Toy cars and trains are eternally popular, find whole fleets of toy cars, toy trucks and trailers, and even toy trains, toy planes and toy boats, for kids who just love vehicles! From classic wooden little toy trains for toddlers to cool, radio-controlled slot Hot Wheel car sets, aircraft, toy car garages and even stunt drones for big kids and grownups, there is a whole world of vehicle play to explore. Popular die-cast race car toys will thrill race fans who love to create custom speedways as well as collectors who want to amass lots of different series and sets and of toy cars. For those devotees, there’s never any question what to buy as a birthday or Christmas gift!
Little kids love toys that go, go, go!
Even children as young as 1 year old enjoy toy cars and monster trucks – colourful, soft, and lightweight car toys can spark lots of imaginative play! Toddlers and preschoolers especially – from 2 years old to 5 years old – enjoy toy trains and toy versions of big machines like fire trucks, tractors, dump trucks, road graders, bulldozers, and cranes. These cool top children's toy cars and trucks for toddlers are great for imaginative sandbox play in the summer and for role-playing all kinds of construction or farm scenarios. Toddlers and preschoolers also especially enjoy classic wooden versions of little toy trains, with track pieces and toy engines and cars they can mix and match to create new play sets every time they play. These simple, versatile toys make wonderful Christmas, Easter and birthday gifts because they expand kids’ imaginary worlds. Slightly older kids – from 6 years old and up – enjoy collectable die-cast toy cars and toy trucks that are small versions of real-life vehicles, like police cars and race cars. These come in a huge variety of styles and models and are fun to collect: individual cars even make cool birthday party favours or fun additions to Halloween bags or Easter baskets. These die-cast car toys work with mix and match racetrack elements and play sets that let kids experiment with original configurations as they race their car toys and imagine original scenarios for their trucks and trailers, planes and even toy boats.
Remote controlled toy cars satisfy the need for speed
Starting around 6 years old kids can try their hand at driving radio-controlled, remote-controlled or RC car toys. Starter versions of these cool toy trucks and other vehicles may have simple controllers that go forward and back, and steer left and right. As kids gain confidence and skill in driving, the R/C toy cars and even toy planes, become more complex and manoeuvrable, allowing for races as well as executing stunts! Battery-powered slot car sets can give kids around 8 years old and up some big thrills as they compete head-to-head with friends and siblings. R/C helicopters, planes, and stunt drones – usually aimed at kids ages 10 years old and up – add another dimension of excitement as kids learn to take off, fly and land with increasing control and precision. There are even R/C boats for summer racing fun and R/C trucks and vehicles with caterpillar treads that kids can drive outside in winter in the snow!
Cars and trucks move through imaginary worlds
Toy cars can spark hours of pretend-play fun that goes far beyond the racetrack. Big machines with working features can move sand and dirt in the sandbox and create entire neighbourhoods for kids to exercise their imagination. Fun accessories like multi-level parking garages, playmats that mimic city streets, or play sets that incorporate different kinds of buildings and even action figures add realism to the new worlds that kids create – places they might never have visited in real life. This kind of open-ended, imaginative role-play helps kids develop storytelling and problem-solving skills and gives opportunities for friends to interact in the pretend world and build narratives together.Toys brand like Hot Wheels, Fast lane and Barbie cars are famous among kids.
Toy Cars FAQs
Which are the best car toys?
Among the best and most popular toy cars are die-cast versions of real cars, usually 1:64 scale models of supercars, monster trucks, police cars, construction vehicles, farm machinery and other real-life vehicles.
What do you call a toy car that you pull back and let go?
This type of toy car is often called a pull-back car or pull-back racer: they may use an elastic band, a spring-driven clockwork mechanism or even a chargeable battery that is wound up when kids set the car on the ground and pull it backwards: when released, the wound-up energy propels the car forward.
At what age do babies play with cars?
Between approximately 12 to 18 months of age, babies hone the pincer grip that allows them to hold a toy car; over time they get a better understanding of the concepts of stop, go, and speed, and the imagination to mimic the movements, noises, and activities associated with vehicles they see in real life.
What age is Hot Wheels for?
According to Mattel, the maker of Hot Wheels, their toys trains, cars, and trucks are for kids ages 3 and over.
Can car toys help a child's development?
Yes: playing with toy cars can help very young children develop their fine-motor skills as they grip and move their small vehicles around; it can help develop hand-eye coordination, concepts of stop, go, speed, and gravity; and it can help kids develop narrative and problem-solving skills as they play out scenarios for their vehicles in the world they imagine.
How do I entertain my child at home?
Pretend play is a great way for children to entertain themselves: toys like wooden train sets or die-cast cars can offer lots of scope for imagination, often with mix-and-match play set elements to customize and navigate in creative ways.