Maxime Cheng‘s beautiful classic BMW R60 motorcycle has appeared here before (twice in fact), and it’s now been joined by an equally stunning sidecar. Easily one of the finest Lego motorbikes we’ve ever found it’s a build that’s definitely worth a closer look.
Maxime is hoping the design will become an official LEGO set via the LEGO Ideas platform, and with BMW now an official partner of LEGO with the launch of the new Technic 42063 BMW R 1200 Adventure set we think this is highly possible. You can check out all of the brilliant images and add your vote on LEGO Ideas via the link above.
This gorgeous BMW R60 motorcycle by Maxime Cheng has appeared here at TLCB before, but so beautiful is this latest image that we thought it worth a reappearance. Maxime’s photograph shows exactly how a Lego creation should be captured, and also what we look for here at TLCB in order to be able to blog a model. If you’d like to see your creation appear here (or on any of the major Lego blogs), presentation is everything. We’ve compiled some handy hints on how to take photos as good as Maxime’s in our ‘Photo Like a Pro’ tutorial. Click here to read the tips and tricks, and you can see more of Maxime’s stunning BMW R60 shown above by clicking the first link in this text.
Apparently there was an election today, but whatever the new leader of the free world decides to do / build / blow-up, we’ve found something that’s going to make 2017 just a little bit better; LEGO have brought another vehicle manufacturer into their officially licensed line-up!
Joining Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, Ferrari, Porsche, McLaren, Volvo, Caterham and others, BMW Motorrad (BMW’s bike division) have become the latest LEGO Group partner with the arrival of the new 42063 BMW Motorrad R 1200 GS Adventure Technic set.
Constructed from 603 pieces, the BMW R 1200 GS Adventure celebrates forty years since the Technic line launched, way back in 1977. The model features working telelever front suspension and swing-arm rear, functioning steering, BMW’s 2-cylinder boxer engine with shaft drive, custom BMW decals, bespoke tyres, and a mystery new piece unique to the 42063 set. It’s also the first LEGO set to feature the company’s new app-based 3D instructions.
LEGO’s Technic 42063 BMW Motorrad R 1200 GS Adventure set will launch in 2017, and we’re going to make a bold call and say that it looks like it could be the best motorcycle that LEGO have ever produced. We can’t wait!
Only the toughest, most elite* of TLCB Elves is sent foraging in MOCpages nowadays. “Bonk, Smash, Thud” isn’t just the noise of MOCpages breaking again, it’s also the sound of malnourished Elves collapsing with hunger. It’s hard to find good Lego vehicles and get Smarties to eat when the site crashes for so long, so relatively regularly. MOCpages has been the spiritual Lego home for many top quality builders over many years. Sadly, more and more builders have become inactive there and fled to other websites. However, there are still gems to found on the ‘pages.
A case in point are the cars built by Rene Scheruebl. Rene’s latest vehicles are in the Lego Speed Champions, 6-wide scale. They include a Mercedes 190 Evo, an Audi 200 V8 and the BMW M3 Sport Evolution featured here. Building these cars must require very steady hands, as they all feature tiny decals and neatly painted stripes. Whilst the techniques might offend purists, the results are impressive and well worth a visit to Rene’s MOCpages account; if the website happens to be working…
*Fattest actually. The low chance of meal tokens is a good way to sneakily put them on a diet.
BMW’s first generation M3 is one of our very favourite cars. Small, light, and not particularly powerful, it’s the antidote to the ridiculous ongoing power-war between the premium brands that’s resulting in ever faster, yet ever fatter and ever more expensive ‘drivers cars’.
The E30 M3 takes us back to basics, when drivers cars were about, well… driving. We’re not alone in thinking this either, as the values of these early M3s are soaring, putting them well out of reach of appearing in TLCB staff carpark.
Fear not though, as MOCpages’ Daniel H. has a plan to make the E30 BMW M3 a whole lot more affordable. Daniel’s slickly recreated Model Team replica of the famous sports saloon was suggested to us by a reader, and it’s available to vote for on the LEGO Ideas platform now.
