Nikko Amphibious RC ATV Vaporizr - Green, 4WD, 360° Spins, Boys Age 8+

I bought for my son for his 6th birthday because I was fed up with the cheaper remote control cars he has had in the past being plagued with the problems of rubbish turning circles, poor battery life, flimsy construction leading to bits dropping off and poor range etc... I decided to find something that was actually designed for kids to drop down steps, bash into skirting boards etc... so after quite a lot of research I adopted for this and overall we are very pleased with it. There's a longer, more in-depth review below but quick summary is; very robust, battery lasts for ages, fast and nimble but a bit tricky to get used to, overall great value for money. Controls ----------- This was the bit I was most concerned about, I knew before I bought it that the car doesn't have `normal' steering, i.e. the front axle is fixed and the wheels don't turn. Steering is accomplished by the car having two motors, one for each side, and directing power to one side or the other or both. The controller still has two control sticks but they both only go forward or backwards. Push them both forwards and the car goes forward, push them back and the car goes backwards. To go left you have to push the right stick more than the left stick and vice versa. This is basically how a tank works and does allow you to do some pretty cool manoeuvres such as on the post `donuts' which the kids seem to love but scares the dog for some reason. It also means the car had a brilliant turning circle and can navigate the most demanding of dining table and chair legs obstacle courses. This manoeuvrability comes with a compromise though which is intuitive controls. Every other remote control car we have had has a standard controller layout, left stick makes you go forwards and backwards, right stick controls direction. Being six it took my son quite a while to get used to the controls, particularly the push left to go right mind trick you have to get through but he's made great progress with it and as long as you persevere the benefits of being quick steering and nimble far outweigh the learning curve. Car capability ----------------- Inside the car is fine, the big tyres get over pretty much everything. It's powered over rug ridges, ramps, down stairs (oops), over shoes and even the dog at one point. It does wheel spin a fair bit on wooden floors which is die to having powerful motors and `off road' style tyres rather than slicks like a lot of cars come with but this also allows you to pull great skids around the kitchen island. Outside in the garden it's handled out not too smooth lawn and various leaves, branches, gravel etc... with ease but we haven't tried it in water yet because he haven't had the opportunity, plus my son's a bit worried about losing his favourite toy in a pond! Apparently it can do snow as well but not had chance to test that. If we get a few inches this year I will pop back and update this review. Build quality --------------- Overall very good indeed. The outer shell is very tough plastic and the body of the car itself seems like it's built like a tank. The car has already taken more than a fair share of drops, knocks and crashes and other than a couple of scratches it's absolutely fine. The battery is a bit fiddly to get in and out but that's partly due to the need to have a tight rubber seal so it is waterproof. The only issue we've had with the car itself is the antenna is simply a thin wire which is held in a rigid plastic sheath which keeps it held up. Because you have to thread this through the case when you change the battery the sheath has quickly become damaged and split meaning it just flops about if you yet it. I've remedied this with some insulation tape to hold the wire down on the shell and it's fine. At the opposite and of the antenna robustness spectrum is one on the controller which is brilliant, think, flexible and rubber - almost impossible to snap off unlike the flimsy telescopic kind that usually lasts all of five minutes. Battery life ------------- My son usually plays with it for about 20-25 minutes and it shows no sign of slowing etc... he usually manages two or three goes before I have to put the battery back on charge. Quite impressive really. Batteries of course degrade over time and I expect the longevity will suffer eventually but I believe you can get spare batteries for this which is something I might consider so he can have one on charge which the other is in use. Value for money --------------------- **EDIT** I BOUGHT THIS AT THE BEGINNING OF NOVEMBER 2014 WHEN THE PRICE WAS AROUND £35, THE REVIEW IS BASED ON THAT PRICE. I'VE JUST CHECKED BACK A FEW TIMES IN DECEMBER AND FOUND THE PRICE HAS BEEN CHANGED SEVERAL TIMES UP TO ALMOST £70 AT ONE POINT WHICH IS PRACTICALLY DOUBLE AND FRANKLY ETHICALLY QUESTIONABLE. THIS IS NOT A £70 TOY, £40 to £45 AT MOST, IF IT'S ADVERTISED FOR ANY MORE THAN THIS I SUGGEST YOU SHOP AROUND AND FIND IT SOMEWHERE ELSE AS IT IS AVAILABLE FROM SEVERAL OTHER ONLINE RETAILERS. I honestly don't think you can fault this. It's not the cheapest available but it's my no means the most expensive by a long shot, and it just works. For general fun, robust and child proof car this is excellent.

