Most of the traditional 6V or 12V Power Wheels have low speed, these Power Wheels can be made faster after some modifications which generally increase the voltage.
Ideally, the 6V can be upgraded to 12V and 12V can be upgraded to 24V. You can also change the voltage according to your requirements or resources.
Upgrading the battery, installing a high-power motor and dynamic speed controller can make power wheels faster with a better driving experience.
The modification parts are available in kits and easy to assemble, the parents can do it at home.
3 ways to make power wheels faster:
- Install bigger motor
- Install better battery
- Install Electronic Speed Controller
Table of Contents
Ways to Make Power Wheels Faster
Let’s take a look at a few modifications that can assist power wheels to go faster one by one. It’s up to you whether you want to make all of these modifications or just a few.
Either way, they’ll make a difference in the speed of your power wheels.
Installing a New Motor
Installing a high-capacity motor helps increase your power wheel’s speed. Before installing a new motor, make sure that the battery has been upgraded to match the new motor.
Otherwise, the battery will expire in a short period of time. Let’s take a look at how to replace the motor in your power wheels:
- First of all, open the motor hardware from your power wheels and remove the motor. You need to flip the car to get access to the motor hardware in your power wheels.
You will need a set of screwdrivers to remove the motor from its hardware. You need to remember the wires when removing the motor. - Check the compatibility of the new brushless motor with the old one, it should be the same size or size which can be fitted to your car.
- Install the spade in a new brushless motor. The spade can be removed from the old one, if it is not coming out of the motor then you can buy a new one from the market.
- Install the new motor in the hardware. Try not to push the motor too hard into the hardware, but it may need a gentle push or twist to fit in the hardware.
If it is not fitting that means the motor is not compatible. - Install the hardware back into the power wheels. The wires need to be done correctly same as you have seen when removing.
- Let’s go for a test drive, you will surely feel the difference after installing a new motor, enjoy the car at the new speed.
Replacing a 6V motor with a 12V or 12V motor with 24V can greatly increase the speed. It will also require you to change the battery to the corresponding voltage.
Replacement motors are easily available on the market, you can also buy them online. These motors can go up from 15000 rpm to 40000 rpm or even higher.
Upgrade the Battery
Installing a high-power battery can improve the speed of your power wheels and it will obliviously run longer. Few things should be taken care of when installing a new battery:
- First of all look at the information of battery installed in your power wheels, the dimension of the new battery should match the dimension of the already installed battery.
The aftermarket batteries are cost-effective than the original brand batteries. - Remove the battery from your power wheels. Start removing the positive and negative wires from the battery, the whole connector needed to be removed from the battery.
This needs to be done very carefully, you need to pull out the wires as far as you can.
After removing the connector the old battery should be taken care of and send for recycling. The battery contains harmful chemicals so you always need to take care of that. - Connect a fuse to the positive side of the battery connector, a 30 amp fuse is an ideal choice. You will need a fuse holder and wire connector which are easily available in the market.
- Insulate the remaining exposed wires which include the negative side of the battery connector. Insulation spades are used to cover the exposed wires.
Insulating spades are available in many shapes, so it’s recommended for you to take your battery to market to get the matching spades. - Install the connector into the new battery, the negative wire will be connected directly to the battery and the positive side will be connected through the fuse.
- Let’s test the new battery, be careful, you can experience a boost to the speed.
Some things need to be taken care of after upgrading the battery. A corresponding new charger will be required for the 12V or 24v battery.
If you install two 12V batteries connected in parallel not in series you don’t need a new charger. 24V battery will perform better with 24V motor, 12V motor can give up after a few months. .
Electronic Speed Controller
The electronic speed controller decides how much power should be sent to the wheels. The Electronic Speed Controller can improve the experience of driving.
Mostly the company-installed ESCs are just on/off switches which means zero power or full throttle. Upgrading it to a dynamic one can give your kid the experience of real driving, and they can go at any speed they want.
ESC kits are available in many options in the market. Crimpers and heat shrink tubing may be needed to install the ESC. Make sure that the battery is already upgraded.
Installing an ESC may seem to be a confusing and long process, it’s better to get help from a professional. Let’s have a look what are the steps of installing the ESC
- The first step is always disassembling the pieces, in this case, all the hood and trunks pieces needed to be disassembled, flip the car if the pieces are assembled under the car.
- Have a broad look at the pieces and put them according to points described in the ESC guide. It’s better to first draw the wire diagrams, this will give a better understanding of the wire structure needed to be installed.
Install the ESC kit into a board with the correct wiring. - It’s necessary to test fit the board and check the dimensions of everything if they are fitting in the corresponding place.
