We have a well documented nervousness about child’s tricycles here at TLCB, but this one is so cool even we’d have a go. Flickr’s Rhys’ Pieces has used just a handful of Lego elements to create this most excellent drift trike. See how he’s done it at the link above.
Flickr’s Karwik is a regular here at The Lego Car Blog, with over a dozen of his beautiful Town vehicles featured here since our inception. Today he adds no less than six more creations to his blog-count with this simply wonderful Star C-28 Car Transporter complete with Polski-Fiat load.
Five Polski-Fiat 125ps feature, with three sedans, one station wagon and even a pick-up loaded onto the ZBNS D-91 trailer. All variants were, er… rubbish, but that doesn’t stop them looking spectacular in Lego form with Karwik’s huge attention to detail evident on each one.
We highly recommend a visit to Karwik’s photostream to see more of the Star C-28 truck, ZBNS trailer, and its Fiat 125p load. You can also view all of Karwik’s other incredible blogged creations by typing his name into the search box at the foot of this page (or at the top right for those viewing on mobile devices). Now, time for us to give a very lucky Elf six Smarties (and possibly diabetes).
Time for something spacey! This bewitching Moon Base was actually uploaded to Flickr months ago, but we, er… weren’t paying attention. Luckily builder Michal Kazmierczak recently added this astonishingly beautiful build to his MOCpages account too, and thus gave us another chance. We’re glad he did, as this could be the sci-fi creation of the year. See all of the incredible photos of Michal’s ‘Cold Moon Base’ via the link to MOCpages above.
Volkswagen’s humble Beetle may not have been a technologically advanced car when it was rescued from the ashes of World War II by the British Army, but recreating every working function of the real car from Lego Technic is far far beyond the understanding of TLCB office.
Spanish builder Sheepo however, has a mind of extraordinary ability, and his builds go way beyond what most think is possible from plastic bricks. His latest work may be of a simple car, but what lies within is anything but. His 1:8 scale 1967 Volkswagen Beetle features five motors, (controlling the drive, ackerman steering, brakes and gearbox), a working flat four engine, opening and locking doors, independent front suspension with swing axel rear, plus folding seats, a working steering wheel and a working brake pedal.
The Beetle is the latest in a long line of spectacular Technic Supercars from Sheepo and is available in further detail on either Eurobricks, or via his own website Sheepo’s Garage.
Interview! We’re delighted to announce that Sheepo has entered The Lego Car Blog’s Master MOCers Hall of Fame, and becomes the tenth (and final) builder in our incredible series, joining nine other of the very best Lego vehicle builders from around the world. To find out more about how Sheepo started building, what inspires him, and how he creates his Technic masterpieces simply click on the link below, or visit the Interviews page in the main menu at the top of the page.
…Well, what else was I gonna call it …?
Welcome to the TLCB review of the new Lego Ideas 21108 Ghostbusters Ecto-1 set.
I was in my early teens when this brilliant film was released, and I have fond memories of it. It was pleasing to find on seeing it recently that it’s aged quite well. Unlike some of it’s audience… and of course that 1959 Cadillac ambulance still looks effortlessly cool.
Turns out it looks cool in Lego as well.
This was always gonna be a day 1 purchase – I knew that as soon as I saw the preview pictures. Unlike the DeLorean model, Lego has stayed very close to the original designer’s idea, making it the most realistic minifig scale car I’ve seen from them by a long way.
You have to pay for this excellence. Forty five smackers is a lot for an 8-wide car, however you look at it, although as we’ll see, Lego have done their very best to make the outlay worth it.
First, the box. In common with other Cuusoo / Ideas sets this comes packaged in a sturdy, high quality Architecture set-style box that’s beautifully illustrated with an atmospheric shot of the car and the four main characters in Minifig form. On the back, we’re reminded that it’s the film’s 30th anniversary. Just in case anybody who saw it first time around doesn’t feel old already…
Instructions are a similarly high quality square-bound book with glossy pages, lots of interesting snippets about the film, the characters and the car, and the instructions themselves are interspersed with quotes from the movie to enjoy as you build. Take your time over it. It’s like doing an Architecture set, where you’re learning about the building as you, er.. build. The only thing that might annoy is the book’s inability to lie flat; but what are paperweights for ?
