The Entire History of Remote-Controlled Lego Cars.

"Jim Spanfeller" (awesomeaustinv) 03/24/2020 at 13:04 • Filed to: Legolopnik

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Lego is good and remote-controlled cars are also good, so lets take a look at the history of Lego remote-controlled cars (and trucks, of course). These are compiled from my memory because I know way too much about this stuff and research it more than I probably should. To keep this at a reasonable length, I’m only including what I consider to be “milestone” sets (sets that feature new electronics systems/parts or are otherwise important to the history or Lego RC cars). So without further ado...

The Precursors:

Lego train set 118, released in 1968, was the first Lego set that you could consider to be remote-controlled. The train carried a microphone, and you would control it using a whistle. One whistle made it go, whistling again would make it stop, and on later versions whistling twice made it go backwards. In 1968, this was some pretty advanced technology for a toy, and today this set is a valuable collectors item.

The First Lego Remote-Controlled Car:

The first remote-controlled car set came in 1970, and featured a wire going from the car to the “remote”. Steering was achieved via a generator spun by the remote’s steering wheel sending power to a motor that rotated the front wheels, giving you proportional steering. The drive motor was the same as the train motor, just with road wheels. You could build a few different vehicles with the parts in the set, including a sedan, station wagon, or truck.

But while Lego would release various motorized vehicles over the next couple decades, the next remote-controlled set wouldn’t come until 1993 in the form of Lego Technic set 8082. This set featured two motors, and one of the models you could build was a remote-controlled buggy. By now, Lego had developed a new electronics system known as the 9v system, which was a definite improvement over the previous one and is still popular today. This particular set was steered by a 9v micromotor, the smallest motor Lego has ever made, with a footprint of only 2x2 studs.

The next one, set 5600, came in 1998 and was not based on the 9v system, or any system before or since. It had its own unique, specialized chassis and was basically just a pre-made RC car (you couldn’t even remove the wheels) that you could build Lego on. It was apparently popular enough that Lego re-released it in 2001, though values of it haven’t risen much. If you’re looking for a cheap Lego RC car, this one’s a good option.

The 2000s Era

The 2000s were a difficult time for Lego, with them nearly facing bankruptcy. Because of this, Lego got very experimental with some of their products in the hopes that something would catch on. One good thing that came of it is that it resulted in more Lego RC cars, the first of which was set 4589, released in 2002. Similarly to the previous one, it had a pre-made chassis, but this time the wheels were regular Lego wheels that you would attach yourself. It also featured a really weird antenna.

Also in 2002, Lego released set 8475, which is a big deal in the world of Lego RC cars, because it came with a number of new parts that are now highly sought after among Technic builders. The drive motors in it (now dubbed “RC buggy motors”) are popular for their power and speed, and the control module of the set had excellent range. Three sets would be released using these parts, and they are all desirable today.

In 2003, Lego RC cars got weird. Lego created an entirely new construction system specifically for high-performance RC cars, and two different RC systems were created to go with it. The first set was the 8369 Dirt Crusher, and it didn’t even look like Lego. But it was fast. Extremely fast. The fastest and most powerful of all Lego RC cars, in fact. And it also featured some fancy stuff like adjustable suspension. You could even buy packs of parts to change the color to blue. Sadly, though, the low compatibility with regular Lego caused this system to fall out of favor.

They also released some cheaper, slower RC cars using this system. I bought one of them. Mine is the Sunset Cruiser, and I guess it’s pretty fun.

It wasn’t long until Lego released their new Power Functions electronics system and new RC components with it, but it wasn’t until 2010 that Lego released the first RC car with this system, set 8183. It once again used a pre-made chassis, but this time it was criticized for its weak steering, poor range (which is a common issue among all the infrared-controlled Lego RC sets), and awkward proportions that made it difficult to use in custom creations. Still, it’s the most compact RC chassis Lego ever made, so there’s that.

Then, in 2014, we got the 41999 4x4 Crawler. It was the first Power Functions set with a servo motor, and featured four-wheel drive, four-wheel steering, fancy suspension, and an exclusive edition with fan-designed muscle car bodywork. It was pretty darn good.

App Control

And now we have moved on to the present era of Lego RC vehicles, with app-controlled sets appearing. The first one was the app-controlled Batmobile, followed by Technic set 42099, which featured a version of the new system designed specifically for Technic.

And there you have it, the history of Lego remote-controlled cars until now. Let me know if I missed any important or special ones, or if you’ve ever owned one of these. Or if you suddenly feel the urge to spend lots of money, though I’m not sure any of us will be able to help you stop yourself.

Longtime Lurker > Jim Spanfeller 03/24/2020 at 13:14

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The biggest problem with the 5600, the drive axles liked eating carpet fibre and because you couldn't take the wheels off there was no way to clean them.

