Licensed vs. Non-Licensed Ride on Cars
What’s the difference…..we see a lot of different ride on cars circulating the internet these days. Some with 100 different features… some that look good…some that are big…..some that are small….and some are just plain old ugly. So the question is what’s the difference?
Licensed? What does that mean? A licensed product is a product that has the legal right to use a company’s logo, style, symbols and even colour. To license your product you must meet quality standard for your product and pay royalty fees to the company to use their logos, styles and even color. Non-licensed ride on cars AKA generic brands are usually copies of these cars…..so…what’s the difference?
1. Quality: In order to get a license for your product the quality of the car must meet the standards of the licensor. Because these are big name luxury auto brands, the cars quality needs to meet with the brand’s reputation.
Since generic brands don’t need to meet these standards, quality of their product can range from extremely poor to mediocre. This could include faulty wiring’s, poor manuals, old batteries and extremely hard to assemble.
2. Style: For ride on car’s the style of the car must replicate the actual model. If you look at the LaFerrari ride on car, you can see that the angles, the doors and the interior (as close as possible) replicate the actual car. Moreover, stickers and logo are used at minimal and only when needed.
Generic cars on the other hand, have many stickers, fake logos and way too much color on their car that makes them look cheap.
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3. Features: Many customers feel that “more is better” this is not the case when it comes to ride on cars. In most licensed ride on cars you will notice that they come with a standard LED lights, MP3 AUX cord and an R/C (most models).
In other generic ride on models you will find extra features like: glow in the dark wheels, lights under the wheels, extra stickers, 100 different motor sounds, and music that is already pre-installed in the car. These items are often time not needed and hinder in the overall quality of the car.
4. Assembly: Any Rastar brand licensed ride on car, the car comes already 70% pre-assembled. This makes assembly fast and easy. As for generic cars assembling a car is a NIGHTMARE! Sometime a car can take up to 2 hours assembling with proper instructions.
5. Price: With all that is being said you would conclude that licensed cars are more expensive then generic models. However, there have been many websites that advertise both the licensed cars and the generic cars but the difference in the price is very minimal. The reason is these websites would want you to buy the generic model because their profit margins on them are higher. Customers that pay for these models end up paying more for repairs.
How to spot the difference between Licensed vs. Non-Licensed?
Its quite easy, all licensed models will say directly on their manual or on their carton “that this product is used under license……” Pay close attention to the LOGO of the car, for example an Audi will have the three rings as opposed to four rings. In many non-licensed ride on car they will say beside them the word “STYLE”…for example Ferrari Style ride on car, whenever you see the word style it’s most likely a non-licensed ride on car. 
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1 comment
This summary needs to be read BEFORE buying and selecting the car. The licensed version is a quality replica and everything it claims to be. I already have the real thing now have two Mercedes !