Category Archives: Technic

Radar Love

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This fantastic creation is a ZIL 131, a Soviet V8-powered 6×6 off-road truck built from the 1960s right up to 2012, as used by all manner of dodgy dictatorships and communist regimes around the world. And Finland.

It’s also a vehicle that has appeared on this site several times over the years. This one however, is a little different from most…

Fitted to the bed of Samuel Nerpas’ Technic version is an enormous radar system, as was mounted on the real AMU variants of the ZIL 131. Powered by two separate gasoline engines, the P19 radar antenna would raise, unfurl, and rotate, allowing the Soviet Union to deploy radar in even its most inhospitable parts.

Samuel’s incredible recreation of the ZIL 131 AMU includes that P19 radar system, with four Power Functions motors raising and unfolding the antenna, powering a decoupling clutch, and rotating it 360°.

Four more motors drive all six fully-suspended wheels, whilst another powers the steering, and yet another a compressor to deploy the pneumatically-operated stabiliser legs.

There’s loads more to see of Samuel’s astonishing build at both his Flickr photostream and at the Eurobricks forum, where full build details, imagery of the amazing antenna deployed, and videos of the model in action can also be found. Click the links above to get on the radar.

Today’s (excellent) title song.

Great Combination

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This excellent creation is a John Deere S790 combine harvester, and it comes from previous bloggee damjan97PL (aka damianPLE), who has forgone motorised features, instead combining wonderful old-school Technic mechanical functionality with modern System detailing to great effect.

A series of small cogs accessible on the outside of the model operate a variety of Technic functions, including the rotating raising/lowering and removable header, which can also be connected/disconnected from the drive wheels, and working rear-wheel-steering, plus the model features a swinging discharge tube, detailed cabin, and an opening grain hopper constructed from more traditional LEGO System bricks.

There’s much more of Damian’s excellent combination of Technic and System to see at both Bricksafe and Eurobricks, where a link to building instructions can also be found, and you can head there via the links above to bring in the harvest.

Four-in-a-Fiesta

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Ford’s Fiesta might recently have (inexplicably) ceased production, but it remains one of the most popular cars on the World Rally Circuit.

Cue Zerobricks’ fantastic Technic recreation of the Fiesta WRC, based on a real car run by the Slovenian ‘GM’ racing team.

Underneath the remarkably well-replicated bodywork, Zerobrick’s creation packs in a seriously impressive remote control drivetrain, centre of which are four (yes four!) BuWizz motors, one powering each wheel. A LEGO Powered-Up L Motor operates the steering, with twin BuWizz 3.0s controlling all five motors via bluetooth.

Long-travel suspension, a transverse inline-4 engine (powered via the aforementioned BuWizz drive motors), plus opening doors, hood and rear hatch also feature, with the visual realism enhanced by superb 3D-printed wheels and custom graphics.

It’s every bit as impressive as the real Fiesta WRC car, and if you’re interested in seeing what four BuWizz motors and all-wheel-drive can do (a lot!), you can check out Zerobricks’ incredible Technic rally car at the Eurobricks forum and via the video from the official BuWizz YouTube channel below.

In Accordance

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In accordance with the current rule that says all cars must be dreary crossovers, we don’t get the Honda Accord in TLCB’s home nation any more, instead having the choice of four equally bland SUVs. Sigh.

Back in the 2000s we did though, and this writer rather liked it, what with it being considerably more interesting than the U.S version. What the U.S did get that we didn’t however, was the V6 engine. And the Coupe. And this one is the unicorn combination of both.

Constructed by previous bloggee Mihail Rakovskiy, this fantastic Technic replica of the 8th generation Accord Coupe recreates the builder’s own 2008 example, and includes a V6 engine, manual gearbox, front-wheel-drive, working steering, all-wheel independent suspension, opening doors, hood and trunk, and adjustable seats.

It’s also, as you can see here, a rather neat looking model, accurately recreating the mid-’00s Accord Coupe’s handsome-if-anonymous exterior. Kinda like an automotive news reader.

There’s lots more of the model to see Mihail’s ‘Lego Honda Accord Coupe’ album on Flickr, and you can take a closer look at all the images via the link above. And if you’re European and wondering why the U.S gets the fun Hondas, the V6 engine and Coupe body-style have since been dropped there too. Still, at least there are half-a-dozen tedious automatic SUVs to choose from…

Seismic Vibrator

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Today’s vehicle is large, ponderous, and causes seismic tremors. Just like your Mom.

It’s a Sercel Nomad 65 ‘vibroseis truck’, designed to send shock-waves through the earth to map rock density. First pioneered by Conoco in the late ’50s, seismic vibrators today conduct around half of all land surveys, with many mounted on enormous purpose-built off-road platforms such as this Sercel.

Constructed by TLCB Master MOCer Nico71 for the Sercel Company (along with a further five copies), this incredible creation mimics the Nomad 65’s operation thanks to a suite of LEGO Powered-Up and Control+ electronics.

