How to Build a Toy Car from Scratch

Various methods can be used to build toy cars from scratch. We will discuss two ways of making a toy car.

How to Build a Toy Car from Scratch: Method 1

This method familiarize you with how to build a wooden toy car. The things you will require to build this car from scratch are:

• Plywood: For chassis and wheels.
• Eye screws: Diameter should be more than the metal rods. These will support the axles.
• Metal Rods: For axles.
• Drilling Machine
• Small Handsaw

Step #1
Decide the size of the toy car and cut the plywood in a quadrilateral shape (rectangular or square) accordingly. This will act as the chassis of your toy car. Use a handsaw to cut the plywood.

Step #2
Prepare the wheels for your toy car. Cut a plywood into four symmetrical squares. Draw circles of required radius on each square. Drill holes at the center of each circle. The diameter of the holes should be almost the same as that of the metal rods, so that you require little force while inserting the rods. Cut the circles from the plywood and use a hand file to smoothen the surfaces.

Step #3
Hook the four eye screws at four edges of the plywood. Each eye screw should be placed 1 cm from the edge.

Step #4
Slide the two metal rods in the eye screws at front and rear end of the plywood. Attach the wheels to these rods and install washers at the ends of rods. Your toy car from wood is almost ready. You can paint the car and mount the chassis with fancy steering wheels, tiny seats and car body. You can use cardboard for building the car body and draw windows and other outer parts of the toy car.

How to Build a Toy Car from Scratch: Method 2

The first method discussed, will require carpentry and woodworking skills of taking proper measurements and cutting the plywood. This method is comparatively very simple and your child can also help you while building this toy car. The things you will require are:

• Rectangular box (1, for chassis)
• Unsharpened Pencils (2, for axles)
• Plastic Bottle Caps (4, for wheels)
• Hot glue

Step #1
The box required for the toy car can be a small shoe box, tissue box or any other rectangular box. Remove the plastic cover on the box carefully, if any. See that the width of the box is less than the length of the pencils.

Step #2
Make holes in the box to make space for the car axles. Create two holes in the front and two holes in the rear end of the box. Do not make the holes too big, the diameter should be less than that of the pencils.

Step #3
Pass a pencil through the holes of the front end, and another through the holes at the rear end. Now, take the hot glue and apply it to the inner side of a bottle cap. Stick this bottle cap to one of the pencil edges. Similarly stick the remaining bottle caps to other pencil edges. Confirm whether the glue has dried completely. Your toy car is ready. Paint the box with the color scheme required and the wheels with black color. Make silver stripes on the wheels to give the effect of spokes.

So, it is not that difficult to build a toy car. You can build a toy car quite easily, you need just innovative ideas. You can even build a self propelled toy car from mousetrap.