MOC: Fourteen new City vehicles

[Kristel]

The Whizz Midget is just beautiful! It's a perfect balance of sportiness and toughness.

I'm not as much of a fan of the shape of the Wolverine SS, but it is a great colour scheme.

[Luke Styer]

Yes, they are. I'm eagerly awaiting double cheese slopes in transparent colours...

I thought that might be what you were using, actually, which is why I asked. I might prefer black cheese slopes around the sunroof because I don't necessarily think of sunroofs "curving down" like that, but that might be a difference in car styling between our countries.

9) Whizz Midget.

Absolutely awesome car!

10) Wolverine SS.

Again, absolutely awesome.

I love that your cars don't just look generically like a car, they each look like an intentional design.

[L@go]

I might prefer black cheese slopes around the sunroof because I don't necessarily think of sunroofs "curving down" like that, but that might be a difference in car styling between our countries.

I see your point, but it was never meant to be a traditional sunroof - which would naturally be just the middle part of the roof. This is more like a panoramic glass roof, which makes up a much bigger part of the roof itself.

Edit: Oh, and I'm glad you like the new ones :)

Edited February 13, 2013 by L@go

[Luke Styer]

The panoramic glass roof makes a lot of sense and hadn't really occurred to me. It also answers one of my main objections to sunroofs in real life, which is that they are a hole in a perfectly good roof.

[L@go]

Well, two more cars finally photographed and processed...:

11) Étoile d'Élégance.

Inspired by Nathan Proudlove's "Conquest", I wanted to build something to combine white with golden bricks. Not wanting to be held back by the limited number of bricks available in pearl gold, I went for custom chromed pieces from Chrome Block City instead, and I'm surprised how well white and gold pieces go together - although you could argue that this is completely tasteless. And you would have a point. The whole thing ended up as something neo-classic and very blingy, so I thought I'd give it an over-the-top name. So why not go with something French? Like the Star of Elegance... sounds even more cheesy in English.

After having built this, I realised it was very similar to one of the very first car MOCs I built after my dark ages, about four and a half years ago. These two are both inspired by the crazy neo-classic Mitsuokas from Japan, but I think you'll agree that my building style has evolved slightly.

12) The modern 6681.

The classic Town set #6681 was one of my favourites as a kid, as big and tough as it was, with high ground clearance and cool barriers to stop traffic. As part of my Updated Classics project, I thought I'd have a go at re-interpreting it to a scale more compatible with modern LEGO City cars.

Unlike most of my updated designs, this is more like a modern interpretation than a replica. I originally went for a look more similar to the original, but as soon as I tried the longer front overhang, I knew that was the way to do it, and I think it's ended up looking pretty nice. Of course, it has the same equipment as the original one - and then some.

This one had its public debut next to Morty's Norwegian Royal Palace at Lego World in Copenhagen, where it was on display along with my Tine truck, my Royal Rides and another one of my Updated Classics - which I think just might be my best one yet. Within a week or so I'll update this post with that one and a supercar I've built - which then takes the total number of cars in this topic to fourteen. As promised :)

Hope you like them! As always, more pictures in these two Flickr folders. Feel free to comment!

Edited March 9, 2013 by L@go

[Peppermint_M]

Good Grief, I am !

Quick Question: Who do you advise as a good seller of car parts? I am running low on wheels of all kinds, tyres, mudguards and hoods. So, you know, all the bits needed for a car...

[L@go]

Thanks for your ...!

Hmmm - I actually don't have a particular seller to recommend. I use 1001bricks a lot, and Dad's AFOL Supply... but not specifically for car parts. Basically, any seller that has a good inventory will probably also have car parts. Those two do, and offer superb service, too.

[theDeanoRama]

You have yourself an amazing collection (also checked out your flickr). Definitely a lot of inspiration here, I think the 1st thing I may emulate is The Stig I have to focus more in the evenings and get designing again, get to honing my skills a little more rather than the giant sorting mission I've given myself

[L@go]

Thank you for that! Sorting is a necessary evil, you need to build a bit in between :)

[L@go]

Alright, time to reveal the two final cars out of the batch of fourteen - and these are two of the best, in my opinion. Apparently, this is my blue period...