It’s quite rare for me to be remotely interested in a set’s Minifigs, so I’m no expert on such things… The four main characters do seem to be a pretty good representation of Venkman, Stantz, Spengler and Zeddemore. I have seen comments elsewhere about Venkman’s hair not being right but it looks fine to me. I told you I was no expert… I like the way his sardonic features do a passable impersonation of Bill Murray though. All of the heads are printed on both sides, to provide a scared face when the situation arises, which it will… The four all wear identical torsos with their initials printed thereon, which you’ll need a magnifying glass to read, but it’s a nice touch. They also have identical backpacks, well greebled with all their ghostbusting gear, and Zeddemore has his, er his…. ectomplasmic activity sensor thingy as well. All in all, these are excellent. Probably.
The meat of the build is, of course, the car. A white ’59 Caddy ambulance fully equipped for any paranormal emergencies. Building it serves as an object lesson in how to form a perfectly shaped minifig scale car. Lesson one: you’ll need a lot of brackets. Lots and lots. Those new 2 stud long curved slope pieces will come in pretty handy as well… Anyone used to just building City style cars is in for a surprise: this is building at the very top level of moc quality, and it shows in the finished article. It’s scaled properly to the wheels, it’s stance and proportions are spot on, the level of detail is right for it’s size (the only thing really missing is door handles; but then I can’t think of anything that wouldn’t look clunky – that’s one of those things that’s better left out, I think), even the side windows have the correct ‘tumblehome’ and trimmed edges. All extremely impressive in a model this small, although that does mean that nothing opens.
Fortunately, the roof with all it’s… stuff comes off for playability. Three figs will fit inside (someone’s gonna have to walk, unless he wants to lie down in the back…). For such an intricate model, it’s surprisingly sturdy too.
One of the reasons it looks as good as it does is the use of silvered pieces for the bumpers, for that typically Cadillac chrometastic look. If they’d have stretched to silvered instead of grey pieces around the windows as well it would look fantastic. And be even more expensive… Another bonus is the fact that there are no stickers (Hallelujah!); everything that needs to be is printed, including four 2×2 curved slopes with the Ghostbusters logo and the ECTO-1 licence plates.
This is a model that screams quality. It probably wasn’t subject to the same cost constraints that may have hobbled the (cheaper, worse) DeLorean; and I’m glad that a lesson may have been learned. Collectors will pay for quality, and this is very much a display set; one to perch proudly on your mantelpiece and await the ‘wow’s from visitors. Or pose it atop your television and sit back to enjoy the film…It’s better value in the US ($50) but even in Europe, it’s worth the price of admission. 10/10.
We don’t often get to publicise models like this one here at The Lego Car Blog. Mostly this is because the Elves are massively biased in favour of fast stuff with guns or Robots in Disguise, but it’s also because Lego builders rarely stray into vehicles of the work-a-day variety. TLCB veteran LegoMarat has done just this though, with his gorgeous Model Team ‘Old Red Tractor’. It features working steering and pendular front suspension, and you can see more of it by clicking here.
There are two happy Elves here at TLCB Towers today. Usually when two of them find similar creations we pick the best one and the loser goes hungry (which has led to some spectacular Elf fights in the past). Today though we’ve decided to feature both finds, because we’re awesome like that. On to the first!…
We often get queries asking why we don’t post more digital creations. You can read why here, however if you’re wondering what the required standard is for a digital creation to appear on TLCB, look no further than MOCpages’ WoorCK and his beautiful Hot Rod. You can see all the spectacular renders on MOCpages via the link above.
Our second creation also takes presentation to the next level, and comes from newcomer Moko on Flickr. You can see more of his superb Town style Hot Rod as well as his other fantastic builds at his photostream via the link above.
Stephen Sander makes his second appearance here at TLCB by making an already cool creation even cooler; outdoor pictures for the win! See more of his Miami Vice Ferrari Daytona on MOCpages here.
Today is a Big News Day! After much secrecy we can reveal the newest addition to LEGO’s Expert Creator line; 10242 Mini Cooper!
Following on from the superb 10220 Volkswagen Camper, LEGO have turned their design expertise to one of the most loved, recognisable and famous cars ever produced, the wonderful original Mini. 10242 is based on a last-of-the-line 1998 Cooper in British Racing Green, complete with UK registration plates and a picnic in the boot! Over to LEGO’s press release for the full details:
Experience the iconic MINI Cooper first hand, with its classic lines, detailed interior and fun picnic theme.
Take the iconic MINI Cooper for a drive! This beautifully crafted LEGO® brick replica of the classic MINI Cooper Mk VII is full of authentic details, from the classic green and white color scheme with white wing mirrors and racing stripes, to the opening doors, hood and trunk, sporty fog lights, detailed engine and separate spare tire compartment. You can even remove the roof to access a tan colored interior with patterned seats, veneer-style dashboard, turning steering wheel, and moving gearshift and handbrake. And of course, no MINI Cooper would be complete without a picnic basket and blanket, the perfect accessories for a cozy day in the countryside!
