Tag Archives: modified

Cyberbricks

We’re often recommended models hosted on Instagram by our readers here at The Lego Car Blog. And many are awesome. However we unfortunately can’t feature them, because – in most cases – Instagram forces account creation just to view them. Not that Meta is desperate.

So we decided to create our own Instagram account, to at least start publicising the creations we write about there. And…. we can’t. Not unless we create a Facebook business account as well. Not that Meta is desperate.

So we’re still not on Insta. But one reader (and previous bloggee themselves) reached out to an Instagram-based builder and suggested that they upload their creations to a free-to-view platform too. And they have. And they’re awesome.

These are the works of mocbyendo, who’s now on Flickr, and we suspect you’ll be seeing rather more of in future…

Inspired by various Japanese car sub-cultures, concept art, and the modified car scene, Endo has created an array of outlandish creations including this cyberpunk Mazda RX-7, wide-arch Toyota Mark II, and… um, whatever the car below is. Mechanical components such as turbos, exhausts, roll cages, intercoolers and batteries are all superbly replicated in brick form, with many models further enhanced by custom decals, wheels and tyres.

Endo is still adding more creations from Instagram to Flickr and you can check out the three pictured here, plus lots more besides, via the link above.

Golden Nugget

Proving that you can race anything – no matter how inappropriate – Flickr’s Fukku Guen has taken a Japanese Kei truck, fitted a V6 in the cargo bed, wide arches, and the sort of rear wing and front splitter you’d normally expect to find at Pikes Peak. Inspired by the LEGO 77262 Speed Champions Ken Block Hoonicorn set (and utilising a few of its pieces), building instructions are available, and you can take a closer look at Fukku’s black-and-gold Kei monster on Flickr via the link above.

My Other Car’s a Ferrari

No really! Because this fabulous recreation of the wild Hoonigan Big-Block Chevrolet Camaro is constructed only from the parts of the official LEGO Technic 42143 Ferrari Daytona SP3. Which has lead to some inspired parts usage – just look at those tail-lights! Finally a positive to LEGO’s baffling decision to use multi-coloured pins.

Eurobricks’ paave is the builder behind it, and with working suspension, steering, V8 engine, and 4+R gearbox, his 42143 B-Model is as features-packed as its donor set.

Building instructions are available and you can find out more – and maybe swap your own Ferrari for a rather unique Camaro – at the Eurobricks forum via the link above.

Special-K

Kei trucks are not renowned for their performance. Smallness yes. Speed no. But what if you fitted a twin-turbo engine in the entirety of the bed?… Well Flickr’s Sergio Batista has answered that question with his mad kei truck, which imagines what a Suzuki Carry would look like if it were built for Time Attack. With choice parts and the livery from the LEGO 77258 F1 Academy Car set it certainly looks the business, and you can drift through the narrow streets of Tokyo via the link above.

Special K

TLCB is the sort of place where we like an improbably large engine attached to something wildly inappropriate. And there’s few vehicles more inappropriate for massive power than a Japanese Kei truck.

Limited to 3.4m in length and engines no larger than 660cc, Kei trucks are really very small indeed. But that hasn’t stopped newcomer Fukku Guen from fitting his with an enormous bed-mounted engine plus a pair of nitrous tanks.

We expect the handling – not to mention the carrying capacity – may be slightly compromised, but it more than makes up for that with fantastic silliness.

There’s more of Fukku’s modified Kei truck to see on Flickr, and you can take a look at his photostream via the link!

We’re Slammin’, and We Hope You like Slammin’ Too

We’re feeling loooow today, not in mood, but in stance, thanks to this beautiful air-bagged Peterbilt 389 truck and MAC 4-axle trailer.

Constructed by Grigoriy, this stunning custom Peterbilt features a remote control ‘air ride’ system via a Powered-Up L Motor, motorised drive and steering, an inline-6 engine, opening doors and hood, a sprung front bumper, and a working fifth-wheel, whilst the huge MAC trailer includes a lift-and-steer system too.

There’s much more of the model see at both Bricksafe and Eurobricks, building instructions are available, and you can get low with us via the links above.

Pink Missile

‘Pink Missile’ can refer to recent Iranian military propaganda, what this TLCB Writer calls his, um… nevermind, or – in this case – a battered twin-turbocharged Nissan 240SX drift pig.

Built by Sergio Batista, this Speed Champions scale drift weapon includes pop-up lights, a roll-cage and bucket seats, mis-matched body panels, and a highly detailed twin-turbo engine that definitely wouldn’t fit under the missing hood.

There’s more to see at both Flickr and Eurobricks and you slide in the pink via the links!

Insert Low Level Drug Dealer

Now this is a common sight in our home nation. The badly-modified ’90s BMW M3; ill-fitting bodykit, 3D-lettered private registration plate, and absolutely, without question, a low-level drug dealer behind the wheel.

They’re our version of an ageing Trans-Am, and they are to be avoided like a sexually transmitted disease. Which will most likely also be present in the carpets.

This one (in both coupe and convertible forms) comes from Flickr’s ZetoVince, and looks like every single E36 M3 parked on double-yellow lines in the crap parts of London. Which means Zeto has nailed it.

There’s more of the Bimmer to see at Zeto’s photostream, and you can collect your stash from the driver via the link above.

Enter the Dragon

Is Godzilla a lizard? Probably. We’re not up to speed on Japanese myths. But we do know that a lizard with wings is a dragon. Unless it’s a wyvern. Which actually Godzilla would be if it did have wings. And then the title wouldn’t work. We digress, this is a Nissan GT-R (R35) – a car nicknamed ‘Godzilla’ – and this one has wings.

