Tag Archives: Vehicles

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).

New and improved Galaxy Explorer is a blast from the past

It’s always exciting to see a great builder branch off into new themes. ZCerberus, best known for his giant fantasy castles, is making a new and impressive name for himself in the expanding world of Neo-Classic Space (NCS) with a number of creations we blogged earlier this year including his NCS fighter, dropship and rover. This time he’s recreated the classic 1979 LEGO Gaxlaxy Explorer, but with a very new and updated look.

This new and improved version stays faithful to the basic look of the original Galaxy Explorer, but packs in all kinds of fun details and design elements. The supersized engines and extra weaponry look great, while the blue/light-gray/trans-yellow color scheme is just as appealing as it was nearly 40 years ago. No doubt, this is a Galaxy Explorer for the 21st Century and beyond.

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Quarter of a million brick LEGO McLaren 720S goes from zero to ABS in 2000 hours

Founded in the nineteen-sixties by Kiwi racecar designer, driver, engineer, inventor and all-around legend Bruce McLaren, the McLaren company is one of the most successful in Formula One championship history, winning a total of 8 constructors’ world championships and 12 drivers’ world championships. This year, McLaren released their latest car in the Super Series lineup, the gorgeous 720S, and this incredible LEGO replica is the centerpiece of McLaren’s stand at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. Built by the team at Bright Bricks, the model comprises a staggering 280,000 bricks and took a team of six builders over 2000 hours.

The real car is powered by a 4.0 twin turbo V8 and can go from 0-60 mph in a mere 2.8 seconds and up to 124 mph in 7.8 seconds, with a top speed of 212 mph! However, the 1:1 scale model arrived at the Goodwood stand a bit more slowly, as festival visitors will help complete the model. They will need to place orange McLaren bricks in designated parts of the car, with the 720S reaching completion at the end of the Festival of Speed.

Duncan Titmarsh, the UK’s only LEGO Certified Professional and part of Bright Bricks, led the 720S build. The LEGO version weighs approximately 200kg more than the actual 720S, coming in at around 1.6 tonnes (1.8 US tons). The build features real wheels and a steel base but is otherwise almost entirely made of LEGO, including the brake pads, windscreen wipers, and windscreen. Some additional details like the badge and license plate have been provided by McLaren to finish the build nicely.

The LEGO 720s will go on tour to other marketing events once it has been finished, so you may get a chance to see it in person.

Officer responding, really quickly

Near-future police vehicles have a high standard to live up to. Sid Mead’s classic design for the Blade Runner Police Spinner remains a heavy influence on LEGO Cyberpunk builders. This police gyro-car by Angka Utama reminds me of a cross between the spinner and Kaneda’s bike from Akira — and that’s meant as a compliment. I love the simple lines and sharp colours on display here, and those chunky tyres would surely keep any responding officer glued to the mean streets.

TBB cover photo: July 2017

Our cover photo for July is one for the petrol heads. André Pinto has crafted a convertible Alfa Romeo Spider in perfect detail using stylish dark red …apparently to the same scale as LEGO’s Ferrari F40 set judging by those wheels. Check out the full album to see some of it’s working features.

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LEGO Creator Expert 10258 London Bus is the latest addition to your London-themed LEGO collection [News]

Since the introduction of 10253 Big Ben, 10214 Tower Bridge and some LEGO Architecture sets, the LEGO Company seems to be on a mission to LEGO-ify London. Today, they’re adding more to the batch with a model of another hallmark of the British capital with the 10258 London Bus. This 1686 piece set will be an awesome addition to the LEGO Creator vehicle lineup as well, taking its place right next to another British icon, the 10242 Mini Cooper. The iconic red double-decker bus is an impressive copy of an AEC Routemaster, which first appeared on London streets in 1956 and ran till late 2005, becoming one of the world’s best-known public transportation vehicles.

