[MOC] 7-seater Family Car (Digital File and Instructions DONE, now up on Rebrickable!!!)

[jotta93]

Looks much better now!  Too bad you had to ditch the propeller blades

[Rudivdk]

43 minutes ago, Jeroen Ottens said:

Looking good

That 24T gear looks a bit wobbly attached though

And are those DBG crossblocks needed to attached the white beam at the front? They kind of distract to me

Between building the car was exposed to some intense play-sessions with my 4y old son. Indeed it looks like the 24t needs some more bracing

The DBG crossblocks are just mock-up for quick attachment. They will be gone in final setup.

29 minutes ago, jotta93 said:

Looks much better now!  Too bad you had to ditch the propeller blades

Thanx! I guess the propeller blades will have to wait, they are better suited for some sports/supercar style vehicle anyway...

Edited July 30, 2017 by Rudivdk
Oh wow, post 100...

[Erik Leppen]

This is starting to look really nice, man. Good job so far. I like how popeople are thinking along to help find the best solution for the front.

[Rudivdk]

32 minutes ago, Erik Leppen said:

This is starting to look really nice, man. Good job so far. I like how popeople are thinking along to help find the best solution for the front.

Thanx Erik! This community has certainly been of great help, it really pays off signing up and posting here 

[Rudivdk]

One of the last updates before finishing this MOC! Almost there...

Designed a lock mechanism for the doors. It can be operated from the inside (yellow knob) and outside (doorhandle) of the car:

I've also been finishing up on most of the bodywork, with great help of the community on shaping the front end. Thanx guys!

And the mandatory pic of the underside, which reveals... nothing, because it is closed with panels :

Last things to be done are finishing the front passenger side lights and panelling, finishing the 5th door with licenceplate and handle, and adding some structural improvements directly underneath the bodywork on the front end. I think I will also place a BL order because I am a few pieces short in white to completely finish this build (for now I added them in LBG).

[Alex Ilea]

Looks very good! One thing I would reccomend is: replace the 2L red cross-axles in the pillars that support the roof with black ones. It will look better 

[Rudivdk]

@IA creations good point, will replace them. Now that you mention it, I will see what I can do on some of the blue pins as well. No color vomit on this one

[grum64]

Looks Great! All your hard work has really psid off.

[Jeroen Ottens]

Almost there
I really like the subtle shapes in the bodywork that prevents it from looking like a cookiejar. The only lines that I like less are the bottomsides of the doors, the front one going down and the rear one going up makes it look like it sags in the middle.
Is there a reason you used three connectors on top of the rear door instead of a 7L beam?

BTW: I have no idea how to do the doors differently, so in that sense this is an optimal design I think

[Rudivdk]

13 minutes ago, Jeroen Ottens said:

Almost there
I really like the subtle shapes in the bodywork that prevents it from looking like a cookiejar. The only lines that I like less are the bottomsides of the doors, the front one going down and the rear one going up makes it look like it sags in the middle.
Is there a reason you used three connectors on top of the rear door instead of a 7L beam?

BTW: I have no idea how to do the doors differently, so in that sense this is an optimal design I think

Preventing the box shape was one of my main concerns when adding the panelling. The doors and sideskirts where loosely inspired by BMW (especially the 1series), and yes it looks a bit like sagging in the middle, but intentional. The connectors are there instead of a 7long beam to make it possible to fix a 6l axle in the door hinge. Bottom connector on the door side is fixed in position only by the connector in the top... Not the prettiest solution, but the only possibility I saw possible...

[Nikolay]

Very neat and beautiful model) You are very talented get!

[Rudivdk]

Quick update just to let you all know this project isn't dead. Didn't have much time for physical building lately, but made good progress in LDCad with the digital model. Made some more tweaks mostly on the front end as well. Hope to finish the physical model in another weeks time.

Some pics from current LDCad state:

[Erik Leppen]

Looking very nice! I like how much space it has inside and how you used black 5x9 beams to create a stiff structure. The only thing I'd do differently is the color of the side pillars. I think because they're dark gray, it looks like the side is one very long window. I'd personally make them white too, to break the large dark panel into sections.

 

Also, why is there a gap in the digital side view that isn't there in the real car? There is a angled gap is between the large panel of the front door and the long thin panel below it. It looks like the panel is angled in the real car, but not in the digital file.

[Rudivdk]

@Erik Leppen thanx, I'll try the white side pillars in the digital file to see how it looks.

As for the gap... IRL the door hangs down a little under its own weight, and the side skirt panel is also a bit angled up towards the rear because of the flexaxle pushing it down in the front. So the gap is less prominent on the real car.

[ThatOneBuilder]

I can tell without any assumption the file for the car will take ages... It's so beautiful and complex! And im saying that for a family car.Amazing, this car deserves an award 

[mzzl88]

wow, really like the build so far..

[AttentionSpanner]

Pretty funny to think we're all praising what essentially is a LEGO version of a Dodge Caravan . And it is a great looking car in LEGO. Now, maybe someone in LEGO should make something similar to this for a lower price than the Porsche or its successors (btw, does anyone know of any threads that know what those will be? )... This is such a great MOC, though. Nicely done and different, yet the real-model is familiar enough for most people with family cars. 

[Didumos69]

This is such a cool project ! I love how the cabin narrows towards the rear end, something that can be seen very well in the shots taken from above. The overall shaping is very realistic, as well as the mechanical features.

[Rudivdk]

Thanx guys! 

Actually the thing I am most proud of is the structural integrity: when I lift one wheel on a higher surface, there is actually no bending in the chassis, but the opposite wheel suspension is compressed instead. It works for all wheels, so I have achieved my main goal for the chassis. And the whole car weighs in at almost 2,5kg...

Will try to make some pics or movie of this... And I will share current state digital file this weekend for all of you that are interested.

[Milan]

Looking good! Also, refreshing to see something a bit different.

[AttentionSpanner]

On 8/23/2017 at 11:26 PM, AttentionSpanner said:

Pretty funny to think we're all praising what essentially is a LEGO version of a Dodge Caravan . And it is a great looking car in LEGO. Now, maybe someone in LEGO should make something similar to this for a lower price than the Porsche or its successors (btw, does anyone know of any threads that know what those will be? )... This is such a great MOC, though. Nicely done and different, yet the real-model is familiar enough for most people with family cars. 

Sorry if I didn't make this clear enough in the previous post, but this is an AMAZING MOC! Well done.

[Didumos69]

21 hours ago, Rudivdk said:

Actually the thing I am most proud of is the structural integrity: when I lift one wheel on a higher surface, there is actually no bending in the chassis, but the opposite wheel suspension is compressed instead. It works for all wheels, so I have achieved my main goal for the chassis. And the whole car weighs in at almost 2,5kg..

Which is an extraordinary achievement given the fact that it did not visually compromise the mechanical features and overall looks.

It's a pitty that structural coherence cannot be read from images alone. You have to feel it. This would make a very good learning experience for other builders. Do you plan to offer instructions?

[Rudivdk]

1 hour ago, Didumos69 said:

This would make a very good learning experience for other builders. Do you plan to offer instructions?

I will definately share the digital file. And I already got an offer from @legolijntje to help me out with instructions if I run in trouble there, so I am confident to finish those also. Might take some time though...

[Rudivdk]

Physical build is finally done!

Will take final pictures tomorrow in daylight

Edited August 26, 2017 by Rudivdk

[Alex Ilea]

14 minutes ago, Rudivdk said:

Physical build is finally done! Will take final pictures tomorrow in daylight

Can't wait