Tag Archives: Great Britain

The only British cars that don’t rust are those made from LEGO

If you say ‘family saloon made in 1960s Britain’, chances are the car in question is not a very good one, even by the standards of the time. But if you say ‘LEGO car made by Chris Elliott‘, it’s almost a dead cert that it’s a bona fide classic. While they were by no means perfect, there is a certain charm about cars of this vintage, which Chris has captured wonderfully. The front grille – a custom-chromed Wolverine claw – is immediately recognisable as a hallmark of Wolseley cars, and indeed Chris says the Wolseley 1500 was the main source of inspiration. There’s a hint of Ford Cortina in there too, and maybe even something sporty like a Triumph TR4. The shaping is great, and along with the chrome parts really helps to sell this as a typical late-20th-century British classic. The only inauthentic thing is the build quality. It’s far too high for this to have come out of a Leyland or BMC factory!

1959 British Family Saloon

Did your Land Rover break down? Call the AA

Of course, I don’t mean to imply that Land Rovers are unreliable vehicles. However, if you were in the UK, were to own a classic Land Rover and, God forbid, it would break down on you, what would you do? One of your options could be to call the AA. That is the organisation formerly known as The Automobile Association. Not the other famous organisation with the same initials that helps people overcome another expensive and destructive habit.

The AA operates a roadside assistance service, with mechanics crisscrossing the country in vans. However, if one of their mechanics can’t fix the problem, because it is actually pretty major, they also operate a fleet of recovery vehicles. A lot of those are German-built MAN TGL flatbed trucks, one of which I have now built in LEGO. Like the AA vans, these are a common sight on British roads, also quite commonly seen carrying Land Rovers. I’m still not saying those are unreliable, mind you. I actually like Land Rovers. My LEGO Land Rover model is something of a classic in its own right; I originally built it more than ten years ago and it has never broken down, except for when one of the wheels fell off as I was taking pictures of the truck. Since I’m a stickler for scale and I have not changed the style of my building for this, these two vehicles fit together really nicely.
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Make sure to report your cargo at the Customs House

Everyone loves a good LEGO fortress. Builder Ayrlego shares a rendition of his own protective retreat in his creation, Customs House, Hussar’s Isle.
Customs Post, Hussar's Isle

In keeping with his theme of Victorian Age models, Ayrlego again puts forth a well-detailed creation showing British troops on patrol next to the customs office. These offices were used to count the number and types of ships coming into port, and played an essential role in administering the British Empire around the world. No wonder there are so many soldiers to protect it!

Although there’s a lot to love about this build, I think the window frames are the best part. They have the rounded edges and features of something that might have actually been built back then. If this was a LEGO set, I’d buy it in a heartbeat.