If you want to be among the first fans to see 10258 London Bus in person, on July 1 you can visit one of 5 LEGO brand stores in London for an official unveiling of the set and the ability to purchase it early. For everyone else, however, if you want to buy one you’ll have to wait for the launch date of August 1, 2017, or get VIP early access on July 17. We’ve got the full press release, designer video, and all the images below.

The London Bus will retail for $139.99 in the USA and £109.99 and €119.99 in the UK and Germany, respectively.

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You can’t control the wind, but the sails give you control of your destiny

This sailboat by Daniel Church evokes quite an ethereal feeling. From a certain point of view it looks like any other vessel, but a closer look at its sails reveals an ingenious tessellation of pieces that makes it seem otherworldly. The blend of white and light grey gives off a very soft and pleasant blend against the thematic background of the ocean. What impresses me most though is the curve of the hull – I’m curious on how it’s held together internally!

An executive sedan of the 2000s built with LEGO pieces of today

France is very, very good at cheese, fashion and wine—and occasionally at engineering autos. A legendary Peugeot 607 from the early 2000’s turned out to be good enough to merit being recreated with LEGO pieces somewhat 15 years later by Latvian builder Rolands Kirpis. If you’re a long-time Rolands fan, you’re likely used to his unique style of building which largely avoids curved slopes yet achieves a smooth look anyway. The scale of the car is similar to the famous Miniland vehicles, yet just a little bit bigger, giving more space in the design for smooth transitions and some neat touches like pretty accurate mud guards.

A fine old tractor

This classic tractor by Jakeof displays nothing luxurious or prestigious, and that is precisely its charm. There is something quintessential about decaying vehicles to begin with, but the damage on this particular one is very well represented.

There are many details to love, from the exposed engine to the odd rusted wheel, but the best part is the exhaust pipe, made of a rigid tube cut diagonally. While the trailer looks simple, I can assure you there are some very clever tricks used to get a perfect industrial look.

Cruising the streets with cool treats

The summer sun is shining, there’s a hazy wave of heat beating off the pavement, and you’re feeling hotter than a jalapeño’s armpit. When an ice cream van comes into view, it’s like spotting an oasis in the desert. Firas Abu-Jaber has converted his International Harvester Metro into a vintage ice cream truck, all ready to serve up delicious cool treats. The classic red and white candy stripe body paint is sure to catch the attention along with some tinkling music.

This 1:17 scale model is not just about the candy stripe exterior. The interior is easily accessed via the removable roof and rear panel and contains freezers full of everything required to satisfy your ice cream cravings.

Is it still a bike if it has four wheels?

In the past we’ve featured tiny motorcyles made with a handful of pieces, so let’s take a look at something bigger. This model of the odd Lazareth LM 847 bike by ianying616 is created with mostly Technic pieces. Comparing it to the original, the builder has done a spot-on job — this could be mistaken for a picture of the real thing from a distance. All of it is good, but I’m a sucker for that engine detail and the tubing.

Gentlemen, start your fusion engines

Here at Brothers-Brick, we’re suckers for a bit of well-executed LEGO cyberpunk. Following up on his peculiar spindly mechanoid, F@bz brings us this futuristic motorcycle which wouldn’t look out of place amidst the neon of Ghost In The Shell or Akira. The scale allows the builder to add plenty of detail, and the level of texture is enhanced further with the occasional sticker. The whole package comes wrapped in a wonderful eye-popping colour scheme. I don’t know if this thing is really fusion-powered, but I’d love to take it for a spin down the neo-Tokyo highway regardless.

Life’s too short to build boring cars

I’m in love with this orginally-designed supercar by Portugese builder Alexander Paschoaletto. The builder is certainly no stranger to building wicked sports cars – just look through his Flickr photostream to see a ton of awesome designs, some real, others completely original. Alexander blew it out of the water with his latest creation, which features opening Lambo doors, a lovely color scheme and the curves to drive anyone wild.

No small amount of work went into bringing this lovely design to life and you’ll notice some clever parts usage to achieve this distinctive look. There are lots of details to appreciate, from those awesome looking headlights to the exquisite interior. Even sitting still, this supercar looks like it’s going 200kph.