REVIEW – Like many toddlers, our little guy is obsessed with vehicles in general, and fire trucks in particular. He’s constantly spotting fire trucks in the wild (and loudly informing us about said trucks), so the offer to review a ride-on fire truck was a welcome surprise.
⬇︎ Jump to summary (pros/cons)
Price: $349.99
Where to buy: OHWILL
What is it?
The OHWILL Ride On Fire Truck 12V electric car is a ride-on toy that can either be controlled by the child (recommended ages 3-6) or by an adult using the included remote control. It boasts a generous 60+ minute runtime so it will likely outlast the kid’s attention span on a single charge and includes some fun accessories like a plastic firefighter hat and multiple water-spraying toys.
What’s included?
- OHWILL Ride On Fire Truck 12V electric car
- AC Charger
- Toy Fire Extinguisher (sprays water)
- Toy Backpack Fire Extinguisher (sprays water)
- Toy Firefighter helmet
Tech specs
Overall Dimensions: 43′ L x 25.6′ W x 24′ H
Seat Dimensions: 13.7′ L x 8′ W x 11.4′ H
Battery stats: 12 V, 7 Ah
Motor: Dual 35W motor drive
Control mode: child controlled (steering wheel and pedal) or adult controlled (wireless remote control)
Runtime: 60-120 minutes (dependent on child weight and speed mode)
Top speed: 2 mph
Recommended age: 3-6 years
Recommended riding surfaces: Asphalt, concrete, compacted stone, rubber track, flat dry grass
Design and features
The OHWILL Ride On Fire Truck 12V electric car is a mostly plastic affair, with metal components on the axles and steering column. It has two motors (on the two rear wheels) and steering and throttle controls both for the riding child or an adult using the wireless remote control.
There are multiple LED lights including the red and blue lights on top, which are controlled by a button inside the car.
Speaking of buttons, there are easy push buttons to turn the car on and off, toggle the siren, toggle lights, and use built-in music or Bluetooth media. A battery indicator shows the charge level, and to the far right are the four drive modes: Park, Reverse, Drive 1 (slow), and Drive 2 (slightly less slow). The Bluetooth option is great; I easily found and connected to the fire truck just like any other Bluetooth speaker. The speakers aren’t too loud and they won’t be winning any quality awards, but they also aren’t the worst I’ve heard.
The accents and details are nice, and pre-applied decals were aligned and look great.
On the front and back of the car there is a folding handle and folding wheels (front and back respectively). These make it easy to roll the car around like a piece of luggage (great for getting it in the right spot for storage or wheeling it home if the kid fully drains the battery away from the house).
There are also hooks to hang the included accessories or other toys, and a compartment in the left rear for the included toy fire extinguisher.
Both doors can be opened and closed by the child, though they still have to climb over a door sill to get to the seat. Working latches keep the doors from swinging open while driving.
You can just make out the single foot pedal in the picture above – this is a simple on/off throttle that will push the car forward or back depending on what drive mode is engaged. To brake, the child simply needs to lift their foot off the pedal.
The seat has been reported as “OK” by our toddler, and has a seat belt.
Finally, the tires are hard solid plastic pieces. OHWILL advertises “suspension” built in, but the ride is still pretty bumpy on anything but the smoothest surface. Our toddler didn’t complain, but it would be a lot nicer if these wheels were rubberized and the suspension had a bit more dampening (though they’re not different than any other child’s ride-on car I’ve encountered so far).
Assembly, Installation, Setup
Setup was pretty straightforward for the OHWILL Ride On Fire Truck 12V electric car. The four wheels have to be pushed onto the axles until they click-lock into place.
Next, a disconnected-for-transport-safety cable under the seat area has to be connected.
The steering wheel slides into place and locks.
The seat has tabs and a single screw holding it in place, and felt secure once screwed in.
My future firefighter was a great helper, and loved playing with the helmet and included fire extinguishers while I built the car for him.
Flashing emergency lights click into place up top after a simple wire connection.
The battery area and charging port are located right behind these flashing lights, in front of the steering column. The battery is fully charged in 6-8 hours when completely depleted.
Performance
We’ve reviewed two other riding vehicles so far for children, and both were 24-volt models, so I expected this 12-volt fire truck to be significantly slower. I was surprised when it first lurched forward in Drive-1 mode (it also startled my kid a bit). All of these ride on cars suffer from lurch when starting and stopping, I wish the manufacturers would figure out a way to get them to more gently accelerate and decelerate. However, once he got used to how it felt starting and stopping the fire truck, our three year old was hooked. He was able to figure out the steering and throttle by himself and loved to circle it around the cul-de-sac near our house. The remote control is great, offering the option for an adult to fully control the car with forward/back and left/right controls, as well as three speed modes.
The included play hat and extinguishers were also a blast; they got nearly as much playtime as the truck itself:
Final thoughts
The OHWILL Ride On Fire Truck 12V electric car was a hit from our kid’s first ride. It seems to be well-built, and everything worked great during the review period. We look forward to years of use, and I’ll be sure to update if there’s any longevity concerns as we wear it out!
What I like about OHWILL Ride On Fire Truck 12V electric car
- Great battery capacity and runtime
- Fun accessories included
- Bluetooth music option and siren built-in with flashing lights
What needs to be improved?
- Would like to see more shock absorbing and grippy tires – all the kid’s cars I’ve seen so far have these solid plastic tires
- Starting and stopping is jerky, even in the low speed mode
- Speakers aren’t great
Price: $349.99
Where to buy: OHWILL
Source: The sample of this product was provided for free by OHWILL. OHWILL did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.
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Please let me go back to being 4-5 years old, just for an hour
PLEASE! 😉