13) Sensor GTR.

I was pretty happy back when I built my Supercar for my s(t)igfig - and happiness turned into delight when it got blogged by the Brothers Brick. But I've always had a feeling that I could do better with those curves, and although the approach to this one is more road and less race, I think it's even better.

I managed to achieve the sleek, low look I was going for, and have ended up with something Ferrari-esque, especially from the rear, with the twin taillights - although I named it the Sensor GTR because it really reminded me of this - a very obscure Swedish attempt at building a supercar (in a shed). It's also the first time I've tried the binoculars as exhaust pipes, a trick I've seen others do successfully before, and it won't be the last time I do it - it works very well. My favourite feature, though, has to be the engine.

It's a twelve-cylinder beast, and how that huge lump with an obviously insane amount of power will affect the handling in a car with such a short wheelbase, I can only imagine. But it's a nice design that was suggested to me at an earlier stage when I complained about how much room engines demand if you're going by the 1 stud = 1 cylinder rule, and it works perfectly in that space - the binoculars look just like what I now know are velocity stacks. You live and you learn!

14) The modern 6661.

Being a TV reporter, I've wanted to try my hand at updating the classic #6661 for a while, but I wasn't sure how to do it. After fiddling around in MLCad for a while, I came up with a shape that I was reasonably happy with - retaining the boxyness of the original, and keeping the openable rear door, the satellite dish and all the equipment. I've also added some stuff that was never included in the original set, but which I felt should be in there - after all, I know a thing or two about what sort of equipment these cars have. It does also feature a mobile editing suite inside, and a spotlight to make the reporter look good on the air.

The car is only part of the package, though. Of all the fiddly little designs I've done since coming out of my dark ages four and a half years ago, the camera and tripod is one I knew I had to get right, because I see them all the time - they have been a very important part of my working career for the past ten years or so. I finally found a way to do it that I think looks just about perfect, so I'm very happy with it - and the only "cheating" I've done is applying some black paint to one part. Note also the extra memory card for the camera in the briefcase.

Here's the car as it was displayed alongside Morty's Norwegian Royal Palace at Lego World in Copenhagen:

I'll probably keep adding to the 15 classic sets I've already updated - who knows which ones will be next? - but for now, I don't have any firm plans on any particular MOCs.

I hope you've enjoyed my last batch of cars. As always, more pictures in these two Flickr folders. Thanks for looking!

[Ricecracker]

I'm really liking these two additions. The second picture of the GTR is the money shot for me, and the use of the tow ball for the satellite is perfect.

[Bregir]

Oh, I love that modern rendition of the TV-van - its was one of my favourite sets! :D

Brick on

[Peppermint_M]

He's a savant. A savant I say!

Makes me want to go and build in 6-wide now, I escewed it a while ago after falling for the Speed Racer cars... Maybe I will have more resources for a while yet If I move to 6-wide for a while....

[ER0L]

Another batch of amazing vehicles from you L@go! Since there are so many of them I'll do as always and choose three favourites, if it's okay for you. Once again these are rather the larger ones - not just because I prefer them anyway but because I think they offer more possibilities of shaping and technique-wise.

• Royal Ride: A very elegant yet beefy limo with lots of nice and very original solutions. I like the glass roof, the way you have built the windscreen and the fact that it fits so many figs. Sadly you can't see that nice champagne party going on inside here. My only point are the wheels, in my view they are too off-road-like, but that's me. Anyway a grand vehicle worth any prince in the world!
  
• Vintage Truck (no surprise, I guess ): I love that nice colour design, the asymmetric aspects, and last not least the suicide door, of course. The roof is done very well, too. The mudguards are rather unusual, but work surprisingly well here. A very stylish vehicle with a nice vibe.
  