• Features opening doors, hood and trunk, spare wheel in separate compartment, detailed engine and 2 fog lights.
• Accessories include a picnic basket, bottle and blanket for nostalgic picnic theme.
• Authentic replica of the MINI Cooper Mk VII.
• Classic green and white color theme with white wing mirrors and racing stripes.
• Lift the hood to reveal the detailed engine.
• Remove the roof and access the detailed interior.
• Go on a countryside picnic with this iconic classic!
• MINI Cooper measures over 4” (11cm) high, 9” (25cm) long and 5” (14cm) wide.
US $99.99 – CA $119.99 – AU $149.99 – DE 89.99€ – UK £74.99 – DK 799.00 DKK *Euro pricing varies by country.
10242 will reach stores over the summer (or the next few months for those of you around the world), aimed at experienced builders and featuring over 1000 LEGO pieces. Hopefully we’ll see a few British Racing Green creations appearing shortly after release!
Ok, we have absolutely no idea what this creepy-looking creation by legoalbert is. None. So, over to the creator himself;
“Dark cloaked shadow-men patrol the wilderness of the Afterworld, roaming around on their tall artificial mounts. Swiftly rushing trough the densest of the forests, zig-zagging on the streets of the dead cities, they’re only vulnerable to the Vultures of the Plain, out in the endless grassfields, where the Insectmen rule.”
Well, that’s cleared that up. See more of whatever this is via the link above!
We don’t often publicise Star Wars creations here at The Lego Car Blog; there are other Lego blogs that do sci-fi far better than we can. However every once in a while even our car-biased office is stopped by something so incredible it takes us away from looking at things with wheels. This is one such time, and the cause of our collective awe is this; Jerac‘s unbelievable two metre long Imperial Star Destroyer.
Jerac has published a raft of stunning images, including this one edited by Migalart, on his Flickr photostream. Click the link above to see the complete gallery, which almost all of TLCB Elves are currently looking through whilst chanting ‘daan daan daan, dun da daan, dun da daan…’ in unison. We hope they’re not getting any ideas…
The world’s best selling car, the Toyota Corolla, sometimes gets a bit of stick from car enthusiasts. You don’t sell something in the tens of millions unless it’s kinda inoffensive and a bit… boring. But that doesn’t mean Toyota’s most popular model can’t be special. Senator Chinchilla shows that even a humble Japanese box can look very very cool with the addition of a few choice modifications. See more of his superb modified Corolla KE70 on Flickr at the link above.
Fighter aircraft seem to always have cool names. Well, apart from Russian ones, as the Soviets apparently banned creativity and decreed that everything must be called only by a number. Anyway, Tornado, Jaguar, Lightning, Typhoon, Thunderbolt all feature in our ‘cool names’ list, but this is perhaps the best; the FM-2 Wildcat.
Ralph Savelsberg is the builder of this exquisite Lego recreation, and you can see more of his latest work via his Flickr photostream. Ralph also recently joined us as the penultimate builder in our Master MOCers Series; Read his interview here!
Today’s post is something a bit special. Andrea Lattanzio (aka Norton74) has appeared here at TLCB several times with his hugely impressive European trucks, and most recently with his beautiful adaptation of LEGO’s 10220 Volkswagen Camper. His modified 10220 repurposed the original set as a canvas covered pick-up for Volkswagen Service, and Andrea has now constructed a stunning workshop to compliment his original model.
Entitled ‘Garage Life’, Andrea has recreated everything found in a typical workshop to exceptional detail, including every fitment, amenity and tool. Highlights include a Lego compressor, engine hoist, pillar drill, jack, rolling tool box, broom, axle stands, stereo system, sink with hand wash…
You can see all of the details above plus plenty more besides by visiting Andrea’s enthralling Flickr photostream or MOCpages account. Which is where we’re off to now. See you there…
Technic Subaru Imprezas are like buses it seems. You wait ages for one and then two turn up at once. Following Pippasseyoyo’s superb large-scale ‘super car’ style WRX posted earlier in the month, another builder has uploaded their take on Subaru’s rally weapon. Filsawgood‘s Impreza WRX STI is a whole lot smaller, but a whole lot more Power Functions-y too. See more of the remote control Scooby on Eurobricks via the link above.