Customer Reviews

Carrera USA Go, Street Power Race Car Set

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

We had high hopes for this set based on other Carrera racing sets. We bought it for our six-year old son (knowing the packaging recommends eight years and up for the toy but thinking our boy might be close enough in age. Upon opening the box and reading the instructions, we then saw that the instructions are broken down by country and while the USA recommended age is eight and up, the remaining twelve other countries all recommend age six and up as the appropriate age for the toy. Also, the instructions recommend NOT setting-up this track on carpet. We had originally intended to do so (prior to getting the toy and reading the instructions), but instead moved the carpet off of the floor to make room for the track on the hardwood below. I imagine this has something to do with static electricity, and may or may not be a big deal, but we decided to work within the recommendations on this one.

Anyway, the toy itself, I can't really say it is well constructed. You would think a toy such as this would have more engineering worked into its production, but lots of little things about the track itself are cumbersome, flimsy and easily unintentionally dis-assembled during the course of "play".

1. The clips that hold on the guard rails are very easily knocked off, they are also brittle and break quite easily.

2. The guardrails themselves require delicate maneuvering so that they do not catch the car coming around the track on the front end. The flat plastic rails can be shifted back so this doesn't happen, but there are a significant number of guardrails (that are held up with the clips that also shift a lot, and keeping things where they should be is an ongoing frustration)

3. The "raisers" that hold up certain areas of the track off of the ground also come apart easily and are in a constant state of flux due to their design. They don't sit in place evenly on the ground (again another thing that one must often take time to'adjust' instead of actually playing with the toy.)

4. The pieces of the track themselves do not connect smoothly and solidly, and with so many loops and turns on the track, again, constant "settling" and alignment of the track is necessary.

4. It would be nice if the car controllers were two different colors with two different colored cords and plugs. Would just make play simpler, particularly because one is up out of their seat often retrieving a car or adjusting something on the track)

5. After 15 or so minutes of use with the red car, the back wheels sort of "seized-up" and got very tight. I examined them to see what could be wrong, couldn't find much wrong (no dirt or fuzz or anything caught in there). So, I kind of pulled them apart away from the axle and spun them in the reverse direction a few times and that seemed to help. I wonder if over time, the back wheels will roll forward enough that they lock back into that place again. For now, they seem to be working.

6. Also, overtime I noticed that straight out of the gate or off the starting line, the controller was not giving sufficient power to to get the car around the first banked curve. If I compensated with the turbo boost, the car shot off the curve. This is particularly discouraging since it is the very first two feet or so of the track length. If I started elsewhere on the track for example, into the first loop where I could boost the power, I could get the thing going and have continued momentum.

I do realize there is a learning curve to be had here and hopefully over time some of these idiosyncrasies will become less irritating, or we will find better work arounds. But for me --as an adult with very good hand/eye coordination and control-- I found the toy awkward and at times irritating. It could be so much more well-made and it is just not. That would make a huge difference.

Bought this for my 3 year old son so that he could grow into a big, elaborate track instead of just buying a figure-8 now and having to get something later....my only concern now is that this track's durability will not last that long.
I set this track up for him without him even being around and I broke several of the non-crucial pieces. There are small bands that lock the track pieces together. I easily broke several holes on the actual track pieces where the bands attach. There are also some riser posts that help to support loops and corners but I easily broke the holes where they attach to the track pieces....just very cheap plastic.
I set this up on carpet (as suggested in the directions) and found that it is hard to get the track set up where the straight-away goes through the center of the loop. I did get is set up but since the track riser pieces mentioned above break so often, it is hard to keep it perfect.
I like the design of the track, it is very fun to use, the controls are good and we do enjoy it. I just wish it was made from more durable plastic. If you get this for a young person, get the Batmobile...that car really stays on the track the BEST.

It was difficult to find something that my 16 yr old son wanted for Christmas. He really loves this and is planning to make a hobby of it.

Parts broke with minimal normal usage. It's virtually impossible to use as the cars won't stay on the track - I tried for 30 minutes and made it around the track twice. Very disappointed in this product.

The amount of track you get with this set is impressive. I don't know how the other reviewer managed to break pieces, mine went together with ease. The setup did take a few hours though.

I had to remove the loops because they were too challenging for my 4 year old daughter but there are enough pieces that the track can be easily reconfigured. I originally setup the track according to the instructions and I found it easy to keep the car on the track for many laps.

This set is a great value for the small price tag compared to other licensed sets.

The cars have a small magnet on the bottom rear to help keep them on the track.

Got this for my 7 year old son for christmas. He loves it. Easy to set up, fun to use. It is a struggle to figure out how to go around without flying off the track but after about an hour both my son and I were doing well on it. He also got another car for it from someone else and it sticks a lot better then the ones that came with it. The guardrails are about useless as soon as the cars hit them they come apart. A couple of the clips for the guardrail have already broken. All in all it is a lot of fun and your kid will love it. I was pleasantly supprised by how big it was.

If you put the track together as designed it is nearly impossible to keep the cars on the track. The only way to use this track is to reconfigure it and remove the loops and banked turn, which is the reason you would buy the track to start with. Even after that the red car will stall on the turns if you don't go fast enough and flies off the track if you go too fast. Bought for my 6 and 8 year old. They were discouraged in 15 minutes of use because they couldn't get the cars even a 1/4 way around the track. I thought it was operator error so after they walked off I spent the next hour trying to master the track. I got all the way around the track maybe five times in that hour. Not operator error. Terrible product. Don't buy it. Once you get it out of the box you can't return it so save you money.