Carrera Agent Black radio control buggy

May 2011

Price: £54.99

Go the distance with the latest radio control car from Carrera – as the new Agent Black claims a long battery life and fast recharge.

The 1:16-scale buggy sits in the middle of the firm’s line-up. It measures 32cm long, and is capable of hitting 12mph.

With its black bodywork, chrome alloy wheels and big rear wing, the newcomer looks great. The large front bumper allowed us to carry on after we accidentally hit a garage wall, although the impact did scuff the plastic.

To keep the price down, the Agent Black doesn’t feature proportional steering or progressive acceleration – it’s a case of left, right, forwards or reverse. This can make for twitchy driving, although the same is true with other toy-grade alternatives.

You get fairly impressive suspension, but the plastic tyres mean gravel and grass are strictly out of bounds – we found the car works best on tarmac, hard dirt and carpet. There’s a choice of two speeds for indoor and outdoor use, plus a boost button mounted on the top left of the hand-held controller adds a little extra pace, but not much.

The unit charged in an hour, and gave us 30 minutes of run time. We love the controller’s neck strap, which makes novices feel like pros. But £55 is a lot – we’d check out Carrera’s cheaper, 1:20-scale Cobra and Shadow Fox designs.