Crashworthy cars and durable track

Kids crash a lot when they’re learning to drive slot cars and most of them find crashing a big part of the fun.  (With any luck their views on that subject will have changed by the time they become teenagers and are learning to drive full-size cars.)  So, you will want to get them a first race set that comes with cars able to withstand the abuse and keep coming back for more.   This generally means sedans and full-bodied sports cars as opposed Formula One cars.  The F-1 cars, with their open wheels and large wings, have numerous appendages that break off fairly easily and don’t stand up well to repeated heavy crashing.  The sedans and sports cars are more solid shapes with fewer delicate parts to break off. 

Probably the best cars for kids to learn on are Scalextric’s high-impact cars.  These cars have a solid one-piece body with the windows simply painted on.  This makes them light and very strong.  They are as close to indestructible as a slot car can be yet they are good-looking models with a surprising amount of detail.  What’s more, they are only $25 to $30 each, so if one of them does get beaten to death it’s relatively inexpensive to replace.  Best of all, these cars handle really well in box-stock form and are easy for beginners to master quickly. Scalextric offers several race sets with high-impact cars.

 NASCAR Nextel Cup cars, which have no wings, mirrors, or other easily broken parts, are also highly kidworthy and are models of cars seen on TV 36 weekends a year.  If Dad is a Formula One fan, go ahead and get that F-1 set he’s been drooling over but also buy a couple of more robust cars for the kids. 

You can reduce the likelihood of damage by setting the track up in an open area on a carpeted floor where crashing cars have nothing to hit and a soft surface to land on.  If you set up your layout on a table be sure to put walls about 3 to 4 inches high around the edges to keep errant cars from making the long plunge to the floor.  It’s also a good idea to pad the inside of the walls, especially at points of frequent impact. 

The durability of the track is important, too.  Kids love to change the layout frequently and are often not too gentle in snapping the track sections together and apart.  If you set the track up on the floor, as many beginners do, at least to start with, you can expect it to get stepped on.  You want track made of flexible, resilient polypropylene or a similar plastic, not more brittle styrene.  The “Tupperware” tracks can be stepped on without breaking.  They can be snapped together and taken apart over and over without the track sections cracking or the locking tabs breaking off from the stress.

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