obstacles very well). The Element RC Enduro, Axial SCX10 ii, and the Redcat Gen 8 are a bit over budget, but they are very nice trucks. If you want a faster crawler, you can get the Traxxas TRX-4 with the 2-speed transmission, but it may be over budget by alot.

 

[Triggaaar]

Some Traxxas 4x4 models have the self-righting feature (Stampede, E Revo, etc.), but it's pretty hard on the drivetrain. It self-rights by using rotational momentum so it goes from full throttle forward to full reverse and back until it's right side up.

Yeah I don't feel that we need any of that.

As for other options, have you considered Arrma's 1/10 scale 4x4s (Granite, Senton, Typhon)? The brushed versions could fit your budget.

I'm just researching, and I've seen the Arrma Granite. Most of the things I see look to be nice and affordable in the US, and surprisingly more or harder to find in the UK.

If you want something slower or requires less running space, you could also get 1/10 scale trail truck/crawler (tops out at 5mph, but climbs obstacles very well).

Since we don't have much in the way of obstacles in our garden, the crawlers don't seem suitable for us. I think short course truck is the sort of thing that will suit.


Thanks all for the help

 

[TurboChargedHonda]

If you have a local hobby shop, you can also take a look around there. Sometimes local brands are much more affordable than the more well-known brands.

 

[Triggaaar]

If you have a local hobby shop, you can also take a look around there. Sometimes local brands are much more affordable than the more well-known brands.

Thanks, but unfortunately, shops are currently shut in the UK

 

[tntpoof]

order online. don't see how brushless requires more skill.. lipo takes a little more intelligence .but its just reading the correct info and following it..like 1c charging . dont run a lipo to low as in voltage. charge in a fire proof sack.bag box .

 

[tntpoof]

the rc I was talking about was a jeep body with a 3 bar roll cage behind drivers seat middle bar did all the self writing. as op said he wont need that option
I was thinking a rc like this... I've raced lc for a few years built to be abused ..
LC RACING 1/14 Off Road 4WD RC Brushless Truggy KIT Unassembled #EMB TGHK|RC Cars| - AliExpress

 

[MD6]

Is your son in a wheel chair? If so, could you make a tool that allows him to flip the rc car or tuck back on it's wheels? There are cheaply priced r/c cars on Amazon that are made to run upside down or right side up.

 

[Primarrma]

The Arrma Big Rock Crew Cab V3 is really great, and has a switch to turn the speed down on the radio. The mega range is a great starting point to also from Arrma. Revell makes a few rc cars that aren't bad, but are closer to toys than hobby grade, one of them I think might be OK it's called the Cross-Strom. https://www.revell.de/en/products/revell-control/revell-control-x-treme/x-treme-cross-storm.html

A Rock Racer style car might be fun too, not as slow as a crawler, but has good scale detail.