When I spotted the Fisher Price Grow With Me R/C Rally in the toy store over a year ago, I thought it was so cool and clever that I really wanted get one for my son, however at that time he was too young for it (he was only 1). I decided that I would get it for him next Christmas, so this year that's exactly what we did. We have had a lot of fun with it, but possibly not in the way the manufacturers intended...

Product Description:

The Fisher Price Grow With Me R/C Rally is a race track designed for toddlers. It works because of the 14 feet of flexible "track" (which is more like a mini-fence) that you place in an oval on the floor -- the car travels within 6 inches on the outside of the track via a magnetic field (Fisher Price calls it "Automatic Course Control"). That way your toddler doesn't have to worry about steering (something my little guy still isn't very good about), they only need to control the acceleration. The car runs around the course, over barriers and through obstacles, as if by magic (and it is pretty fun to watch). There is a secondary mode, for "expert" drivers, where you can steer the car via the controller and run without the track.

The set includes:
~ 1 control tower
~ 1 remote control
~ 1 car
~ 14 feet of flexible, 1-piece track
~ 3 movable ramps (a "ring of fire" that goes over an alligator pit, a bumpy dirt road, and a road with crashable "Danger" gate)
~ 4 movable stadium lights (that do NOT light up)
~ 2 movable flags (that can be placed along the dirt road
~ various obstacles to build up and crash through (3 hay bales, 3 cones, 5 barrels)

There is definitely assembly required, but it isn't terribly difficult. It took my husband approximately 15 minutes to do on Christmas morning (while my son was occupied with other gifts). I think the sticker application took him the longest. The control tower must be built, as does the ring-of-fire ramp, and batteries must be installed, but that's fairly minor.

The track hooks into the control tower and is very easy to shape. It is made of small, jointed pieces (brightly colored red and white) and is easy to configure in a variety of curving shapes. The track should be laid out in an oval-ish shape with no sharp turns (for beginner mode). If a corner is too sharp, the car cannot turn quickly enough, causing it to get more than 6 inches from the track and lose the signal. You must also place the ramps far enough from turns so that the jump from the ramp won't put the car too far from the track. The instructions recommend using the set a hard, flat surface. They do not recommend running it on high-pile carpet. We actually do run it on our carpet, which is rather plush, but we've had no problems.

As I mentioned, there are two modes -- "beginners mode" requires the track so that your child doesn't need to steer, whereas "expert mode" allows you to steer as well as go in forward or reverse. In either mode there are two speeds to choose from -- fast (rabbit) and slow (turtle).

Everything is geared toward little hands. The car is largish (approximately 7½ inches long and 3½ inches wide). The remote is fairly lightweight and only has 2 controls (although in beginner's mode only the acceleration works). At the top of the remote is a wheel used for steering, and below the wheel is a toggle switch for forward or reverse acceleration. According to the instructions the remote can control the car up to 15 feet away (in fact we think it works even farther away than that -- we know it's worked over 20 feet away).

Thankfully, there are a few battery-saving features built-in. If the car is not used for a few minutes it shuts itself off. Same with the track (it turns off if the car hasn't driven past the control tower in a few minutes). A third feature turns the car off if the accelerator button is pressed continuously for more than 1½ minutes in beginner's mode (because it assumes that the button has been accidentally pressed in storage). In all cases, you simply press the power button(s) again to get everything going once more.

One of my favorite features is the fact that the entire set folds up compactly for storage. The track is folded into sections and fits at the bottom of the control tower. The ramps can be folded down on top of each other and also fits with the track in the control tower's arch. The top of the tower flips open and the smaller obstacles (cones, hay bales, barrels) can fit inside (although I have yet to find a configuration where ALL of the hay bales fit inside). The car hangs on a peg on the side of the tower, and the remote fits into a slot on the base of the tower. The tower's top arch even serves as a handy-dandy carrying handle. I love, love, LOVE the fact that I can fold it up and put it away quickly and easily.

I believe it originally retailed for $59.99 (when it first hit the toy store shelves over a year ago), but we found it on sale for $20, and doing an online search I found it for as little as $14.99.

The manufacturer recommends the Grow With Me R/C Rally for children ages 2 and up. It requires four "C" batteries for the control tower, four "AA" batteries for the car, and one 9V (squarish) battery for the remote control. The batteries are not included.

Our Experiences:

As an adult who still loves toys, I think this track is really, really cool! It is extremely well thought out -- from the easy-enough-for-toddlers remote control to the fun ramps and obstacles to the super-nifty way everything folds up compactly for storage. The two modes mean that it can grow with your child, another innovation I'm quite impressed with.

Unfortunately, my son simply isn't very entertained by the "beginner's mode". Even with lots of ramps, barriers, and whatnot to keep it interesting, it still gets old quickly for him. After his initial play-session (where he was pretty fascinated with it), he tended to only send the car around the track a few times before losing interest completely. Admittedly, my son isn't bonkers over cars (he's more of a balls kind of guy) -- perhaps if he were more car-crazy he would get more out of it. I remember having a blast with my old slot-car race track when I was younger -- maybe it's because this has only one car so there is nothing to race against, and crashes don't send you flying.

My husband and I, on the other hand, have had a lot of fun with the car in "expert" mode. The steering takes a little while to master, but after you do the controls are so easy to use you can zoom through the house and under/through small areas with ease. My son's favorite way to play with his Grow With Me R/C Rally these days is for my husband or me to control the car while my son chases after it and tries to catch it. He has quite a lot of fun doing this so I don't feel that the purchase was a total loss, however we might have gotten a different car with older-kid-oriented features if my husband and I were to be the only drivers. My son does occasionally play with the car in "expert" mode, and I hope that he will become more interested as he masters the art of steering or becomes more interested in cars in general.

I do recommend reading the instructions. When my husband originally put the track together he neglected to read the part about there being an on/off switch on the car itself. He had turned on the switch on the track, but not the one on the car, and was convinced that something was broken. There are a lot of switches, settings, and power buttons, and the instruction book isn't huge, so I do advice looking through the whole manual before starting play.

Quickie Summary:
Pros:
+) Two modes of play ("beginning drivers" and "pro drivers")
+) Two speeds
+) Car can go in forward and reverse
+) Folds compactly for storage (very cool)
+) Car's remote simple enough for toddlers
+) Comes with small, stackable obstacles to crash through (hay bales, barrels, cones)
+) Includes various ramps to drive over/across
+) Racing sounds play (cheers, engines revving) whenever the car crosses the starting ramp (which is part of the control tower).
+) Automatic cut-off features to conserve batteries
Cons:
-) In "beginners" mode, it doesn't hold my son's attention
-) In "beginners" mode, you must be careful to ensure there are no sharp turns on the track.
-) For indoor use only. Cannot run on high-pile carpet.

Final Thoughts:

I'm still thoroughly impressed with the Fisher Price Grow With Me R/C Rally as a whole. It is super cute with fun ramps and obstacles, can fold compactly for storage, and can grow with your child via the "beginners" and "expert" modes. Unfortunately, in "beginners" mode it does not hold my toddler's attention. I would highly recommend it for toddlers who love cars (but not those who don't).






Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 20.00
Type of Toy: Car, Truck or Raceway
Age Range of Child: 3 to 5 Years