The item description clearly says that the radio frequency is 40 Mhz but the one I received was 27 Mhz. I already have one on 27 Mhz so this one had to go back. The colour of the car is no indication of the frequency. It seems very difficult to find one on 40 Mhz so I've had to buy a completely different vehicle. It also appears to be very difficult to find a spare battery. Charging time is only 60-80 minutes but I'd prefer to have a spare. I would definitely recommend it but I would highlight that this is a toy rather than a hobbyist radio control car.

This is a brilliant RC car. Bought it at Christmas for our 4 yr old and he got the controls quicker than I did! Brilliant in winter for going on walks as it goes over roots, through the woods, on the road, over puddles. The battery lasts about 30mins on full usage, so recommend buying a spare. The one recommended on amazon doesn't work but i found a german supplier on ebay that does them and it works perfectly. The only downside has been that the aeiral is a little flimsy, the sheath get's broken and then the aerial starts to come loose after you replaced the battery approx 50 times. Have used florist wire and straws to create our own protection for it.

Great product. Only disappointment, is that you cannot order two different frequencies. This is a real pain, as I ordered two for my two boys who wanted to race them together, and due to the fact I couldn't specify which frequencies I wanted, I got two the same! The only way round it was to return one, and buy one from a different shop where I could go in and have a look at it before I bought it. My two boys (age 7 and 9) can now race them together and they have made excellent xmas presents. I do hope Amazon can do something about items like this, so that buyers can select exactly what they want in future, as this would be very helpful.

This is a concise yet informative review. Overall the product is very fun to play with and can be used on a variety of surfaces including shallow puddles (NOT SUITABLE FOR IMMERSING IN WATER) and greenery. The product is also quite durable and the big wheels help prevent it from being scratched. It is also good value for money considering how other branded products are complete ripoffs! The only complaint is that removing and replacing the rechargeable battery is a bit of a hassle along with how the antenna seems quite delicate. Great fun otherwise for its targeted age range.

Got this for a Christmas present and it was a real hit, lots of fun and about as good as the adverts suggested It went in the wardrobe for a few weeks and when we went to use it again - nothing. Either charger / battery has died or the something more serious. Really disappointed as it is virtually brand new - and we cant send it back to Amazon. Looking at warranty options but there doesnt seem to be anything written anywhere - Nikko have yet to respond to contact . . .

There are a few similar cars by the same manufacturer - this one is the stand out winner. It doesn't have any bits that can break off, it's splash proof so they can drive it in the snow/through puddles which they LOVE. Others feel less robust and do break quite easily, also has internal rechargeable battery - which will save you money.

The car has a major weakness if reversed at speed into a solid object: the sealed battery holder upper opening catch breaks instantly due to it being a thin unsupported plastic bar at the top edge of the fastening retainer. We have 2 car cars and both suffered this problem during the first use of the cars. A good repair was made by strengthening the design with the use of Leggo and gluing the redesign in place with super glue! (The lower battery door retaining element is fully supported and i s not a problem). The cars are manufactured with either 27Mhz or 40Mhz radio frequencies but do not purchase from Amazon if requiring 2 cars to be used in close proximity as they are unable to ensure which frequencies will be supplied. Two weeks of frustration, several phone calls and 3 returns before purchasing a second car elsewhere testify to this.

Coche potente y rápido, muy divertido de conducir y que funciona perfectamente sobre diversas superficies: asfalto, hierba, tierra. También suficientemente resistente para soportar los impactos a las velocidades que alcanza. Muy contento con la compra y a quien se le regaló mas todavía.

Moin, ich habe vor meiner Bestellung mit dem Amazon-Kundenservice über einen eventuell nicht passenden Stecker gesprochen. Mir wurde zugesagt, dass das Auto ein passenden europäischen, bzw. deutschen Stecker hat. In ganz seltenen Fällen könnte es aber doch schonmal vorkommen, und dann hätte ich aber die Möglichkeit das Produkt zurückzuschicken. Ganz so selten ist der Fall dann wohl doch nicht!!!!!!!!

Dos palancas, una ruedas derecha y otra para ruedas izquierda. Muy rápido. Difícil de controlar en lugares pequeños. El modelo que compré tenía enchufe uk (inglés) y compré adaptador a europeo por 1€ en un bazar.

Leider mussten wir das Produkt zurücksenden da der Aku einen englischen Stecker hat und mit einer deutschen Steckdose nicht kompatibel ist !

ES LO ESPERADO, MUY RÁPIDO PERO SI HAY QUE PONERLE UNA PEGA ES QUE EL MANDO NO ES UN VOLANTE, SON DOS PALANQUITAS DIRECCIONALES