• TV Van: I especially love the playability here, but the shaping is very nice, too. It has quite a style and could easily be a set - couldn't imagine a nicer improvement of the original one. TV reporter sounds interesting - maybe we'll see some more MOCs dealing with your professional life?
  

Some other cars I especially like here are the following: Sensor GTR, Cowgirl Cruiser, Cobalt Speedster. Looking forward to the next batch, keep up the great work! :thumbup:

[lightningtiger]

More AWESOME vehicles.......I love the TV news van......Brick On drive 'L@go' !

[L@go]

I'm really liking these two additions. The second picture of the GTR is the money shot for me, and the use of the tow ball for the satellite is perfect.

Thanks! I thought that looked pretty much like the real thing, especially in combination with the dementor stand. Don't know if I could have found a better solution.

Oh, I love that modern rendition of the TV-van - its was one of my favourite sets! :D

One of mine, too! Maybe it sub-consciously influenced my career choice?

He's a savant. A savant I say!

Makes me want to go and build in 6-wide now, I escewed it a while ago after falling for the Speed Racer cars... Maybe I will have more resources for a while yet If I move to 6-wide for a while....

Thanks! I was messing about with something in MLCad the other day for which I needed to know the typical stud length of my cars, and I was shocked to find out that I now build cars that are on average around 20 studs long. I guess my mind was still back in the old days when a car was typically eight or ten studs long. But as my style has evolved, my cars have grown. So now, even though the bodies of most of these cars are still four-wide, pretty much all of my cars are six or even seven studs wide. And I still think of eight studs as far too wide, but just wait a couple of years - if I keep going like this, I will probably get there sooner or later... :)

Royal Ride: *snip* My only point are the wheels, in my view they are too off-road-like, but that's me.

*snip*

TV reporter sounds interesting - maybe we'll see some more MOCs dealing with your professional life?

First: Thanks for your kind words. It's always nice to get feedback from people who build similar stuff :) About the wheels: Are you talking about the wheels or the tires? And which wheels would you suggest? The only two that fit underneath the mudguard are the ones I've used and the old spoked ones, which don't really work with such a modern car. These, you see, don't fit - they're a fraction bigger, just enough that the tires touch the mudguard...

Regarding tires, I didn't want to use the old slicks, because after all, this is supposed to be a modern car, and those have grooves in their tires. I feel the slicks fit better with the older cars because older car tires have much shallower tread patterns.

More TV stuff? I don't know... cars are really what I like to build. If I can track down some proper stickers at work, I might just build a white one that looks more like the ones we actually have :)

More AWESOME vehicles.......I love the TV news van......Brick On drive 'L@go' !

Thank you - I think it might just be the best re-imagined classic I've done thus far, not least because of all the functionality.

[CMP]

Loving that Elegant car. The TV van is nice too, and that is by far the best LEGO camera ever.

[ER0L]

About the wheels: Are you talking about the wheels or the tires? And which wheels would you suggest? The only two that fit underneath the mudguard are the ones I've used and the old spoked ones, which don't really work with such a modern car. These, you see, don't fit - they're a fraction bigger, just enough that the tires touch the mudguard...

You may combine the mudguards with the usual wheels, too, see http://www.brickset....ail/?Set=4441-1. I have used this combination on the Mad Max Interceptor, tires inside out to avoid the grooves. Maybe a question of ground clearance, though.

Regarding tires, I didn't want to use the old slicks, because after all, this is supposed to be a modern car, and those have grooves in their tires. I feel the slicks fit better with the older cars because older car tires have much shallower tread patterns.

Agreed. But I feel that the grooves in any grooved TLG tire are much too strong, plus they are visible from the sides which isn't typical. Your Royal Ride is a very sleek and elegant car, in my opinion those *groovy* wheels interfere with its look and feel.

More TV stuff? I don't know... cars are really what I like to build. If I can track down some proper stickers at work, I might just build a white one that looks more like the ones we actually have :)

I'm rather thinking in terms of street scenes which are interesting enough to be covered by TV, the re-opening of an old cinema for instance ...