Featuring a detailed interior, chassis and engine, plus opening doors, hood and trunk, Daniel’s M3 would make a superb addition to LEGO’s expanding officially-licensed vehicle line up.
You can see all the images at Daniel’s MOCpage via the link above, and you can vote for this creation to become an official LEGO set by clicking here.
It’s double date night here at TLCB, and as it’s this writer’s turn to attend it’s looking like he’ll have to pay another girl at the bus stop. Or put a call into your Mom. Anyhoo, let’s put the evening conundrum aside because we have two wonderful Model Team motorbikes to share with you today.
First up (above) is this glorious classic BMW R60 by Flickr’s Maxime Cheng, who has recreated the original machine superbly using a mix of Technic and Model Team styles, easily becoming one of our favourite bikes of the year so far.
Today’s second ride (below) comes from Flickr’s Andre Pinto, with this fantastically ridiculous Harley Davidson ‘Bagger’. Although beautifully built it looks like an absolute pig to ride, but seeing as this writer might be calling up your Mom later let’s not dwell on that. You can see more of both bikes on Flickr via the links above – click the links to make the jump.
This three-wheeled oddity is a Grinnall Scorpion III, a BMW-bike engined track-car built by one of the UK’s many weird sports car companies that most people have never heard of. Well this one isn’t of course, it’s a Lego version, built by Flickr’s James Tillson, and it’s quite a neat bit of kit. With all-wheel-suspension, RC steering and a Buggy Motor driving the single rear wheel James’ Scorpion replica looks like a riot to drive on a slippy lino floor. You can see more images of the Grinnall on Flickr here, and you can see it in action on a slippy lino floor at Eurobricks here.
This neat BMW R100-based cafe racer was found on Flickr today and it comes from previous bloggee Andre Pinto. Andre’s used a clever mish-mash of Technic and System parts to create his motorbike and there lots of superb imagery to see at his photostream. Click the link above for the full gallery.
When Audi aren’t cheating worldwide emission tests they’re busy developing even more boring SUVs with angry aggressive faces to be driven by angry aggressive drivers. BMW on the other hand, whilst once the tool of choice for sunglasses wearing douchebags, seem to getting progressively classier and more adventurous.
This is one of their recent highlights, the totally and completely beautiful 328 Hommage. Well, this isn’t obviously, as it’s made from LEGO, but it is a worthy homage to their, er… Hommage. Built by Flickr’s Jeroen Ottens it features independent suspension, working steering with Ackerman geometry, a 4-speed gearbox with auto function, and a 6-cylinder piston engine.
There’s more to see of Jeroen’s homage to the Hommage at his photostream – click the link above to make the jump.
BMW’s M3 super-saloon is still one of the best driver’s cars in the world. Over the years the M3 has got bigger, heavier, much more powerful, and much, much faster. But it has also become more electronic, less natural, and – although the YouTube statistician commenters will disagree – less fun.
This, the 1980s E30 M3, comes from a time when lightness, simplicity, modest power, and mechanical rather than electronic engineering created probably the best M-Car that BMW ever made, and this superb Technic recreation by damjan9PL/daminple mirrors its subject by going the same route.
There’s not a Power Functions motor anywhere, as instead the model focusses on Technic mechanics, with a working four-cylinder engine, independent suspension, working steering, adjustable seats and opening doors, hood and trunk.
The leaves are falling here at TLCB Towers and – if the tabloid press are to be believed – it’s going to be the coldest winter, like, ever. But they do seem to say this every year.
Anyway, there is a compelling argument for buying an old 4×4 for the winter months, or even better a cheap and tiny front wheel drive hatchback that will boing through the snow happily passing flashy RWD executive cars stuck up to their axles.
Ralph Savelsberg‘s choice for a winter ski trip is a bit of an odd one then. Sure it is old, but BMW’s original 635CSi is now a certified classic, making it quite an expensive proposition. It’s also powerful and RWD, meaning it absolutely will get stuck. But it’s also really, really cool.