Jim Spanfeller > Longtime Lurker 03/24/2020 at 13:16

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Given how often that happens with my own RC creations, I don’t doubt it.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Jim Spanfeller 03/24/2020 at 13:22

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Fas cinating. I have quite a few Lego sets including plenty of early bricks but I never heard of these

Brickman > Jim Spanfeller 03/24/2020 at 13:28

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I had the 8475 dune buggy and the Supersonic RC https://brickset.com/sets/8366-1/Supersonic-RC

Then the 8369 dirt crusher. I abused that thing. It was the best kid grade RC vehicle you could get. Real power and strong steering unlike New Bright at the time. 

Jim Spanfeller > Brickman 03/24/2020 at 13:33

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I wanted the Dirt Crusher real bad, but all I could afford was the Sunset Cruiser. I still managed to have lots of fun with the Sunset Cruiser, but I always knew there was a vastly superior version out there... 

Jim Spanfeller > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 03/24/2020 at 14:41

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You can still buy the ones at the end of my post, they were only released last year. And this isn’t even every Lego RC set. I omitted ones that used similar parts to the others and ones that weren’t cars or trucks. There have been lots of tracked RC sets, including an RC Duplo bulldozer and a Bionicle set featuring two remote-controlled crab things that could fight, with the objective being to knock the masks off your opponent’s crab!

duurtlang > Jim Spanfeller 03/24/2020 at 14:47

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I had this. Got it as a gift from my grandfather, who died in 1993. So this is from before 1993.

Jim Spanfeller > duurtlang 03/24/2020 at 15:06

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Ooh, I forgot about that one. I thought there was something before the ‘93 one, but I couldn’t remember what it was. Thanks!

Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap > Jim Spanfeller 03/24/2020 at 15:11

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I bought one of those buggy motors a while back just to mess around with. It absolutely rips. 

Jim Spanfeller > Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap 03/24/2020 at 15:15

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I love them. They used to sell a set that had just the motor, a wire, a battery box, and a few gears/transmission parts, and my dad bought me one back in the day. I still have it, and it still rips :P I wish Lego would make a modern equivalent...

Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap > Jim Spanfeller 03/24/2020 at 15:20

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I remember having this set, or at least one very similar to it

I had a lot of fun with it. 

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Jim Spanfeller 03/24/2020 at 15:20

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Interesting! Just the stimulus 8 need right now. I actually have a bi g box full of old Lego brochures from the 70s my dad collected so I might try to scan a few when I get the time. Here’s just a taste.

There are a while lot of vintage bricks mixed up somewhere but it’s been a while

Jim Spanfeller > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 03/24/2020 at 15:22

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Ooh, cool. I have a bunch from the 80s and a few from the 90s. All the classic space stuff is just nostalgic eye candy :)

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Jim Spanfeller 03/24/2020 at 15:39

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The photography for the space stuff in particular is still quite impressive.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Jim Spanfeller 03/24/2020 at 18:56

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Before Technic there was the Expert Builder series, and I had a bunch of those sets when they first came out . I did have an early electric motor set, with the chonky black motorized chassis, but it was set 960 that really let me motorize my more complex creations. Same big battery box as the earlier remote set (107) , but this time with a motor that was much easier to integrate into various contraptions. I think the last thing I designed with it, probably around 1982 after I attended the USGP West, was a flat six engine from a 911 (I didn’t have enough angled parts to make a V6 like in the Ferrari 126C2 so this was the compromise).

I would frequently use those ‘spoked’ wheels as the inlet on the jet aircraft I would make since they looked like the fans on the front of the engines.

Small Scale Sydney - Death before Decaf > Jim Spanfeller 03/24/2020 at 21:45

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We had one of those trains when I was a kid . But I never about the cars.

Jim Spanfeller > Small Scale Sydney - Death before Decaf 03/24/2020 at 23:47

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Consider yourself educated! :)

shop-teacher > duurtlang 03/25/2020 at 00:42

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I still have it, although because I'm a monster, I have pulled some pieces off of it to use in other models.

shop-teacher > Jim Spanfeller 03/25/2020 at 00:44

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I have this one still. You could only go back and forth remotely, steering was done on the car itself.

I pulled pieces off of m ine many years ago, but there is a complete one for sale locally for $20, that I want to buy.

Jim Spanfeller > shop-teacher 03/25/2020 at 01:15

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Buy it. It’ll make for a nice quarantine activity anyway ;) Back in the day, when my long Lego wires worked, I would often build RC cars using one motor on the “remote” as a generator, which was hooked up to the steering motor on the car, giving it proportional steering. Some might look down on so-called “tethered-control” RC cars as being low-tech, but I personally like them. They come with certain advantages, the biggest of which being that the car doesn’t have to carry its own batteries, allowing for much smaller, lighter, and faster cars. I used to watch these old Lego Technic rally videos a lot, and they feature a lot of great tethered-control cars.

shop-teacher > Jim Spanfeller 03/25/2020 at 08:36

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Cool!

davidharpur > Small Scale Sydney - Death before Decaf 04/01/2020 at 07:42

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Hey buddy were art thou catch me on Instagram