RC Gas Cars - Radio Control Hobbies
RC gas cars, also known as nitro RC cars, are extremely high-powered vehicles that may reach speeds of up to 75 MPH! Even when raced straight out of the box, these cars may drive in excess of 60 MPH, reaching much higher speeds with a little tweaking. A few have even reached as high as 80 MPH!
These vehicles use a type of fuel called "nitro". It is a mixture of oil, methanol, and nitro methane. They can’t run off of regular gasoline, but the fuel isn’t terribly expensive and can be easily ordered online. Just a single gallon of fuel can allow a car to run for many, many hours, so it’s quite economical.
If you’re truly seriously about RC cars, getting a gas-powered car is a very good idea. There’s not much that can equal the excitement of such a powerful vehicle in such a small package! Just imagine the type of air you can get on jumps with such a fast, powerful car!
Some people are afraid that they will need advanced knowledge or special equipment to use a nitro RC car, but the fact is, they are all RTR (ready to run). You can just take them out of the box and go! You’ll be driving your RC car at 60-75 MPH in no time!
There are two basic types of nitro cars to choose from; on-road and off-road. You can also get hybrids that will work well in both situations. Street cars, also called Sedans, are very fast. They are made for racing on tracks and streets, and their main purpose is to go very, very fast on fairly level terrain.
Off-road vehicles are generally trucks or jeeps. They are meant to be driven on rough terrain, and they can stand up to bumps, jumps, bangs, rolls, and even crashes and they’ll still keep going. They’re usually a little slower than the on-road models, but they will still reach speeds of 60-65 MPH.
These vehicles are also very easy to maintain. Many models come with instruction manuals and DVDs that show you how to clean, maintain, tune up, and even upgrade your car if you choose to do so.
A nitro car must be broken in when it is first purchased. The instructions will show you how to do this. After it has been properly broken in, you will notice it runs better, faster, and more efficiently.
You’ll want to take some extra precautions with RC gas cars that you wouldn’t have to worry about with other types of RC cars. For example, you need to be especially careful not to crash, unless you’re using one of the durable off-road models. At speeds of 60-75 MPH, a crash could seriously damage a vehicle that isn’t designed to take it.
Also, gas-powered RC cars can’t be stored as easily as other types of cars, especially in the winter. If you’re going to store a gas RC car over the winter, you need to be sure to empty the fuel tank and discharge the battery before you put it into storage. This will help your car last longer and keep its performance at its peak.