Tag Archives: Vehicle

LEGO planes, trains, and automobiles! Well, maybe not trains, since they don’t like to play with the other LEGO themes, but here you’ll find all our favorite cars, buses, boats, ships, helicopters, and anything else with an engine (and some without).

The great outdoors awaits

… and what better way to get there than in Lino Martins‘ latest creation? This fabulous 1974 Ford Bronco features the trademark touches which make Lino one of my favourite builders — smooth curves and good color choices all wrapped up in the large scale he seems to have made his signature.

1974 Ford Bronco

Obviously the canoe and the power winch are lovely, the wood paneling effect is neat, and that metallic stripe down the side is just sweet. But what tops this model off for me is the detailed engine beneath the bonnet — brilliant stuff.

1974 Ford Bronco

Teal me a story

Spoiler alert: most UFO pictures are faked, including this one. Teal is a very rare color, and most of these bricks were never made in it. Which makes this virtual model all the more striking. Digital artist dunkleosteus_ldd used Lego Digital Designer and Bluerender to design this uniquely shaped alien craft. Perhaps it could be built in real life using a more common color. Would it still look this cool in red?

Harbinger

Passing on to LEGO Nirvana

There’s a saying in Japan that you’re born Shinto, get married as a Christian, and die a Buddhist. In other words, you practice Shinto rites from birth, have a Western-style wedding, and leave this world through Buddhist funeral ceremonies. Thus, one of the many unique aspects of Japanese culture I experienced growing up there was seeing station wagons with tiny, shiny golden Buddhist temples sprouting from their backs. These little mobile temples are actually Japanese hearses, and Moko has once again used his collection of chrome-gold bricks by building a LEGO version of this iconic Japanese vehicle. In case you’re too dazzled to notice, I’ll also point you to the clever front grill on this 4-wide LEGO car.

Japanese Hearse

Check out Moko’s blog for more photos, including breakdowns and building techniques.

And for all our bilingual readers out there, here’s a totally ridiculous vehicle. Unfortunately, that’s the best I can do, since the very silly pun in Japanese (「オハカー」) simply does not translate. The car has a pullback motor, though I suspect a crash could result in grave consequences.

That pun is so funny I need to go lie down now and meditate on my life. Memento mori.

The Foxbat Fighter rebuilt for combat

As new pieces and building techniques emerge and as builders improve their style, it’s interesting to see a builder revisit a previously built design. Benjamin Cheh Ming Hann shows a side-by-side comparison of his custom fighter design, the FB12 Foxbat, with his original 2013 build on the left and 2014 rebuild on the right. Improved color blocking, an overall smoother shape, and added rear fins and air intakes show Benjamin’s efforts to rework an already great compact fighter design.

FB12 FOXBAT FIGHTER Mark I & Mark II Special

See more views of Benjamin’s FB12 Foxbat on his Flickr, with an album each for Mark I and Mark II.

The ultimate muscle car: The Ford GT

If you ask me, the Ford GT is the coolest modern day American sports car, and probably one of my favorite American cars of all time. Based on the legendary Ford GT40 LeMans racecar of the 1960s, the GT looks like nothing else on the road. It can be difficult to capture the car’s squat curves at such a small scale with LEGO, but this version by George Panteleon is instantly recognizable.

Ford GT
Ford GT

The future is groovy with the Volkswagen Spacebeetle and Spacebus

Priovit70 has seen into the future and it is groovy and filled with awesome hovering vehicles like this adorable spacebeetle. It keeps the classic lines and still manages to keep up with the latest models from those other spacecar makers. Or, if you prefer more room, you’re welcome to cruise about in your VW Spacebus.

Even better, other companies have caught up to and integrated some sweet sweet AI to take care of autopilot. So sit back, relax, and enjoy your voyage to Miller’s planet with those towering waves for some sweet surfing.

Volkswagen Spacebeetle

Make space surfboards, not intergalactic war!

A Volkswagen Beetle to fit all of your Friends

Have you ever sat in the backseat of a VW Beetle? They’re very very small. Tyler Sky has captured the cramped nature and nostalgia for this classic car with his latest offering: a Friends mini-doll scale version of 10252 VW Beetle, which we recently reviewed.

