Does anyone have a Huffy Green Machine go kart or similar - need advice about buying one or if anyone has one for sale would be interested.

[Eulalia]

My son wants one of these for his 9th birthday. There are several models with the green version having two versions in itself. I need the newer larger version with a 20" wheel. Have seen a few on eBay but most sellers don't want to post and as I live in Scotland am miles away from any on sale.

If you have one can you tell me something about it - would it be suitable for a tall 9 year old? Would he get plenty use out of it (can't seem to find an upper age limit anywhere) Do they look sturdy?

Also interested in a 'Vibe turbo twist' go kart which is a similar type. Anyone have one of these - what do you think of it, and again anyone got one for sale. I know this isn't the right place to do it formally but thought I'd ask.

Many thanks.

DS1 has played on one at a friends house, he loves it.

They get loads of use from it but they are outdoorsy farmer types with a fair bit of space

ds1 thinks it would be great for a 9 year old girl and she'd have fun

have had a go on one of the twisty things (dont know what brand as was at a play centre), seemed like hard work tbh

Just found something called a rocker trike which is a bit more expensive but looks more sturdy.

Anyone else?

my DS has the green machine. he's had it for a couple of years and he still flies about on it. he's very tall for his age but if i remember correctly the seat can be adjusted. the rocker trike is good fun but he needs to be v.confident becase it takes alot to keep your balance. the main difference is that with the green machine you control it using the back wheels and levers and the trike is controled from the front wheel and you go around corners by tilting the seat as well as the wheel. DS loves the green machine cos you can do 180 slides. if your DS is tall you might need to look at a larger version of the trike as well cos there's not a lot of leg room and for the price you really need to get the use out of it. in saying that i think we're looking at the larger trike for xmas.

Thanks duomonstermum. How old is your ds? Its so hard to know. I don't want it to be too hard for him and worried about safety as well. We do have space out the back here but its quite rough ground and he'd not be able to pedal it that well. He wants to do skids for sure! Going to check the local ads for 2nd hand one I think.

he's coming 11 in the summer. so long as you have some decent footpaths/ nice neighbours he can get the hang of it pretty quickly. btw DS thinks it's far more fun on gravely road and surfaces that aren't too smooth. something about being able to spray....def need nice neighbours for that! if you look for the bigger version he should be able to get a good few years out of it. i'm 5'2 and can go on it so i think it was a santa presie that was well worth the money. if you're worried i'd reccomend a helmet and elbow/knee pads although DS only used his for the first 5mins and then took them off! he's had a few spills but no injuries that are any worse than coming off a bike. if you get one warn him that they can go really fast so be careful.... then again knowing boys that would be like telling them to go ahead!lollol

When we moved to our place two years ago we found a green machine behind the garage and it looked like it hadn't been ridden in years! I cleaned it up, put a new tube in the front tire and boy oh boy have our grandkids and other kids had a blast with it! We have a long, paved driveway, so it works very well for them. Now they want me to get another one so that two can ride at the same time....and they'd race I assume 😀