Two XL Motors drive the wheels via frictionless clutches, whilst an L Motor powers two linear actuators that swing the articulated central steering pivot. The vibration unit is lowered and raised via another motor and pair of actuators, whilst a fourth motor drives the vibration device itself.

A motorised winch, pendular suspension, and an inline 6-cylinder also feature, with all of the model’s motorised functions operable remotely via a smartphone courtesy of the Control+ app.

The finished model contains around 3,300 pieces, measures a huge 68cm long, and best of all you can build it for yourself as Nico has made building instructions available.

The Sercel’s complete image gallery can be found at Nico’s Brickshelf, plus you can watch the model in action via the video below. Take a look whilst we congratulate ourselves for successfully making it to the end of this post without a single sex toy analogy. Who knew a ‘Your Mom’ joke could be the high road!

YouTube Video

Hauling Lumber Off-Road. Definitely

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The most popular vehicle in the U.S is not a Camry, CR-V, or RAV4. No, it’s a pick-up truck, specifically the Ford F-150, now in its fourteenth generation.

With ¾ million sales in the U.S. last year, Ford sold 50% more F-150s than the next best-selling vehicle in America (also a pick-up). That’s a lot of people hauling boats, working on building sites, or carrying lumber.

Perhaps just one or two are used for nothing more than driving to Walmart of course, but we’re sure that 99% are absolutely used for pick-upy things. Definitely.

This F-150 is the work of previous bloggee gyenesvi, who has packed his 1:14 Technic version with working functions. Four-wheel-drive comes courtesy of a BuWizz bluetooth battery and twin Powered-up Motors, steering is driven via a third motor, and a high/low gearbox by a fourth, all of which can be operated remotely.

Realistic five-link suspension, opening doors, hood and tailgate, and a detailed interior also feature, and you can check out full details – including a link to free building instructions – at Eurobricks. You can also watch the model in action via the video below, plus you can find the complete image gallery via Bricksafe, where gyenesvi has photgraphed his creation on location off-road, where almost all real Ford F-150s also spend their time. Definitely.

YouTube Video

The Commuter

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We like cars here at The Lego Car Blog. Which probably isn’t a surprise. But what might be more surprising is we rather like buses too. No, we’re not those weirdos who get excited about route changes and new seat upholstery, but buses play a vital role in keeping congestion down so that we can, erm… drive our cars.

Cue the MCI D-Series, a ‘Commuter Coach’ (or ‘Really Big Bus’ to us) produced by the Illinois-based and unimaginatively-titled ‘Motor Coach Industries’ since 1992.

Powered by an array of different engine options (or even electricity), the 45ft tri-axle coach carries thousands of commuters to their place of work and back again right across North America (plus, in prison transport form, to… erm, prison). This one is a D4500CT in New Jersey Transit livery, as created brilliantly in Technic form by previous bloggee JLiu15.

JLiu’s build features mechanised opening doors, remote control drive and steering, a fully-fitted interior, suspension, and wonderfully accurate replica decals, with much more of his fantastic creation to see at his ‘LEGO Technic MCI D4500CT Commuter Coach’ album on Flickr.

Click the link to climb on board and start your commute.

Skid Marks

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We love B-models here at The Lego Car Blog. Taking a suite of parts designed to create one thing and repurposing them to create another thing entirely is the very essence of LEGO.

Cue previous bloggee (and something of a B-model specialist) Dyens Creations, who has redeployed the pieces from the 42122 Technic Jeep Wrangler Rubicon set to create something very different indeed.

Short of a bouncy castle or an F/A-18 fighter jet, a skid-steer loader as about as far removed from the Wrangler source material as it’s possible to get. Unless you’re a non-Jeep person, in which case an ugly agricultural lump of poor-handling machinery is perhaps not that far removed at all.

Whatever your persuasion, Dyen’s 42122 alternate is an excellent one, with a working loader arm and tilting bucket, an opening engine cover, and even enough pieces left over to add a construction barrier and warning sign.

There’s more of the model to see at Dyen’s ‘LEGO 42122 – SKID STEER LOADER’ album and you can make the jump from the trail to the construction site via the link above.

Achtung Baby

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This is a Mercedes-Benz Unimog U20, one of hundreds of Unimog variants, but unusual in being the only ‘forward control’ version, and – by TLCB maths – exactly ten times better than a long-standing Irish soft rock band.

It comes from previous bloggee and Master MOCer Thirdwigg, who has packed it not just with working Technic functions, but also an array of attachments and tools in much the same way as the real thing would be.

Working steering, pendular suspension, a piston engine, and a tipping cab all feature, with a folding crane, three-way tipping bed, street sweeper, and snow plough all attachable via the adjustable hitches and mounting points.

There’s much more of Thirdwigg’s excellent Technic Unimog U20 to see at both his Flickr album of the same name and at the Eurobricks forum, where full imagery and yes – building instructions are available too!

When Two Worlds Bolide

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Say what you like about the Transformers movie franchise – that the plot is nonsense, that everything blows up, that any female protagonists are over-sexualised to the point of absurdity, that there’s constant unchecked military glorification – but they do know how to pick their cars. Well, General Motors do, seeing as they paid millions for their products to be so blatantly featured.

