Radio Controlled Cars - Speed Junkies Wanted

It's a good thing that little policemen don't ride in little radio controlled cars. For if they did, a lot of us would be spending all of our money on speeding tickets!

How fast can radio controlled cars go? Fast -- very fast. A well-tuned gas-powered cars can go from 0 to 60 mph in less than 2 seconds!

Electric cars, because of better torque, seem to be the fastest among the rc cars. But, just like a cheetah, these bursts of speed don't last very long.

Most electric cars can operate about 10 minutes between charges.

Gas-powered radio controlled cars, on the other hand, can maintain their top speeds of between 30 to 70 mph for an hour, or longer, depending upon their fuel capacity.

Maximum speeds depend upon the type of car, gear ratios, and how well they are maintained. Here are some average speeds for radio controlled cars listed by model.

Stock electric dune buggies: 15 - 20 mph Stock electric pan cars: 25 - 35 mph Modified electric touring cars: 30+ mph Gas touring cars: 40 - 50 mph 1/8th scale off-road: 40+ mph 1/8th scale on-road: 70+ mph Dragsters: 70+ mph

The key to extracting all of the performance that your car was designed to deliver lies in good maintenance. You should become very familiar with the routine maintenance that your car's motor or engine requires and keep up with it.

Engine break-in, before you use the car the first time, is also a sure-fire way to increase your car's performance and mean time between failure. For electric cars, break-in allows the seat the brushes properly against the commutator so that they make good contact.

With gas cars, they allow all of the engine's moving parts to seat themselves properly.

Battery break-in is also key to extending your car's performance. Your battery will last a lot longer, and produce every ounce of power that it can, if you fully cycle it at least one time before using it.

Charge the battery fully and then discharge it, at a constant rate, using the built-in discharger (if present), or a device known as a light bulb discharger, which is simply a series of 12-volt automobile light bulbs wired to a battery connector.

By cycling the battery at least once before it's used the first time, you protect the battery from developing "cell memory". Cell memory is a condition that develops when a battery is recharged, over and over, without it first being fully discharged.

Of course, just as with real cars, radio controlled cars can be "hopped up" or made to run much faster then they were designed to. Speed modifications range from modifying battery power, for electric cars, to changing gear ratios and installing performance transmissions for any type car.

There are turbo boosters and even rocket engines for gas-powered cars.

There are a lot of web sites dedicated to squeezing the last bit of performance out of radio controlled cars. Most RC hobby shops have an in-house speed and performance expert who can also help you.

Like any other hobby, operating radio controlled cars can get addictive and very expensive if you don't watch out! Unlike other hobbies, however, this one is fun for the entire family and will bring children and adults together for hours on end.

I hope this information on gas powered rc cars has been helpful. Click here to get more great information about rc cars