There’s more to see of Ralph’s superb ski-carrying olive green BMW 635 on Flickr – click the link above to hit the slopes.
DTM, Germany’s touring car championship is, along with Australia’s V8 Supercar Series, the absolute pinnacle of saloon car racing. No, NASCAR doesn’t count.
The racing cars of DTM make big power, create huge downforce, and – whilst they have almost nothing in common with anything you can buy for road use, aesthetically they closely resemble their real-world counterparts.
This spectacular machine is a replica of BMW’s current entry in the series; the mighty M4 DTM Coupe. Underneath the incredible (and very yellow) bodywork is a fully suspended chassis powered by four XL Power Functions motors, a servo motor for steering with Ackermann geometry, LED lights, and two re-chargable batteries.
It’s been built by BrunoJJ and it’s one of the best Technic racing cars we’ve featured this year. Suggested to us by a reader, there’s a huge gallery of images to view on Brickshelf, plus a Eurobricks forum with more details and close-up shots available here.
Earlier today we featured America’s attempt at downsizing, which is definite step in the right direction, but is still – let’s face it – bloody massive. Europe are making things much smaller.
Leading the way are BMW, whose latest supercar is powered by a tiny three-cylinder 1.5 litre turbo engine. And some electric motors. Big electric motors.
The striking looking i8 uses a combination of these power sources to deliver incredible performance and incredible fuel economy, deciding how much of each source is best to use at any given time. Clever stuff, although sometimes we don’t think the humble Toyota Prius gets enough credit…
TLCB Master MOCer Sheepo has decided to recreate this technical tour-de-force in Lego Technic, and his stunning replica i8 is very nearly as advanced as the real car. Power Functions RC drive and steering are included, as are an electrically operated retractable roof and opening scissor doors, plus the BMW’s dinky three-cylinder engine.
And then it’s gets really interesting. Sheepo has recreated (sort of) the BMW’s ingenious Hybrid system, with an electrically powered front axel, plus two more motors on the rear axel that are activated on the selection of Sport Mode, to give the car all-wheel-drive. The gearbox mounted in the middle equalises these motors to ensure smooth drive to each wheel, as well as upping the drive ratio when Sport Mode is engaged.
You can see how it all works at Sheepo’s website here (at the time of writing the i8 is yet to be published on the usual image-sharing platforms), or via the excellent video below.
There’s only been one post between Ralph Savelsberg‘s last creation to appear here and this one, but unlike the Indiana Jones movie franchise all of Ralph’s efforts continue to yield excellent results.
His latest model is the BMW R75 military motorcycle and sidecar that starred in the superb 1989 film The Last Crusade, complete with Indiana himself and his father as passenger. There’s lots more to see at Ralph’s photostream – click the link above to make the jump.
*If only. Someone please tell George Lucas to stop. Aliens? Really?!
The 2015 Formula 1 season kicks off this weekend (which should take the edge off the cancelation of BBC’s Top Gear*), and the big news is that Honda have decided to return to the sport after several years away. McLaren are looking to Honda to help revitalise their form (having won several world championships with them in the ’80s and ’90s), and Honda are looking for anything to make them interesting again, after spending quite some time being spectacularly boring in almost every way.
However, it was not Honda that powered McLaren’s most famous road car, but BMW, who supplied the 1995 F1 supercar with its monstrous V12 engine. MOCpages’ Paul vdB has recreated the product of that McLaren/BMW partnership with his beautiful Technic McLaren F1. His model features the huge aforementioned V12, plus a working gearbox, suspension, steering, butterfly doors, and a pneumatically operated air-brake/rear spoiler.
All of the McLaren’s details can be found on MOCpages, including digital renders of the design and close-ups of the chassis and pneumatic functions – click the link above to visit Paul’s MOCpage.
*Hopefully the return of Formula 1 will mean that the Elves’ Top Gear-related depression will disperse. We’re not really bothered about their happiness, but the news has affected their productivity somewhat. Luckily our readers have filled in the gaps; today’s creation being suggested to us via the Feedback page. You can read what we look for when blogging creations by visiting the Submission Guidelines here.
