Review: 8158 Speed Racer - Speed Racer vs Snake Oiler

[Tarfful]

Finally, after a very frustrating incident with the Internet Explorer 7's 'Back' button, I present to you my very first review. This is a review of set 8158 Speed Racer Vs Snake Oiler, it's also the first review of a Speed Racer set on EuroBricks. Also you should know that I didn't put the stickers on as they can be quite valuable later on down the road, so I'm sorry for the lack of stickers. :-$

So without further ado I present to you my first review. He He, that rhymes. :-D

EDIT: I just finished resizing the pics and uploading them to BrickShelf after having a heated argument about when my bedtime is with my mother. So, I will be doing a complete redo of the picture portion of my review of set 8158. I'm going to work on that as soon as I finish typing this message...

EDIT 2: Review fully redone now, *sighs*, that took forever.

EDIT 3: Almost forgot to put in a new link to its BrickShelf folder.

This is V.2 of my review of set 8158, enjoy...

Theme: Speed Racer

Set:8158 Speed Racer Vs Snake Oiler

Price: $19.99US

Pieces: 242

Minifigs: 2

First off pics of the Box, Instructions, DSS, Minifigs, and New Parts:

There are so many stickers they had to number them! X-O

SO's sunglasses are chrome Gold. 8-�

Close-up of the hemets.

New parts include, First System Lego hubcap, new more curvy fenders, curved windshield, and a S-shaped connector piece.

Now onto the Build,

First Speed Racer's Mach 5:

Back part of the car.

The cockpit of the car.

They connect with the new S-shaped piece.

Front part of the car.

Front and cockpit also connected using the new S-shaped piece.

Side view of the car, so far.

Underside of the car, so far.

Adding more detail.

Ground level front view of the car.

Side view with added detail.

Underside with newly added axles.

Demonstrating how the new hubcaps are put on.

Now on to building Snake Oilers Orange-ilicious racer:

Back part of the car.

The cockpit of the car.

They are connected using the S-shaped piece.

Front part of the car with seemingly random color choices. *wacko*

The front and cockpit are also connected using the new S-shaped piece.

Adding Orange-irific fenders.

Side view of the car so far.

Adding more detail.

Smoothing things over.

Ground level view with Lime Green "eyes" and white "fangs".

Side view with more detail.

Rearword view of the car with newly added cuve-acious windshield.

No hubcaps!?! :-|

Now onto finished views of both cars,

First the Mach 5:

Side view with sweet hubcaps.

Up close and personal with the Mach 5.

A rearend shot.

"I got hubcaps, I got hubcaps!", Speed racer.

Now SO's Snake Racer, yes thats what I'm calling it. :-P :-D

Beautiful!

Blurry, :-$ rearend pic.

"Watchout it bites!", Snake Oiler

He's ready to take on SR, Hubcaps or no hubcaps! >:-)

Racin'!

Now for some comparison shots:

Hope you all like V.2 better then V.1, I know I liked it better. X-D Seriously though I even learned a thing or two doin' this last version. ;-)

Now it's time for my summary:

Overall a very well designed and executed set. It's only downfalls are that there are way too many stickers, 32 to be exact, :-| and there are no cool contraptions on the cars to take out the other racer.

A great buy for $19.99, I reccomend this set to everybody because of the reasons I staed above and because even I, who is not a big fan of Speed Racer, X-O was drawn to this spectacular little set.

Price: 10/10

Pieces: 8/10 Too many stickers.

Minifigs: 9/10 Needed some accessories.

Playability: 8/10 Needs some cool contraptions on the cars to take out the other racer.

Overall: 35/40

General Tarful

Edited June 1, 2008 by imperialshadows

[Ronan Nissen]

Can't wait to get me one of those!!

[Mr. Builder]

You're wrong. Lego has made a hubcap before! Here it is: Look at the wheels (click).

[Tarfful]

You're wrong. Lego has made a hubcap before! Here it is: Look at the wheels (click).

Ok, but they're still the first System hubcaps. :-P X-D ;-)

General Tarful

[Lt. Veers]

What store did you find this at? X-O

Great review.

[Hinckley]

General Tarful, please resize those pics. Even with the new re-size feature, people are having a tough time reading your review because it takes time for the tool to work. Check out the picture resize tutorial here and some other handy tutorials here. Thanks.

[LegoFranks]

I'm sorry, but your review has only served to further enlighten me that these sets are a pile of cack! Absolutely lazy design and the only reason I'd get one is for the windscreen so I can build a proper landspeeder from Star Wars...

M.

[Lasse D]

What store did you find this at? X-O

Great review.

I found all the April released Speed Racers sets in the shop in LEGOLAND. I was going to post a review Tuesday of this set, but I can see I'm too late.

Now I cross my fingers for the Fierce Creatures set doesn't get "taken" as well.

I would like to comment on the review, but the pictures are too big - it simply takes too long to load. Regarding that new resize function. I can see it does "nearest neighbor" rescaling. Doesn't it resize to less than 640x480? I thought that was the standard for forum post pictures.