Some power wheels may have a place for a gearbox some may not have. It is needed to be installed according to that. - All the company-fitted wiring needed to be removed at first. It is an advantage of the ESC kit that it makes a new particular size wiring for a 24V system.
- Install and mount the brake pedals and accelerator if required, it will make them be used properly.
Some ESC kits have separate brake and accelerator pedals and others only have the accelerator, releasing the accelerator makes the car stop automatically. - Extend the motor leads if required, the motor needs to be connected to the Electronic Speed Controller.
- You can also install the gauges to monitor the power, this is not a necessary requirement.
- Make the company fitted on/off switch dynamic by connecting them to ESC.
- Make final connections between ESC, batteries, and all other electronics in the car, run a test on everything if passed fit everything into your power wheels properly.
- Make your wiring is properly handled, proper management of wires will make it look good and perform better.
- Let’s go for a test, now you can control the speed of your motor provides, which will give you the natural driving experience.
There are many different types of ESCs on the market. Different ESCs may have different ways to install in the power wheels, so you may need to make extra space in your power wheels and mount some extra things which are not provided in stock.
How Fast Can 6V, 12V, and 24V Power Wheels Go!
6V Power Wheels Speed
6V Power Wheels are low-power cars designed for kids ages 3 to 5 years. The speed of these Power Wheels can go up to two to 3 MPH. If your child is not good at driving then you can opt for the 6V Power Wheels that will help them to learn driving.
12V Power Wheels Speed
The speed of Power Wheels is based on its battery and motor, bigger volt and watt can go faster. The speed of 12V can go up to 4-5 MPH.
The 12V power wheels are recommended for 4-7 years. Supervision of parents is necessary for this speed and age limit.
24V Power Wheels Speed
Battery volt and motor size are the main reasons for the increase in speed. 24V power wheels are faster than 6V and 12V and are recommended for the ages of 5 and above because of their speed.
The 24V power wheels are also available for teens with corresponding high speeds. The 24V power wheels for kids can go up to the speed of 6 MPH and for teens speed up to 15 MPH is provided.
How to Make 6V, 12V, and 24V Power Wheels Faster?
6V Power Wheels
It’s a pretty easy job for a parent to increase the speed of 6V and 12V power wheels. The basic concept is in making the power wheels faster is to replace the battery with high volt.
Motor and electronic speed controller also affects changing the speed of the power wheels.
Many speed booster kits are available in the market which include motor, gear, and speed controller, the battery is bought separately. You can buy the 12V or 24V speed booster kit and the same voltage battery and install it on the power wheels.
The benefit of a full speed booster kit is that they are easy to assemble, the parents can just take out the stock parts and install the kit in the same manner.
The speed booster kits are good enough to convert any voltage battery power wheels to go faster, but if you install these kits on 6V and go faster then the runtime will be decreased.
One other benefit for these kits is that they also have switches that can make the power wheels go back to old speed.
A lot of 6V power wheels have a governor install in them which means they have two-speed modes.
Before the modifications check if the governor is set to top speed and then if you think the speed is not good enough then you can opt for upgrades.
The speed of 6V power wheels can be increased from 3 to 5-6 MPH with proper modifications.
12V Power Wheels
Modifying the speed in 12V Power Wheels is kind of similar to 6V speed modifications. Modifying the battery voltage (see also ‘How To Upgrade The Battery In Power Wheels‘) is the easiest and basic way to make the power wheels faster.
12V power wheels can be converted to 16 volts, 18 volts, and 24 volts, higher than 24 volts is also possible. This can be easily done by the parents at home.
You can install multiple batteries at a time, just connect the batteries in series, after this, the voltage will be counted as combined.
For example, if you have installed a 6-volt battery with 12-volt, your power wheels will be 18V. It should be mentioned here that high battery voltage for a 12V motor decreases the life of the motor.
Other than battery modifications, speed booster kits are also provided in the market for 12V power wheels to make them faster.
The method of installing the speed booster kit is similar to 6 Volt.
If your power wheel is not going faster even after this modification checks the governor installed in your power wheels and set it to a higher speed.
The speed of 12V power wheels can be increased up to 8 MPH or even higher but with the best modifications
24V Power Wheels
6 MPH is a high speed for a kid, so usually, it is not recommended to upgrade the speed of 24V power wheels with lower age limits.
You can upgrade the 24 V power wheels speed if it is recommended for higher age limits.
Similar to 6V and 12V by increasing the battery voltage you can make 24V power wheels faster.
