Radio control car craze hits Jakarta

Radio control car craze hits Jakarta

Vishnu K. Mahmud, Contributor, Jakarta

Radio control cars have always been an interesting pastime for
boys. Whole summers were dedicated to racing with friends, adding
accessories and tinkering with the engine.

And, up to a few years ago, RC (as radio control is commonly
known) cars were expensive, could only be used on certain tracks
and were only sold in specialty shops. And they were mostly
targeted for kids.

Not anymore.

Enter the Auldey "Race Tin" cars. Made in China, these toys
are perhaps the best example of why the four Asian Tiger
economies (Hong Kong, Korea, Japan and Singapore) are always wary
of their Giant Panda neighbor to the north. Guangdong Auldey Toy
Industry Ltd. (www.auldey.com) has produced millions of miniature
radio control cars with an ultra competitive price. Many
different car designs are available, from a Peugeot 206 to the
Morris Mini. And they run wherever there is a flat surface.

The concept of the RC Race Tin car is rather simple. The car
is enclosed in a small transparent tube with the remote control
console built into the top cover. This allows the user (or
driver) to quickly store and transport the vehicle. The controls
have four buttons, each to control the car on a two dimensional
axis (forward, back, left and right) -- a very straightforward
yet intuitive solution.

What attracts many adults to this toy is the ability to modify
the cars to the max. The basic vehicle has plastic wheels,
primitive drive train and a relatively reliable engine. Users,
however, can adjust their cars by adding specialized suspensions,
rubber tires, efficient gearboxes, lights, super-powered engines
and other accessories.

The Race Tin cars are scaled at roughly 1:32 to a normal car.
However, with full modifications, these small vehicles can zip
around at speeds of up to 38 kilometers per hour! Scaled upward
to a real car, it would be the equivalent (if not faster) to a
Formula 1 car.

Auldey cars are so popular in Thailand that magazines and
Internet websites have popped up, offering the latest accessories
as well as tips on upgrading the car. You can visit the Rod
Krapong website (which means Canned Cars) at www.rodkrapong.com
to see some photos and movies on various miniature cars in
action.

A small but growing community is beginning to evolve in
Indonesia. Budi Santoso, a graphic designer, started up the first
Auldey mailing list with Yahoo Groups (id-auldey@yahoogroups.com)
and is trying to organize some friendly races among mini RC
owners. The reason for his passion for the Auldey is its
affordability.

"Other RC cars are rather expensive and can't be modified.
With Auldey, you can hack into it and make it do things that its
designers never even thought of." Budi owns at least eight cars
and has upgraded half of them. Seeing his cars race around the
Senayan Stadium jogging path is quite a sight. "The Auldey is a
car for the masses."

Albert Saerong, an information security specialist, concurs.
He helps others modify their race cars. "It's fun to tinker with
these small cars and see how fast they can really go," he says.
"The real fun begins when we get together and have mini races."

There are a few drawbacks to the Auldey. The quality of the
car is not the same as its Japanese counterpart Tamiya since
Auldey uses magnets instead of servos to operate the vehicle and
there is no speed control on the Race Tin cars. With only one
speed, it can make maneuvering the car around obstacles rather
difficult. In addition, there are limited frequencies to each
car. Should you and a friend share the same radio frequency to
your cars, you can't race each other.

But the Auldey can be upgraded to become the fastest toy car
ever, beating every other miniature carmaker this writer has
seen. The upgrades cost more than the car itself but the final
product would make any Schumacher-wannabe proud.

The Auldey Race Tin cars start at about Rp 70,000. They are
available in department stores, street kiosks and various malls.
You can also find them online at Rod Krapong in Thailand or
www.jabotabekshopping.com/racetin for local orders. For
accessories, you can contact the speed demons at
id-auldey@yahoogroups.com to help you out.