RC Cars Community 2022 Owner’s Report Survey
We asked 176,500 entry-level and seasoned RC car enthusiasts on Reddit and Facebook RC car community forums, 12 key questions about their view of the RC hobby in English.
The purpose was to get interesting insights about their vehicle and brand preferences, method of use, and attitude towards the RC hobby.
Some results were expected (most RC enthusiasts loved Traxxas RC vehicles) and others were less predictable (Redcat and HPI Racing had RC models that were less used by drivers).
Regardless, there’s something for every brand, seller, and hobbyist to learn from these results, which are highlighted below.
You Can See The Survey We Made this Year Here: RC Cars Owner’s Report 2022 (closed to comments)
The population
Approximately 176,500 RC hobbyists were invited to take part in the online survey on Reddit and Facebook, the two most commonly used social platforms for RC car groups.
Facebook had the leading majority of participants, with 103,700 people making up 58.6% of the population, while the remaining 41.3% (72,800 people) were surveyed on Reddit.
| Population Size | |
| 72,800 | |
| 103,700 | |
| Total Participants | 176,500 |
The responses
While the survey questions were sent to 176,500 people, the yearly RC car owner’s report 2022 yielded 505 responses.
The validity of this survey and the results
Sample size = 176,500 people
Overall responses = 505
Respondents needed at error ±3% = 1,100
Respondents needed at error ±5% = 400
Respondents needed at error ±10% = 100
Therefore, the margin of error is relatively low at ±5% with population size over 100,000 and number of responses at 505.
Summary of Survey Reports
Q1: How many RC cars do you own?
The number of RC cars owned by each respondent varied. The answers ranged from 1 to 3, 4 to 6, 6 to 10, more than 10, and more than 20.
The majority of the 505 respondents (150 participants, almost one-third of the 505 respondents) claimed to have between 1 to 3 RC vehicles, while 145 participants held their own between 4 to 6 RC vehicles. Another 83 revealed that they had 6 to 1o RC vehicles in storage, while 84 replied with more than 10. The least population (43 respondents) mentioned owning more than 20 hobby-grade cars.
Q2: Which RC car type is your favorite?
We found that every RC car driver had different cars on which they would rather spend time and money.
16% of RC drivers say they love monster trucks, 15% have no interest in driving other radio control cars except short course race trucks, and 19% prefer driving buggers over the 23% of RC drivers who preferred rock crawlers. Interest among RC fans that love stadium trucks and all other trucks combined is lower. Only 6% love driving stadium trucks, while 1% of the respondents would drive any RC car available.
Q3: Nitro or Electric?
Despite the increased speed levels Nitro RC models offered, RC car drivers are generally interested in electric models. 87 respondents preferred both nitro and electric-powered models. Only 13 participants owned nitro-powered RC vehicles.
Q4: which brand is your favorite?
More people preferred Traxxas, Losi, Team Associated, Tamiya, Axial, and Arrma brands.
Yet, Traxxas had the most responses at 30% (150 responses).
Arrma RC cars was favored by 18.2% (90).
17.2% (85 people) preferred the Losi brand,
while 13.6% (67) loved Tamiya models more.
12.8% (63) favored Axial, and (54) 10.9% love Team Associated.
5.9% (29 people) found Kyosho an ideal brand.
11 respondents (2.2%) loved models from Redcat, while 5 people 1%) loved Team Associated models. However, some could not determine which they loved best between the Axial and Traxxas models.
WiToys, Mugen, Xray, HPI, Yokomo, Habao, Element, Sakura, Tekno, and Schumacher has less than 1% of drivers who favored the brand. 2 persons responded with “no specific favorites, and I don’t have a favorite.”
Q5: When do you use your RC car?
Despite the hustle and bustle of daily life, RC car drivers are also generally seeking fun at different times of the week with their hobby-grade cars. Only 7.7% (39) respondents are among people who say “it’s still in my closet.”
19% (77 people) show interest in using their remote-control cars on daily basis. 31% (152 participants) say they use their RC cars every weekend, while the greater majority at 42.9% (217 respondents) say they use their RC car “several times a month.”
Q6: How much did your cheapest RC car cost?
The survey revealed $1 as the least pricey to get an RC car. According to the survey, the cheapest RC cars ranged under $100, $200, $300 up to $1,500, depending on the RC car type. Yet, two people revealed buying their cheapest RC cars at $200.
Q7: How much did your priciest RC car cost?
About 5% of RC car drivers said they bought their priciest RC car for under $200, while 40% revealed buying their costliest RC car for under $500. Another 52% disclosed purchasing their remote-control car for less than $4000, with 26% saying they bought their costliest RC car for under $1000. Only one person disclosed buying their priciest RC car at $1 million. Another gave a nondisclosed answer saying, “I won’t do the math.”
Q8: Do you prefer Kits or RTRs?
With a total of 501 responses, consumer interest varied by the preferred build type.
More than half of the population at 59% (297 people) preferred investing in both RTR and Kit RC cars, while 22% (109 participants) favored RC Kit cars. Meanwhile, interest in RTR is lower at only 19% (95 responses).
Q9: What is your Dream RC Car?
Interest also varied by dream car drivers wished to own in the future, from various Traxxas models to Team Associated, Arrma, Losi, Mugen, and HPI models. Three of the most common RC car models were the Primal Raminator, Arrma Limitless, and Traxxas X-Maxx. But from all these cars, the vast majority wished they had the Traxxas X-Maxx,
Some respond with: “I don’t have a dream car, not sure or no idea.” 1% of the participants reveal having their dream cars already with a response like “I have it.”
Q10: Do you use your RC car for bashing, racing, or crawling?
Hobby-grade RC enthusiasts who owned RC cars were asked about how they used their RC cars. The vast majority used their RC vehicles for racing, bashing, and a combination of all. 176 (34.8%) responded with “both,” 197 (39%) respondents said they used their RC car for bashing, and 102 hobbyists revealed they used their RC car for racing. However, 20 people (3.9%) preferred using their car for crawling, while only three said they use their RC vehicles for drifting.
Q11: Do you build and upgrade your RC car, or just buy>drive>clean>repeat
We also asked RC car drivers if they preferred to build, upgrade or buy, clean and drive their RC cars.
Responses to this question varied significantly, with only 365 respondents revealing their preferences. The vast majority (279 respondents) said they would rather upgrade their RC car than buy or build a new one. The next most common response at 47 responses was: “I’m a master RC builder, even made the tires myself.”
36 responded with: “I’m just running it and make sure it’s clean,” while 3 preferred the build and upgrade options depending on the car.
Q12: How much do you spend on upgrades and accessories for your RC car
At 171 responses, the survey showed that the average cost for upgrades and accessories is $70. About half of the respondentsy report spending at least 50% of the purchase price on upgrades and accessories. To this, the most common responses were “too much, a lot, more than I should, lost count, it never ends.”
Another 45% revealed purchasing upgrades and accessories between $100 to $4000 depending on the repairs needed.
Conclusion
Our national online survey of 175,500 people on Reddit and Facebook RC car Community forums found that:
- Many RC hobbyists have a long line-up of RC cars in storage, especially the electric models
- A quarter prefer the Traxxas brand and dream to own models like X-Maxx, which Traxxas produces
- RC car drivers are willing to spend on the hobby they love, whether at the purchase level or during upgrades
- Half would rather upgrade their RC cars than buy or build a new one.
- The vast majority use their RC car for bashing several times a month.
