allanp

Maybe they bumped it forward a year to 2025 for Technic?

I was actually thinking this exact thing, but wondered if I was reading too much into it. While app only control and RC/PU might well be popular to the customers that small RC cars like this will appeal to, it hasn't been that popular with us lot. Yes yes I know, we're a small minority and all that, but I don't think it's egotistical to say that we know Technic, we know what it can be and what it should be better than the masses, and without knowing the limitations the designers have to work with, we're free to dream a little bigger about what Technic can be. I think that makes us worth listening to. And even just as fans of Technic themselves, I'm sure the designers still want to give us "the good stuff". So it actually makes sense to contain all the PU/app based stuff in this one piece, pleasing the marketing department with this solution that makes no compromises in terms of being smart device controlled and having instant gratification and all that. They keep all that alive with this new hub, while not having to maintain a whole suit of PU technic elements, freeing them to work on a new system that is more suited to Technics "build for real" mantra. Maybe with physical remotes, more separation, less reliance on smart devices and coding (don't mind if it's compatible with that, but never liked the total reliance on it), they can offer us, as well as children, something real like Lego is meant to be. Real toys with real controls and paper instructions so there's no total reliance on owning or using a smart device to play with Lego, which should always be the best real toy there is.

They might as well make it in the shape of a car and be done with it. They can re-release it every wave with a different sticker sheet. But just to state the obvious, this isn't aimed at us. They probably said "the fans will hate it but the masses will eat it up". Hope we didn't disappoint!

No. Just....no! It's as if someone said "let's take everything that makes Technic an abysmally overpriced shadow of it's former self and condense it into a single piece." An RC with comically poor performance and masses of mechanical slop/play compared to similarly priced competitors that use proper ball race bearings and metal bushings and linkages that don't have a yard of free play and physical remotes? Check. A build devoid of mechanical interest and authenticity, thereby removing any advantage Technic had over it's competitors? Check. All the mechanics, including gear reduction from the motor is pre built, so there's less mechanisms for the customer to actually build themselves (which is kinda the whole point of Technic) leaving only boring body work left for the builder? Check. Finally a rechargeable battery, that isn't backwards compatible? Check Probably gonna be solely app controlled? Check (though this is so bad that even a physical remote can't save it. Yes, it's that bad!) Something that probably cost so much time and money to develope that there was less time and money available to develope other things, like an actually good and true Technic alternative, working brakes for the 1:8 supercar or a fully programmable physical remote/control center 3/control center+? Check. A build that's soooooooo mechanically simple, that has zero mechanisms to mess up, that is about as complex as a Star wars battle pack, that we still have to fill it with far too vibrant colour vomit in a failed attempt to make sure there's never ever a dreaded mistake ever made by anyone ever? Check. A reminder that we live in a world of instant gratification, where too many children own smart devices and are spending far too much time on their smart devices and Lego has no desire to actually make this poor state of affairs any better for children, only worse? Check.

Judging by the previous comments they do come pre lubed, and mixing lubes ain't always good. If we know what the pre-applied lube was though it wouldn't hurt to add a bit more in this case, they do look quite dry in the pics.

That's good to know. So when they wear after a bunch of very high speed use, they get to like the old hubs? I can live with that.

Wait, there's actual (albeit plastic) bearings inside of these?! How are people finding their performance after some time of playing?

The suspension looks to be working really nicely. Also just found out the wheel bearings have actual rolling elements inside them, so that makes me like it even more!

It doesn't look like you were limited to the parts of one set at all, very impressive

Nice progress so far

Drat! I would have gotten away with some speculation if it wasn't for those pesky admins! *shakes fist with poor animation*

Tan has also appeared in Technic star wars sets. I don't think the McLaren will be orange. My guess is that it'll be purple, not that I'm very excited for that colour, but there's been a fair few Technic parts recoloured purple lately. I'd prefer something more luxurious to match the high price tag it'll have, like a metallic colour. Regular purple, nah, but a metallic deep purple, that could look sexy AF! Though even better would be a metallic dark red (someone resprayed the big Technic Ferrari that colour and it looks worth the RRP of the set) or a metallic dark blue, a metallic olive (like 8466) or even a gun metal grey would look fantastic!

Very cool machine and very well presented. Nice work, thank you for sharing . Would be cool to see a sort of pull test, like how much weight can this beastie move? I bet that on a smooth hard floor, towing a skate board or something, it could haul a fair bit of weight!

The proper pistons should fit easily enough, no need for unrealistic Kawasaki stuff. The Unimog had an inline engine over a sprung axle, so does the Arocs.

Or they could do what they did with the 8480 box, and show it from above and behind....for some reason!