VW Beetle (Minidoll scale)

What makes this adorable little Bug particularly wonderful is details: the roof comes off, and you can take a peek both at the trunk and the engine. I love the tiny red cooler strapped to the top!

VW Beetle (Minidoll scale)

Sebulba’s micro-podracer is anything but bantha poodoo

Cecilie Fritzvold has built a fabulous little version of Sebulba’s podracer. The shrunken chibi styling manages to perfectly capture the look and feel of this classic vehicle — you can almost hear the distinctive roar of the engines as this passes by. The whole model is elevated by the classy presentation — it’s amazing what a simple bit of tan landscaping can do.

Microfighter: Sebulba's podracer

Don’t miss the close-up details available in these zoomed-in shots. There’s some nice brickwork on display, although I’m not convinced some of the connections in here are particularly robust! The purple energy binder connection between the two engines looks about as reliable as the “real” energy binders proved during the Boonta Eve Classic.

Microfighter: Sebulba's podracer (details)

Next gen Scuderia Ferrari races into the future

There’s only one thing better than mecha racing, and that’s mecha racing in a Ferrari. Gamabomb‘s latest creation is a brilliant four-legged “spider mech” fitted out in classic Scuderia Ferrari colors.

MRL Ferrari SF48-O

The model makes excellent use of stickered parts to create a genuine “racing car” feel, and the greebly mechanical details make for a believable-looking futuristic construction. I’m a big fan of the support work around the rear spoiler, and those little white wheels are magic. To cap off the great model and strong presentation, the builder has included an interesting technical description and a bit of backstory for the driver. Nice to see the sports of the future don’t let gender considerations stand in the way of talent…

MRL Ferrari SF48-O Aurora Rossa

Push it real good

There are a lot of sweet details on this vintage bulldozer model from Jakeof. Like the dual chain treads and their associated mechanical bits. And the subtle stickers that jazz up the side windows. And the little bits of cut flex tube everywhere. And the door handle, which looks like it might be the head of a minifig hammer. But the real highlight is the extremely old school brick used for the rear window. It’s amazing what you can do with a wide variety of parts and a little imagination.

DT-75

New LEGO 10252 Volkswagen Beetle is totally radical, man! [Review]

Announced just last month and out on August 1st, The Brothers Brick is pleased to bring you a full review of the new 10252 Volkswagen Beetle, thanks to a special delivery from LEGO headquarters in Denmark. This new Beetle in stunning dark azure joins the dark green 10242 Mini Cooper and classic 10220 Volkswagen Camper Van in what I’m hoping is a permanent fixture in LEGO Creator sets. The set includes 1,167 pieces, and will retail for $99.99.

10252 Volkswagen Beetle

The build

We’ve come to expect some solid techniques and clever tricks in the “Expert” LEGO Creator series sets, many of which are very obviously designed by the numerous builders who have disappeared from the face of the Internet only to turn up in Billund. And that’s the case here — the set was designed by the very talented Mike Psiaki, whose LEGO creations we’ve featured many, many times here on The Brothers Brick over the years — most notably one of the best LEGO X-wings ever made.

Mike’s Beetle doesn’t disappoint. The 211 steps span an instruction booklet 124 pages thick. I recently also built the new LEGO Ghostbusters (2016) Ecto 1, and it had far more complicated techniques than this larger vehicle does, but the Beetle is still full of half-stud-offset, SNOT, complex headlight and bracket geometry, and other techniques you’ll rarely if ever see in a LEGO City set.

10252 Volkswagen Beetle

Click through for the complete review!

Let’s play cowboys and engines

Christopher Hoffman brings us an excellent Tech West stagecoach robbery scene. I’m a big fan of the Tech West idea — the mix of steampunk, dieselpunk, space, and cowboys ticks all of my boxes at once. And this creation is a great example of what’s good about the theme — the model is immediately recognisable as a stagecoach, with figures that totally look the part, yet it’s got beefy podracer-style engines which somehow don’t look out of place. Great work y’all.

Tech West - Stagecoach Robbery