They’re fitted – along with some marvellous 3D-printed Advan wheels – by builtbydavedesigns, who’s taken inspiration from Nismo’s wild GT-R GT3 racers. Opening doors, a detailed interior, and a superbly replicated engine bay also feature, and you can take a closer look at Dave’s beautifully presented dragon at his Flickr album via the link above.

Red Removal

LEGO’s fictional energy company has been supplying fuel to planes, cars and boats, as well as sponsoring pretty much every vehicle in LEGO City with a number, since ’92. Cue TLCB Master MOCer Dennis Glaasker (aka bricksonwheels), who has taken Octan’s iconic white, red and green colour scheme and flipped it to create this huge custom Peterbilt 389 and Polar tanker combo.

Constructed for the Legoworld Show in the Netherlands, Dennis’ spectacular 1:15 tanker features unique decals, custom chrome, and a livery so cool we don’t miss the red absent from Octan’s usual colour-scheme at all.

There’s more of Dennis’ stunning creation to see at his ‘Peterbilt Octan Tanker Combo’ Flickr album, plus you can find out how he creates amazing models like this one via his interview here at TLCB via the first link in the text above.

Ampere Romeo

Ripping the piston-engined heart out of a classic Alfa Romeo to replace it with batteries and an electric motor is either a brilliant modernisation or an abominable travesty, depending on your school of thought. Now we’ve started that fight, here’s an example of a car that’s done just that (at least, a stunning Lego Technic replica of one); this is Zeta Racing‘s fantastic Totem Automobili Alfa Romeo Giulia GT Electric.

Replicating their jaw-dropping resto-mod of Alfa Romeo’s classic sports saloon, Zeta has recreated every curve of Totem’s wonderfully restyled Giulia GT brilliantly in Technic form, with working steering, suspension, and a superbly detailed interior too.

The hood raises (although of course there’s no engine underneath it), and the doors and trunk open too. In fact Zeta has photographed his incredible creation in the front trunk of the real Totem Giulia GT Electric (where its engine once lived), making us wonder if he could build a smaller version of his own model to place under its hood…

Travesty or brilliance, Totem’s electric Alfa Romeo is certainly exquisitely engineered, and you can see more of the real car plus this equally spectacular Technic replica at Zeta Racing’s photostream. Click the link above to go electric.

Custom Camping

This unusual looking vehicle is a classic Chevrolet C30 pick-up, outfitted with a camper top, a dually rear axle (with LEGO’s weirdest wheels), suicide rear doors, and dropped to a completely impractical height. There’s also complete cabin and camper interior, an inline-6 Cummins engine, and an enormous amount of openings, including cabin doors, camper rear door, hood, and even fridge. Flickr’s Tim Inman owns the mind behind it and you can head to Camp Custom via the link above.

Honour in Tokyo

We can’t really remember what happens in ‘The Fast and the Furious; Tokyo Drift’, except that one of the characters inexplicably comes back from the dead several movies later, and the Yakuza somehow agree to a street race to decide honour or something.

Anyway, it did have some cool cars, including this modified Nissan Fairlady / 350Z VeilSide, which drifted around a multi-storey car park to decide honour or something.

This excellent Technic recreation of that car comes from previous bloggee ArtemyZotov, who has captured the wide-body exterior and art-car paint from the movie, with the model also featuring a working V6 engine, steering, and opening doors, hood and trunk.

There’s more of Artemy’s ‘Tokyo Drift’ Nissan Fairlady Z to see at the Eurobricks forum, including a link to building instructions so you can race it around at home. For honour or something. Drift over to Tokyo via the link above.

It’s Got a Crate V8, Mate

Chevrolet’s third-generation Camaro was not just a huge visual departure from its ’70s predecessor, it had fuel injection, a hatchback, and was over 200kgs lighter than the second generation. All of which added up to a car that was faster, more agile, and more economical.

Except that first bit. Because even the 5.0 V8-engined Camaros made…. 145bhp. Chevrolet upped that with a new V8 engine a few years after the third-generation Camaro launched, but it still didn’t trouble 200bhp.

Which is rather different from what Chevrolet offers today, as in 2025 you can buy, brand new, a 1,000bhp crate engine. And put it in anything.

The guys at Hoonigan have done just that, dropping said 1,000bhp Chevrolet crate engine straight into a third-generation Camaro. And the resultant car is rather more lively than it was back in the early-’80s.

Cue previous bloggee and TLCB Master MOCer Firas Abu-Jaber, who has recreated Hoonigan’s wild third-generation Camaro in brick form, complete with that outrageous engine, working steering, opening doors and rear hatch, a detailed interior, and authentically replicated decals.

There’s much more of the model to see at Firas’ ‘Hoonigan Camaro’ album on Flickr, you can find instructions for Firas’ builds at his excellent ‘Bricks Garage’ website, and you can read his interview here at The Lego Car Blog via the first link in this post.

Take a look via the links above, whilst we try to figure out if a 1,000bhp Chevrolet crate motor will fit in the engine bay of the office Rover 200…

What Bike?

Sometimes the transporter is cooler than thing it transports. Cue RGB900‘s wildly modified Ford Econoline pick-up, designed to transport a racing motorbike. But we’re not looking at the bike when the truck is so deeply cool. Take a closer look at RGB’s photostream, whilst we trawl Bring-a-Trailer for old Ford Econolines…