It is necessary to make the battery and motor compatible, otherwise, it can result in a motor failure.
As mentioned above speed booster kits are available in the market and can be assembled by the parents at home. These kits are recommended for kids with a high age limit.
The speed of 24V power wheels can be increased up to 10-12 MPH or even higher with proper modifications.
Upgrade Costs
The upgrade of power wheels includes the battery, motor upgrades, and ESC installations.
One 6V replacement battery can cost $30-$50, 12V replacement battery for power wheels is in between the price of $60-$85, for 24V the price is $80 to $120.
Also, two batteries can be installed in a series which will need a 24V charger, and these prices can change according to the quality of the product.
The 24V motor can cost in the range of $25-$80 again the prices can be changed according to the quality of the product. One electronic speed controller kit can cost up to $250.
The quality upgrade can cost more than the price of the power wheels, but it is always worth the money when there is the happiness of your kid involved.
Speed Mods on Power Wheels
Some of the power wheels come with multiple speed options. These options are provided for parents to control the speed at a lower range if they think their child is not trained for high speed.
For example, Power Wheels Dune Racer has multiple speed options, you can change the speed from the shifter.
Locate the shifter there you will find a lockout screw on the side of the shifter, remove that screw and now you can move the shifter to the low or high position.
Low positions mean low speed and high position means high speed. Choose your speed and insert the screw.
Many power wheels come with this option. So if your power wheel is running lower just check this option first.
Different speed mods in power wheels are also controlled by the governors sometimes, it is just a switch to change the speed to a high or low limit.
The Fastest Power Wheels
The Kawasaki KFX ATV Power Wheels by fisher price is said to be the fastest power wheels in best options. This quad ride is one seat that has a unique look, it comes in different colors.
This power wheels has a twist handlebar to switch between low and high-speed mods. The low-speed mod can go up to 3 MPH and the high-speed mod can go up to 6 MPH, which makes it the fastest not modified power wheels for kids.
Most of the power wheels in this category have 2.5 MPH at low-speed mod and 5 MPH at high-speed mod.
Safety of Power Wheels After Upgrades
Upgrading the battery, motor and installing the electronic speed controller create vulnerabilities for safety issues.
Unsafe battery packing, loose wires, naked wires may become harmful for the users. It is necessary that the new battery must be in a safe battery compartment.
It is better not to leave the wires loose or naked. Loose wires may be caught in something and naked wires can result in a short circuit or can give a shock to your child.
It is better to cover the wires with electrical tape or insulating them.
Higher speed needs more safety options, seat belts, parental locks, and automatic brakes are already provided in power wheels.
High speed may increase inertia and reduce friction. Rubber tires instead of plastic ones can help to overcome these vulnerabilities.
Even this speed is good for outdoor activities on grass and terrain, it is better not to allow your child on steep terrain because the vehicle can easily topple and injure your child.
Read on: How to Convert Power Wheels to Remote Control
Reliability of Power Wheels After Upgrades
The replacement batteries can work for up to 2-3 years if properly checked every month after installing. The battery is reliable when charged properly and not overcharged constantly.
The replacement motor’s reliability is based on its compatibility with the battery. If the battery has a lower voltage than the motor it will die in a short time.
If the battery voltage is higher and not compatible with the motor it can result in an unnecessary load on the motor which will generate heat.
The compatibility between the motor, battery and Electronic Speed Controller is necessary for the reliability of this speed upgrade, otherwise, it can result in battery or motor failure.
Aftermarket Parts Accessibility
Aftermarket parts like gearbox, motors, motor hardware, batteries, wiring, and electronic speed controllers are easily available on the market.
There are online stores where parts are available for power wheels.
It is hard to find body parts like tires, lights, seats, etc. on the online market. You may need to find an authorized service center and they may provide you the parts you require.
Power Wheels Service Center and Mattel Service provide these services in a few countries.
Conclusion
Nowadays the power wheels are very popular. The stock speed of power wheels can go up to 5 mph and sometimes it gets boring to run at a constant speed.
Speeding a little more is always fun for kids.
Power wheels can go faster than their stock speed after upgrading a few parts. Upgrading the motor from 6V to 12V or 12V to 24V will surely increase the speed.
Unfortunately, it will also have a negative effect on the battery, so the battery also needs to be upgraded accordingly.
If you only upgrade the battery then it will also increase the speed of your power wheels (see also ‘The Best Power Wheels Upgrades‘).
For the dynamic experience of driving, you can install a speed booster kit which include motor, ESC, and gears.
The compatibility of these parts with the power wheels is necessary, sometimes you may need to make some extra space in your power wheels.