Still, rather than a shiny new GM offering, Bumblebee instead transformed out of the decaying hulk of a ’77 Camaro in the 2007 blockbuster. He was even more attainable in the G1 cartoons, being hidden inside a Volkswagen Beetle. And we like that. A giant alien robot that’s, well… down to earth.

Not so today though, as the mute Autobot has decided to transform from a W16-engined, track-only hypercar costing $4 million. Flickr’s Dyen’s Creations is his maker, repurposing the pieces from his 42151 Bugatti Bolide set to create his Bumblebee B-Model.

There’s more of the Autobot alternate to see at Dyen’s ‘LEGO 42151 – BUMBLEBEE TRANSFORMER’ album, and you can take a look at the least accessible giant alien robot via the link above.

Bug(gy) Squash

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…Aaaand normal service is resumed. After today’s earlier post expecting “a monster truck or something” would follow next, TLCB Elves duly obliged, and – what with it being remote controlled – one of them immediately proceeded to flatten the others with it. Sigh.

It’s a good bit of kit though, coming from previous bloggee JLiu15, and featuring motorised steering and propulsion, a rear-mounted piston engine, LED lights, super bouncy suspension, and – handily for the Elf at the controls – a chunky bull-bar on the front.

There’s lots more of the model to see at JLiu15’s ‘LEGO Technic Race Buggy’ album, and you can make the jump to all the images via the link in the text above.

Definitely Not a Supercar

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The Lego Car Blog isn’t just about hypercars and monster trucks. Nope, we also deal in crummy ’70s French hatchbacks!

This one is a Peugeot 104, first released in 1972 and surviving until 1988, by which point over one-and-a-half-million had been produced.

Fewer than a dozen survive on the roads in TLCB’s home market though, so we doubt we’ll ever see one. Fortunately(?) however, today we can revisit cheap French motoring (that isn’t a Citroen 2CV or Renault 4) courtesy of previous bloggee Levihathan, who has recreated the Peugeot 104 in Technic form.

Working steering, a 4-cylinder piston engine, rear-wheel-drive, front and rear suspension, plus opening doors, hood and hatchback all feature, which ironically classifies the build as a Technic ‘Supercar’, which we love!

You can check out Levihathan’s Technic recreation of France’s peak small car of the ’70s at their ‘Peugeot 104z’ album on Flickr, and we’ll probably be back with a monster truck or something soon.

Activision Blizzard

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We like simple mechanical models here at The Lego Car Blog. LEGO’s 1988 Town set 6524 ‘Blizzard Blazer’ (or simply ‘Snow Plough’ in TLCB’s home nation) was a small, fairly ugly tractor, featuring Technic tyres, a posable plough, and a smiling mini-figure. It’s also the inspiration behind previous bloggee Thirdwigg’s upscaled Technic version, which – whilst somewhat larger and considerably more complicated – still flies the flag for mechanical simplicity.

Equipped with a posable plough, a rear-mounted rotating thresher thingy, or a neat drawbar trailer, Thirdwigg’s creation is nicely adaptable too. A working power-take off, adjustable hitches, and ‘HOG’ steering add to the playability, and you can see more – including a link to free building instructions – at Thirdwigg’s ‘Blizzard Blazer’ album, plus you can read his interview in TLCB Master MOCers series via this bonus link.

Iconic Evolution

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The Porsche 911 may have looked pretty much the same for the past sixty years, but due to multiple ground-up redesigns it’s a vastly different machine from what it once was. Even the car used as the basis for LEGO’s 2016 Technic 42056 Porsche 911 GT3 RS set is now a long way behind the latest 911 iteration.

This is the newest version of Porsche’s evergreen endurance racer, the 565bhp 992-based GT3 R that made its debut last year.

Built by Lachlan Cameron (aka loxlego), this astonishing Technic replica of the GT3 R features working steering, five-height adjustable suspension, a six-speed paddle-shift gearbox (plus neutral and reverse), a flat-6 piston engine, plus opening and locking doors and engine cover.

Presented beautifully, you can find the complete gallery of images and full build details via Lachlan’s ‘Porsche 911 (992) GT3 R Flickr album, the Eurobricks discussion forum, and via the video below, plus you can find out how he creates amazing models like this one via his Master MOCers page by clicking this bonus link.

YouTube Video

My Other Car’s a Ford GT

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This is a Red Bull SMG Dakar Buggy, of the sort used by World Rally Champion Carlos Sainz (no not that one, his father) to compete in the world’s toughest enduro, before he switched to the works Audi RS Q e-tron that took him to the 2023 Dakar victory.

Built by previous bloggee gyenesvi, this superbly liveried creation has been constructed only from the parts found within the 42154 Technic Ford GT set, and features all-wheel suspension, a mid-mounted V6 engine, ‘HOG’ steering, and opening doors.

Building instructions and a downloadable decal sheet are available, and you can convert your own Ford supercar into a desert conquering buggy via both Eurobricks and Bricksafe.