Edited March 22, 2008 by Lasse D

[Hinckley]

I found all the April released Speed Racers sets in the shop in LEGOLAND. I was going to post a review Tuesday of this set, but I can see I'm too late.

Now I cross my fingers for the Fierce Creatures set doesn't get "taken" as well.

I would like to comment on the review, but the pictures are too big - it simply takes too long to load. Regarding that new resize function. I can see it does "nearest neighbor" rescaling. Doesn't it resize to less than 640x480? I thought that was the standard for forum post pictures.

800 x 600

[iamded]

Thanks for the picture packed review! :-D I love Snake Oiler's car, it's so... orange! *wub* *wub* And sleek, and smooth, and sexy... X-D

Thanks again!

~Peace

[Asuka]

Hmm.... very interesting. Thanks for the review, GeneralTarful. *y*

Both cars, although pretty wide, look still very sleek and fast. Especially from the side. And solid, too.... But the front of the

Mach 5 without the stickers.... I don´t know. From some angles it looks good, and a little bad from some other.... 8-|

Sticker mayhem, again, but very useful parts nevertheless. BTW, what was the price..? And, Hinckley, do you have a brother

or is this just the start of a new career? :-P

[Siegfried]

Thanks for the review. *sweet* I love these sets... but buying them will depend on the Australian price. Just to be a nag, you really need to reduce the picture size. Remember that whie the pictures are resized by the forum software, this is done browser side so it isn't as useful as it would seem. The full picture is still loaded, just the same as Brickshelf.

I'm sorry, but your review has only served to further enlighten me that these sets are a pile of cack! Absolutely lazy design and the only reason I'd get one is for the windscreen so I can build a proper landspeeder from Star Wars...

M.

I'm surprised you feel that way. I think these sets are great and I love how they are no where near as <insert that tiresome argument> as I feared.

[Tarfful]

What store did you find this at? X-O

Great review.

K-Mart of all places. :-D

General Tarful, please resize those pics. Even with the new re-size feature, people are having a tough time reading your review because it takes time for the tool to work. Check out the picture resize tutorial here and some other handy tutorials here. Thanks.

Sorry Hinkley, I keep forgetting that everyones computers are as fast as mine. X-D I'm resizing them all right now. :-$

I found all the April released Speed Racers sets in the shop in LEGOLAND. I was going to post a review Tuesday of this set, but I can see I'm too late.

Now I cross my fingers for the Fierce Creatures set doesn't get "taken" as well.

I would like to comment on the review, but the pictures are too big - it simply takes too long to load. Regarding that new resize function. I can see it does "nearest neighbor" rescaling. Doesn't it resize to less than 640x480? I thought that was the standard for forum post pictures.

Sorry, :-$ as I stated above I'm working on it.

Thanks for the picture packed review! :-D I love Snake Oiler's car, it's so... orange! *wub* *wub* And sleek, and smooth, and sexy... X-D

Thanks again!

~Peace

You are most definitly welcome Iamded! I love the Orange-ness of the car too. ;-)

Hmm.... very interesting. Thanks for the review, GeneralTarful. *y*

Both cars, although pretty wide, look still very sleek and fast. Especially from the side. And solid, too.... But the front of the

Mach 5 without the stickers.... I don´t know. From some angles it looks good, and a little bad from some other.... 8-|

Sticker mayhem, again, but very useful parts nevertheless. BTW, what was the price..? And, Hinckley, do you have a brother

or is this just the start of a new career? :-P

You're Welcome Asuka, and yes they are very sleek if not a little wide. The price was $19.99US, the same as 8159. ;-)

Thanks for the review. *sweet* I love these sets... but buying them will depend on the Australian price. Just to be a nag, you really need to reduce the picture size. Remember that whie the pictures are resized by the forum software, this is done browser side so it isn't as useful as it would seem. The full picture is still loaded, just the same as Brickshelf.

I'm surprised you feel that way. I think these sets are great and I love how they are no where near as <insert that tiresome argument> as I feared.

You're welcome Sinner, though you're such a nag! :-P :-D Just kidding... I'm resizing them now. ;-)

Edited March 23, 2008 by GeneralTarful

[Matn]

Thanks for the review, I think i'll certainly get these sets. They look very nice and have nice minfigs (I love racing, as long as minifigs could sit in them). The fact that there are so much stickers make me think this is an model building theme, like when you build plastic cars (with all those tiny pieces and a load of stickers).

But that 'S'-shaped thingy does already exist, doesn't it?

Edited March 23, 2008 by Matn

[Siegfried]

The more I see these sets the more I want them... but I fear a $40 AUD pricetag... :-/

Sorry Hinkley, I keep forgetting that everyones computers are as fast as mine. X-D I'm resizing them all right now. :-$

Oh my computer is fast enough, but even fast internet in Australia is slow. :-| Thanks very much for going to the huge effort of re-uploading the pictures. *sweet*

But that 'S'-shaped thingy does already exist, doesn't it?

