OV9

Not sure if anyone here might be able to help

I want to get my friend's son a R/C car for his birthday - yes, I checked with Dad

They spend a lot of time in the garden, so something that would be capable of going over grass/mud (and possibly the beach too) would be ideal

I've been on Amazon and there are loads and most seem almost too cheap to be worth considering

Nothing complicated, too big, too fast as it's his first R/C car, but I don't want to waste money by buying something cheap and crap

Any thoughts?

Some sort of ethanol powered 70mph monster seems a good idea. He'll want one before long so start him off with that.

More helpfully, I had (at about the age of 9) a radio controlled Chevy Blazer with switchable 2wd/4wd (the 4wd slowed it down too) which I used to drive over flower beds in the garden and loved. The NiCd batteries probably cost as much as the car itself and lasted for very little time. But something like a modern equivalent of that would probably be the right sort of thing.

How much are you wanting to spend?

Zonda_ wrote: Mon Mar 30, 2026 3:14 pm How much are you wanting to spend?

Somewhere in the region of £50 ideally (plus a bit if it's really worth it)

Jobbo wrote: Mon Mar 30, 2026 2:51 pm Some sort of ethanol powered 70mph monster seems a good idea. He'll want one before long so start him off with that.

I got my boy an FTX tracer when he was about 6 - ridiculously good, but whilst it can be “turned down” for speed it is maybe a bit fast for a 5 year old (but you’ll have fun!). Amazing bit of kit though, we’ve launched it off 10 ft skate ramps with no damage and it’ll work well on even medium height grass.

https://www.rcgeeks.co.uk/products/ftx- ... ygQAvD_BwE

Rich B wrote: Mon Mar 30, 2026 4:10 pm I got my boy an FTX tracer when he was about 6 - ridiculously good, but whilst it can be “turned down” for speed it is maybe a bit fast for a 5 year old (but you’ll have fun!). Amazing bit of kit though, we’ve launched it off 10 ft skate ramps with no damage and it’ll work well on even medium height grass.

https://www.rcgeeks.co.uk/products/ftx- ... ygQAvD_BwE

Thanks @Rich B

I think this one might be a better bet (as I think it's quite a bit slower) https://www.rcgeeks.co.uk/products/rcg- ... er-pro-red

(Very helpful person on the RC Geeks online chat btw)

£40 seems insanely good value for that Dave. I think my Chevy Blazer was £30 without batteries in 1982.

30 mins run time - kids have it good these days. Remember when they lasted 5 mins and begging for AA batteries or waiting 8 hours for them to recharge.

Mito Man wrote: Mon Mar 30, 2026 10:45 pm 30 mins run time - kids have it good these days. Remember when they lasted 5 mins and begging for AA batteries or waiting 8 hours for them to recharge.

There really is no point buying a nitro model now, unless you want to be antisocial. My sons Traxxas Slash 2S 2WD does an hour flat out on the beach at nearly 40mph on two batteries, and they take about 40min each to charge.

My kids had these wehn they were 4/5 and really enjoyed them.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005010 ... gJzj_D_BwE

+1 for FTX Tracer, think my son was about 6 when we got it, haven’t smashed too many bits. Small and light enough that it doesn’t have too much energy in a crash but big enough to work ok on cut grass.

Don’t bother with the brushless version, brushed is plenty.