[MOC] Toyota TS050 Le Mans race car in scale 1:20 from 2017

[Lasse D]

 

The car is finally done with building instructions and all!

The model can easily be modified to be the #7, #8 or #9 car - simply exchange the side mirrors and number plates (if you build it with stickers)

The model is by far one of the most complex cars I have ever built. You can see all the details in the instructions: https://brickhub.org/i/428

The most challenging details are by far the triangular sections of the livery. While these are stickers on the real race car, I want to have as much being brick built as possible. This is also the reason why the model looks decent even without stickers.

I hope you enjoy the model and instructions. This is probably the last model in a while for which I will make stickers in the instructions. I have completely underestimated the effort involved!

 

 

BELOW IS THE ORIGINAL WIP POST:

 

.

I want to build a Toyota TS050 with the low downforce package to be used at Le Mans this year. We will see this package for the first time at the race at SPA this weekend.

First I have to determine the size. I'm currently considering 2 scales, so please give me other suggestions if you have any.

The first scale is 1:20 (LEGOLAND scale). It is proven and well known. I have experience building in this scale, but it might not be large enough to capture the details that I would want.

The other scale would be where the Porsche GT3 wheels fir (roughly 1:10). This scale allows for all details at a high level, but sacrifices the windscreen and might take too long to build: I would like to have the model ready for Le Mans this year (hence the low downforce package)

My goal is to have a non-functional model where emphasis is on adding visual details.

 

Experienced builders and enthusiasts. Which scale do you recommend?

 

 

I will use this thread to show the complete design and build process. Feedback (both positive, constructive and "Boo - Toyota will never win") is welcome.

 

Update

I have started designing it in scale 1:20

The base dimensions are:

Length 4650mm => 29 studs
Width 1900mm => 12 studs
Height 1050mm => 16.4 plates ~ 5.5 bricks.

I'm using this as my design sketch. It is made using Griddy and... mspaint :)

 

 

 

Edited June 24, 2019 by Lasse D
Final model. Changed topic to MOC instead of WIP.

[Jeroen Ottens]

I'd go for Legoland scale. Model complexity goes with third power of scale is my experience. So a 2x larger scale gives you 8x more work. The bigger the scale, the more details you can (and probably want to) add...

[Bricksonwheels]

Very curious!

 

[evortigosa]

Looks promising... I hope to see this work growing.

[nerdsforprez]

On 5/8/2017 at 3:35 PM, Jeroen Ottens said:

I'd go for Legoland scale. Model complexity goes with third power of scale is my experience. So a 2x larger scale gives you 8x more work. The bigger the scale, the more details you can (and probably want to) add...

Agreed. Here is an image showing the exponential relationship between differing scales.  Top is Sheepo's Mustang and on the bottom is Paul Boratko's Vampire GT.  Sheepo's 'stang is 1/8 scale whereas Paul's Vampire is 1/10 scale.  Former has over twice the number of pieces ..... which is a huge difference for such small differences in scale. 

 

 

Edited May 10, 2017 by nerdsforprez

[Edwin Korstanje]

For me as a ship builder and always dreams that i can build once a ship at the scale 1/20 ore 1/10, that i can't give you a good advice what the best scale is for your Le mans project.

It's more important for yourself, what your goal is for this project.

We all know that you are one of the best Modelteam scale builder is in the world and that you will make a stunning 1/20 scaled Toyota, but i wanted to see you build this project more outside your own comfort zone.

 

[2LegoOrNot2Lego...]

Can not really answer your question from my own experience but I would say take 1:20 if you're in a hurry. Probably even in this scale you can capture much detail. Many super car builders have done so, not necessarily in that scale but at least in a rather small scale. On the other hand I would like to see in it scale 1:10 to be honest... :-)

Nice project, if some one could do it it's you my friend! I'm curious to see what you'll come up with...

[Lasse D]

I agree with you guys that I should probably focus on the Miniland scale model for now. It is also the only one I have a chance of finishing before Le Mans.

A whole day of building only yielded this:

There are a lot of small details and angled colorings which I would like to recreate, so progress is slow. I'm using bricks to speed up the process. Internal details can come once I have the shell finished.

My plan is to quickly build the full car, then make incremental improvements on it.

The pink stick is to help me visualize the final height.