Yes, I have a few of them. Great pieces too!

*wub*

[Brainbox]

Yes, I have a few of them. Great pieces too!

I don't think I've seen them in a set for years though. It's good to see them back.

But... 32 stickers? That's more than any of the first wave of EF ever had! Still, the set itself is very nice, with some nifty new pieces, and the minifigs are pretty cool too. I may not be familiar with Speed Racer, but I still may get this. I'll go and see the film as well, to fill in the background (of the set).

[ExoBuilder]

Yay, finally!

Thanks for the great review. It confirmed that I am most definately getting these *wub* The orange racer is absolutley beautiful!

Once again, awesome review!

*sweet*

[Tarfful]

Thanks for the review, I think i'll certainly get these sets. They look very nice and have nice minfigs (I love racing, as long as minifigs could sit in them). The fact that there are so much stickers make me think this is an model building theme, like when you build plastic cars (with all those tiny pieces and a load of stickers).

But that 'S'-shaped thingy does already exist, doesn't it?

You're welcome Matn!

The more I see these sets the more I want them... but I fear a $40 AUD pricetag... :-/ Oh my computer is fast enough, but even fast internet in Australia is slow. :-| Thanks very much for going to the huge effort of re-uploading the pictures. *sweet*

Yes, I have a few of them. Great pieces too!

*wub*

You're welcome Sinner, it wasn't that time consuming. ;-)

It's times like these that I'm glad I live in the U.S. of A! X-D

Oh sure, blame it on where you live. :-P

I didn't know the S-shaped pieces already exsisted. :-$ They're new to me.

I don't think I've seen them in a set for years though. It's good to see them back.

But... 32 stickers? That's more than any of the first wave of EF ever had! Still, the set itself is very nice, with some nifty new pieces, and the minifigs are pretty cool too. I may not be familiar with Speed Racer, but I still may get this. I'll go and see the film as well, to fill in the background (of the set).

I agree, there are way too many stickers! I'm not that familiar either with Speed Racer. :-$

Yay, finally!

Thanks for the great review. It confirmed that I am most definately getting these *wub* The orange racer is absolutley beautiful!

Once again, awesome review!

*sweet*

You're welcome Exobuilder! I *wub* the Orange-yness of SO's racer too.

On another note, the review of set 8159: Racer X Vs Taejo will be up shortly... so stay tuned...

General Tarful

Edited March 24, 2008 by GeneralTarful

[Hinckley]

You're welcome Hinkley, it wasn't that time consuming. ;-)

... :-D You're actually responding to a quote from Sinner. But don't worry, a lot of people mix us up...

And thank you for resizing all of the pics! *sweet*

[Tarfful]

... :-D You're actually responding to a quote from Sinner. But don't worry, a lot of people mix us up...

And thank you for resizing all of the pics! *sweet*

Oops, :-$ sorry, edited. Also, you are most welcome Hinkley.

On another note heres a teaser pic of my next review, set 8159:

General Tarful

Edited March 24, 2008 by GeneralTarful

[Brickmaster]

I definately prefer 8159, in terms of minifigs, and useful parts colors to me :-$ But the cars are all the same basic design. Thanks for the review.

And I actually love the stickers. This means I won't have to rub off all the print, and if wanted, I can use stickers elsewhere :-$

[Tarfful]

I definately prefer 8159, in terms of minifigs, and useful parts colors to me :-$ But the cars are all the same basic design. Thanks for the review.

And I actually love the stickers. This means I won't have to rub off all the print, and if wanted, I can use stickers elsewhere :-$

I prefer 8159 too, because of the minifigs mostly. X-D Anyways the review of set 8159 is now open for viewing pleasure... just click here.

Yes they all have the same basic design... so far.

I never thought of stickers like that, thanks for enlightening me. :-)

You are most definitly welcome Brickmaster! ;-)

General Tarful

Edited March 27, 2008 by Tarfful

[Lt. Col. Thok]

Nice, but not my cuppa.

[Brainbox]

I didn't know the S-shaped pieces already exsisted. :-$ They're new to me.

http://www.peeron.com/inv/parts/6087

I *wub* the Orange-yness of SO's racer too.

It's weird. Orange is one of those colours that looks a lot better in Lego form than it often does in real life.

And I actually love the stickers. This means I won't have to rub off all the print, and if wanted, I can use stickers elsewhere :-$

Oh, I don't mind them. I just think there are an awful lot, when there perhaps don't need to be. Although not being familiar with the source material, I 'm not sure if that's the case.

[Lasse D]

Thanks for resizing the pics. It is strange that you didn't know about that Z-piece before. It was well used in old space sets.

The cars are pretty nice, but I think the people sit way too high in them - the windscreen gives almost no protection.

I am planning on modifying them to 7 studs wide since that's my current standard for this kind of race cars (Seriously!).

Looking forward to the next review.