Customer Reviews

Thomas & Friends - Battery Operated Track Rider Train

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

This ride on toy is great if your kids love Thomas the Tank Engine. There are only 2 poor designs on this toy:
1. Kids needs to press and hold a button to start the train throughout the ride, if your kids are under 3 years old, they could not do that for long.
2. The train will fall off the track if the rider swing left and right during the ride, my kid fell off the train once and hit his head. It's only safe if they stay still on the train while the train is going.
Other than that, it's a great toy for your little Thomas fans.

We bought this train for my 2 year old son's birthday who is fanatic about Thomas. This is a really adorable toy. The major complaint I have is that it is really hard for the kids to use. You have to hold the button constantly in order for Thomas to move. We had it at his Thomas birthday party for all the kids to ride. The 4 year olds where the only ones who could figure out how to ride it on their own. The younger ones we had to hold the button while it went round the track which makes you pretty dizzy! BUT we have found a resolution, we engineered a way for it to stay on continuously when he wants to ride. We have a rubber band which holds down a magic marker which presses the button (sounds funny). It doesn't go that fast so when he wants to stop he just says "get off". So now that we have the contraption figured out my son (us too) loves this toy. We moved it into the living room. Downside is it takes up alot of space but it is really easy to take apart and put back together. We had a little trouble with it becoming derailed when we had it outside (probably because our uneven sidewalk) but we haven't had any trouble inside with it becoming derailed. Now that we have figured out how my son can ride it on his own, we are happy with this toy. My son loves it and he looks too cute riding around on his little Thomas. But I wish they would have made it easier to operate.

I bought this toy for my son's 2nd birthday thinking it would be perfect for my obsessed Thomas toddler, especially since the age range was 18 mo - 3yrs. It is so cute and he loves it as long as I hold the button down with my hand to make it go, which gets tiring for mom and he gets bored not being able to do it on his own. The button takes some effort to push and hold down. Plus, there is a delay time once the button is pushed - a bell goes off and then it takes a couple of seconds to get moving and by that time he's taken his hand off the button to make it go. It's a bit confusing for a child his age. Friends that have come over that are 2 1/2 have difficulty with this toy also, seems like the age ranges are a bit off - better for a 3 year old and up.

I have to agree with previous reviewers that this toy has design issues which make it inappropriate for children under 3 yrs or so. It requires hand strength that 18-36 month olds do not have. Also, there is a significant delay between the child's action of pressing the button and the train starting to move. This is confusing to younger children. He solved the problem himself by sitting on top of the train so that his bum constantly pressed the button, making it go. But this makes the train top-heavy and easily tipped over. So instead, we disabled the original "on/off" mechanism and installed a switch (from radio shack). He can very easily flip the switch to turn it on or off. He loves the toy now.

My son received this train for Christmas and has been enjoying it ever since. The only issues we have is, he's only 1 1/2 yrs old and it's hard for him to know to hold down the handle to get the train moving. So we solved this problem by tying a ribbon around it and it holds it down so the train moves. Also, the battery is a bit of a pain to charge- you have to actually take it out and charge it- usually in the garage because it's similar to a car battery. We were surprised they would put this type of battery in a child's toy. But other then those 2 things, we are thrilled with this product and he loves to ride on it. I would also suggest you buy the extra set of tracks!

Just as others have said in their reviews, this is not a toy for kids under 2. I was a bit concerned at spending $250+ on a toy where many reviewers were not satisfied. But we had promised this to my daughter if she succeeded in toilet training (which she did). She is 2 3/4 yrs old, and I thought she might be too big based on the recommended age.

The "button" that makes the train go is hard to hold down, as everyone has said. It's not like a doorbell that you would push. It's more like a bar you need to squeeze, fingers on top, thumb underneath. My daughter has no problem with it, but I would think any child under 2 1/2 would. She's not too big for it, and I can see her riding it for a while to come. I would say recommended age should be 2 1/2 - 4.

Train seems stable, no tipping issues.

Only complaint is that they recommend to charge the battery after every use, which requires removal of a panel with a screwdriver.

Overall lots of fun, but more attention should have been paid to design. I would buy it again and recommend it to a friend.

My 2 yr old son and 3 1/2 yr old daughter love riding on Thomas. The only problem with this is that your child has to understand to hold down the "go" button or it will not continue to run. We had to remedy this by putting a small clamp on the button that they can easily remove when they want to stop. Also, unless the child sits real still and stays centered on the seat, the train gets very tippy. After a couple of spills, my son took a couple week break from riding on it and my daughter wouldn't try it at all. But, they have gotten over that and now ride it all the time.

I was so disappointed with this item. My son (who's 3) received this for his bday. The child has to continuously hold down a button with his hand to keep the train moving and my son couldn't do it. He ended up getting so frustrated, he broke down in tears! The noises the train makes are MUCH TOO LOUD! And you need a lot of room in your home to set up the track, which we do not have. I was surprised at how poorly designed this was since it's a Peg Perego. The manufacturers should've really tried this one out on the recommended age group before they released it. Why couldn't there be a pedal to step on to make it go like every other ride-on toy for little ones? I put it back in the box and back to the store it went.

We got this for our two and half year old son for Christmas and he loves it. At first we did not want to because the age limit says 12-36 months. But after reading the reviews I decided to give it a try. He fits on it perfectly and can hold on to the button to make it go.
The only thing to note is that if your child leans to the side even a little bit, the train will fall over. It may be because my child is at the peak age limit and maybe it's not made for kids that heavy. So just make sure your child doesn't lean too much so they don't fall.
This toy is great and would but it again in a heart beat.

The start button is too difficult for even a three year old to hold down. The battery is tedious to re-charge (required after every use!). Dangerous. When child leans slightly to the side the entire engine will turn over. For all your time and money you will only see a child with a bored expression - or a frustrated child who can't operate start button alone. You could tape down the button and then the child must ask for you to stop it. Total supervision required any way you look at it. A real expensive, gimicky toy!!