Old RC10's are way cool and actually run surprisingly well but the advice in the last few posts is good, if you're starting out it's better to do so with something your local hobby shop can get parts for. The good news is that right now people are clamoring for vintage cars so you should be able to sell the old car for enough to get into a new car.
Throw away the batteries, charging them could be dangerous at this point. Rechargable batteries have poor shelf life.