Unfortunately I can't find a good wheel size. 4.5 studs wide would be perfect, but the closest I can get are these 3.8 stud wide ones. I have tried to compensate for their size by lowering the wheel hubs. I hope this change will not be too noticeable.

I will keep you updated.

[Erik Leppen]

I think you should relaly make it so that the wheels you have determine the scale. If the wheels are not in scale, your model will have weird proportions, I'm afraid. So maybe you should first pick the wheels and then calculate the scale that comes out from there, and then draw the correct grid over the photo.

[Jeroen Ottens]

Somehow I only see 5building1.jpg instead of a picture, did something go wrong, or is it just me?

[Lasse D]

Yeah. Brickshelf seems to be down. I have reuploaded it to imgur:

And I agree with @Erik Leppen

The wheels have now been changed to those from 42046, but with black rims and the same hub cabs as shown above. It turns out these wheels are exactly the size I need and it looks much better. I will post a pic once I have rebuilt it to the state it was.

Edit:

The updated model:

 

Edited May 15, 2017 by Lasse D
Added new image.

[Erik Leppen]

Those wheels look much better, I think.

Curious to see where this will go. I can't remember having seen LMP cars in this scale ever before.

[Lasse D]

Yeah. I'm looking forward to see what is possible as well. I have found a totally awesome TS020 here: http://www.moc-pages.com/moc.php/426878

 

Meanwhile. Here is my current progress. I'm building the complete model very quickly. Then I will spend the remaining of the days until Le Mans improving it, section by section.

 

 

[Leonardo da Bricki]

Looking really good! The front lights are cool and the spoiler looks great. How are you planning to do the overhead air scoop?

[Lasse D]

Thanks. I solved that issue using additional windscreen cladding, and 1x1 corner panels. I tried many ways of including the red frame of the air scoop, but had to give up ;(

Here is the first rough prototype. It is mainly with High Downforce detailing, which all has to be changed.

Currently on my TODO list for improvements:

- Add read lights. They should be right above the 1x2 grileld slopes.

- Chrome pearl rims might look better

- Black surround for the windscreen bottom

- Interior

- The red wings of the front should be placed one plate up, and the tip should be slimmer

- Exhaust (those 1x1 plates don't do it)

- Proper Modelling of the rear flat section.

- Larger air holes in the back

- Larger empty boxes above the front wheels

- Cover the inside of the front wheel arches

- Make the inside of the rear wheel arch openings rectangular

- Upgrade to Low Downforce configuration.

I will naturally consider all comments for improvements from you guys.

UPDATE! I have created a new version!

Let's take a look at the list of improvements from above:

- Add read lights. They should be right above the 1x2 grilled slopes. Done. But they are on the spoiler, not the lower section:

- Chrome pearl rims might look better

I have checked this. They don't look as good as expected. It could be fixed by turning the wheels so you see them from the other side, but I found the current setup to look the best.

- Black surround for the windscreen bottom. Done. As you can see in the photo above, there is no longer the red studs right beneath the windscreen. This makes it look much, much better. The photos from before were a bit deceiving because you couldn't properly see how bad it was.

- Interior. A steering wheel has been added, but I would still like to make an even better interior.

- The red wings of the front should be placed one plate up, and the tip should be slimmer. The whole front has been updated to look like the low downforce version, including this detail.

- Exhaust (those 1x1 plates don't do it). The new 1x1 plates with teeth look much more like the rear thing.

- Proper Modelling of the rear flat section. Done. The whole frame has been rebuilt.

- Larger air holes in the back Done. The curvature is now also more accurate.

- Larger empty boxes above the front wheels Done. As you can see, lowering the wheels half a plate allowed me to lower the sides a plate and also allowed for proper wheel openings

- Cover the inside of the front wheel arches Done. Are you can see, there is now also curves around the headlights on the inside now.

- Make the inside of the rear wheel arch openings rectangular. Done.

- Upgrade to Low Downforce configuration. Done. This is most evident on the front, but after using proper pictures from the #9 car from the WEC race at SPA, I have also been able to update the rest of the car.

 

This change has also lead to the delete of the top air scoop because it should only be one plate high. With the lowering of the wheel arches, I decided to be very thorough and ensure the height of the cockpit also matches the real car.

