This page of the Exoticars site is for people who have never been exposed to Radio Control Cars before and want to find out more before trying one out for real. Have you ever wondered what it would be like if you could have a scale model car that you could control? Have you ever seen someone playing in the street with a radio control car and wondered what it would be like to drive your own car? Or did you once have an R/C car many years ago, and you want to see how the hobby has changed? It's much easier than you think to find yourself involved in the radio control car hobby! Many people have R/C cars as children but give up the hobby as they get older. Now's the time to remember how much fun it all was! Probably the most popular Radio Control models are radio control (or "R/C") cars. These range from the types of cars you see in toy and electronics stores to the types of cars that companies like HPI Racing offers. R/C cars can be off-road buggies, trucks, monster trucks, cars, street trucks and much more. Radio control cars come in two basic forms: "toy" style cars or trucks that are advertised during cartoon shows on television and sold at electronics and toy stores, and the "kit" type cars or trucks that are sold only at specialized hobby shops or mail-order companies and are available as a build-it-yourself kit or "Ready To Run". Toy-style cars are often advertised as "remote control", while hobbyists refer to kit-style cars as "radio control". Many Manufacturers like HPI and Tamiya for example specialise in the kit-type R/C car or truck, which can come assembled or in kit form, meaning you build it yourself or with a friend. While the kit R/C cars and trucks cost more at first, they are more durable and faster than toy R/C cars. You can also repair this type of R/C car or truck, which is usually impossible or very difficult to do with toy R/C cars. The cost to repair a car or truck is only a fraction of the cost it would take to send a toy-style kit to its manufacturer (if that is even possible). You can also upgrade an R/C car or truck to make it faster, stronger, more durable, more adjustable or just make it look nicer. All R/C car and truck kits have optional bodies that you can replace whenever you want, meaning while you may have a street car today, you can have a street truck tomorrow, or a sedan, racing coupe, sports car, or nearly any other type of car you desire! One of our most popular types of kits are the 4WD truck kits, which can run just about anywhere, taking jumps, dips, bumps and more! Because of large rubber tires and long shock absorbers, these trucks can run on dirt, grass, the street and almost any type of surface. These kits are available in both electric-powered and Nitro-powered ("gas" engine) versions. Again, most Manufacturers offer RTR versions, which means you don't have to build anything at all. Off-Road vs On-Road The most popular type of R/C car is the Off-Road Buggy. Big tires with "knobby" spikes, full-travel suspension parts and a high ground clearance allow the off-roader to go almost anywhere. Most are 1/10 scale (about 15" long), are either two-wheel drive (2WD) or four-wheel-drive (4WD), and reach speeds of 15-30 mph. On-Road cars usually have lower ground clearances, slicks tires, aerodynamic bodies, and are capable of a bit higher speeds. Electric vs Gas Electric cars use a rechargeable NiCd battery pack for power. They can run up to 10 minutes and can be recharged in about 15 minutes. Gas cars are actually powered by a small engine that burns a special glow fuel. Some can reach speeds of over 50 mph! We recommend gas cars for advanced modelers. Kits, ARR or RTR? It takes just a few evenings to go from the box to the track. The advantage to building a kit yourself is that you will know how to repair any possible damage. Spare parts as well as "hop-ups" are available through your local hobbie shop. Other cars and trucks are almost totally assembled at the factory. Those are indicated by the abbreviations ARR (Almost Ready-To-Run) or RTR (Ready-To-Run, usually identical to ARRs but also include an installed radio system). ARR/RTR models cost a little more but spare you the time and effort of assembly. What else do I need? You will generally need to get a 2-channel Radio System to control your model. Tower Hobbies carries a wide selection of high quality, affordable models from the most popular manufacturers. You will also usually need at least one NiCd battery pack and a charger. We often offer these kits in "Combos" which allow you to buy nearly everything needed to get going (car, radio, battery and charger) using only one stock number - and save money! MORE IFO WILL BE ADDED SHORTLY |