The side mirrors are black now because I used the #9 car as reference. You can differentiate the cars at speed by seeing the side mirrors (and typically also a different color above the windscreen).

There is still a whole week until I leave for Le Mans, so many things can change until then. I will gladly take suggestions for improvements.

 

My own list of improvements is currently:

- Better side indicators: The red lights on the side indicate the position in the class when racing. There are three lights on the real cars, but they are significantly smaller than shown here.

- I would like to bring the top air scoop back in some way.

- Better interior

- Stickers. At least for the numbers on the side, "Denso" and "HY"/"P1".

 

What would you recommend?

 

Update

The updates I'm making now are relatively minor. So I have decided to start building a 919:

 

Edit: Today's progress with the 919:

 

 

Edited June 5, 2017 by Lasse D
New version!

[letsbuild]

Love it! I really want to build that!

[Aventador2004]

This reminds me when I used to build prototype cars like this, with 4wd.

[Lasse D]

I have finished both cars now! :)

I am still working on the pictures for the Toyota where it is standing alone. I don't have much light, so the combination of white and black is a bit hard to get right in pictures. To be continued :)

[1gor]

I see finished model in 1:20 scale, but as someone for who Technic is on first place I would like to see 1:10 model with better luck than Toyota in Le Mans this year 

 1:20 model is not detailed enough (for me, so don't take this as criticism this are just my thoughts)

[Lasse D]

Yeah. The larger the scale, the more detailed the model will be... and the lighter my wallet will be :D

Now. I have returned from Le Mans, but the cars did not survive:

I will post an update with pictures from the race. The cars will be rebuilt with interior, updated detailing, and a much, much sturdier design.

[BrickbyBrickTechnic]

The cars didn't survive? 

[Lasse D]

Yep. There are still parts lying on the Circuit de la Sarthe.

I have started reconstructing the cars from the bottom up. The wheels have been moved half a plate down, so the clearance from the top of the wheel hubs is better. The lower boards are also pushed further back and forward to improve structural integrity. Meanwhile I'm also trying to make them even more realistic!: The rear lights on the 919R have been fixed, and the front splitter is now curved (will be shown next time), while the TS050 has had its third nose job :D

Here is progress after spending one hour on each car:

I currently spend one hour on separate projects per day. Since I have 6 ongoing projects (and a billion in the back log), I might not be able to show progress on these LMP1's every day, but it's progressing.

[Bricksonwheels]

For this scale it is very good,... not a suprise as it comes from your hands :-)

I agree with the discussion that the geometry from Lego somewhere starts to become a drawback at too small scales. Bigger scales 1:17 up give much more room for detail, and define scale modeling more. 

As this whole thing is still a subdivision its good that we share all our thoughts and come to a more solid definition.

[Lasse D]

Well. I suppose it's all about the subject then. My trucks are in the small scale of 1:25 but are easier to recognize (My latest DAF XF turned out great, but the Volvo FH has been more than one year in development because I can't get the shape right). These cars are in scale 1:20, the large Legoland scale, and should therefore be even easier to build. Do they belong in this subforum? Perhaps we will find out when more people have added MOCs.

This is the status after 2 hours on each car. The Porsche has received a new brick built frame for sturdiness. Here you can see the new front splitter. I want to move the curved slopes out a stud to make it look even more like the real one. I'm also considering adding a plate to the height of the headlights and perhaps lowering the windscreen a plate.

All work on the Toyota was spent cutting a stud off of the length of the rear section and redesigning that section.

 

Update

After 4 hours the progress on the Porsche is leaving the Toyota in the dust.

As you can see, I have successfully put the curved slopes further to the corners of the front splitter, and pushed the whole splitter a plate out in front of the Porsche. The intakes on the side have been updated and the cabin is now primarily 5 studs wide instead of 4. Other details, such as the nose, side mirrors, and top of the window are also updated.

The Toyota takes much longer to rebuild because I want to build the stripes on the livery. I have now added both the red wedge and the tiny black wedge on the side of the body, and I would like to update the black wedges on the sides of the front as well.

 

 

To be continued.

Edited July 15, 2017 by Lasse D

[RIPTOYOTALEMANS2016]

Lol the Porsche has the number 1 on the front of it and number 2 on the side. Gg just messing with you