chaosof99

I bought it for 73€ off of eBay, but didn't quite correctly look at its condition. Already sunk another 25€ in additional parts into it, but that includes shipping from Quebec to austria (the only seller on Bricklink that had a majority of the parts was from Quebec), and the most expensive part I had to order was the metal hook. I still love the set though, and the only pieces I'm still missing are four round metallic silver round pin joiners for the exhaust pipes, and two light bluish grey 3x2 blocks with curved top for the tanks on the front. Unfortunately, the pin joiners are quite rare, appearing only in two sets (this one, and the Enzo Ferrari) and currently offered by only 3 sellers on Bricklink.

Can't you mailorder it from an online retailer outside your country? Is the lego online shop having the same expensive prices for you as the Norwegian stores? How come? I mean it's the first time a set comes with a compressor in 18 years, only the second time this has ever happened, and the modular building capabilities of multiple function take-offs on either end of the main vehicle should make for some fun MOCs for simply creating "add-ons" to it, if you are so inclined.

So it is officially the biggest Lego Technic set produced so far. Color me excited. Can't wait to carry this baby home.

Thanks Alois, corrected those two mistakes. I actually wanted to rewrite the "grandfather" thing by myself, since it didn't seem right considering the Car Chassis, but forgot to do that before posting. As for the 8865 test car, I've been looking into it but that thing is even rarer than the 8880.

8880 Super Car After coming out of my dark ages and getting back into Lego, particularly Technic, I've come into the idea of hunting down models that I wanted when I was a kid but never got. Sets like the 8868 Air Tech Claw Rig or the Model Team trucks come to mind. Another one of those is the 8880 Super Car, a big inspiration to a particularly popular theme for MOCs. The first set to officially be branded a Super car, a car with four wheels and a ton of functions. So now I got this black beauty off of e-Bay, unfortunately not MISB but still mostly acceptable, and I thought I should give it a review. Parts The 8880 Super Car was originally released 1994 and consists of 1343 pieces for an initial price of $130 US. It is widely considered as one of the best Technic Models ever produced by TLC and also has a ton of special parts that have were only ever released in that set. It is the first set with the still used gear shift of pushing a cylinder into a hollow gear, and one of the first sets to implement a wishbone suspension. A unique part is the stick shift, consisting of two parts (only the stick itself is used in the B-Model, the plate is not). Another is the three parts that fit into and drive the wheels. A gray hub is fitted with a ball gear (unfortunately, I didn't take a clear photograph of it, sorry) and is angled by a white steering arm, while it sits on the blue wishbone suspension. There are also 8 big shock absorbers in the set, in a style which have become quite rare nowadays though they recently showed up as a pair in black in motorcycle sets, e.g. the 8051 Motorbike. Unfortunately, one of the stabilizing 5L flat arms was broken when I checked out the parts. Not very happy about that, particularly because that part only shows up in that color in two sets: This, and the 8865 Test car. Also, the stickers from this second-hand model where either gone, or peeling off from the parts they are on. I guess that is a risk you have to take when buying models that are almost 20 years out of production. Of course, there's a ton of gears, connectors, axles and simply parts. There's a particularly large mass of flat black angle pieces as we shall see later. The instruction book is in quite a shoddy condition, but it's 90 pages long and has the instructions for both models. It's of course A4 landscape format print, all color, and has some nice photos of the finished model in the middle. The B-Model instructions are printed "upside down" starting from the back of the book, so you can start with it by simply flipping the book over. The box (again, bad condition), is also quite entertaining and definitely different from what we have today. The box is actually two cardboard pieces instead of one and the top piece lifts off the bottom piece to reveal a yellow plastic piece holding the lego pieces in individual pockets. I'm not sure if the set came originally with the pieces packaged into small plastic bags or not, as we are used to today. The top part also lifts as a cover to reveal a plastic "window" and see the parts in the box, which is quite cool. Of course, the backside of the "cover", and the bottom of the box, are decorated with photos of the Main and B-Model respectively. B-Model As we shall see, the B-Model for the set is a Formula 1/Indy 500 type of race-car, but let's get into building. The construction is pretty straight forward, but showcases a lot of difference from the current construction method. With the studded pieces, this is build from the bottom up, whereas today with studless pieces the construction is done from the inside out. The interior of the B-Model is somewhat bare-bones. To the right of the driver is a lever which switches between the two speeds the car has to drive the rear mounted motor. I unfortunately screwed up with the steering arm, which directly connects into the steering wheel, the only method to steer the car, and didn't align it so the steering wheel is level when the car is driving straight forward. It is however something to be said about sets with functioning steering wheels, which have become somewhat of a rarity these days. I really like the front spoiler on this set, though I think in comparison to actually Formula 1 cars I think it isn't quite wide enough. That might also be because of the wheels that I think are just a tad too large for a Formula 1 car, though of course they are meant to fit on the main model. Overall, the B-Model is quite excellent, and I wouldn't at all mind having a second 8880 so I could have both models on display. The only thing about it, though of course that is the case with pretty much every B-Model, is the ton of parts that are left over. Though you can ignore the four 3L pins, as they weren't used in the main model either. I have no clue why the eBay seller who I bought the set from included them, but I don't really mind. Main Model The main model is just an excellent piece of Lego design. A car that features all wheel steering, all wheel drive, all wheel independent suspension, a functioning steering wheel, an opening trunk, a V8 motor, a four speed gear shift, concealed headlights, and a great design. Let's see how it is constructed: Again, pretty much straight forward bottom up building. A major point of annoyance however was fitting the chain that drives the motor, which I had major trouble with. The rear was also quite complex, since it is one big and loose piece that is built separately and fit onto the car. The interior is very well done and it is great that all the major functions are controlled from inside the car. Though there is another option to steer the car with a small tire piece on the back, the steering wheel is functional. The gear shift is also functional and switches between the four speeds of the car, and the lever on the dashboard opens and closes the concealed headlights. As already said, the trunk opens to reveal the V8 engine. It is kind of a neat functionality that way. Final Thoughts The 8880 Super Car is just a wonderful model, jam packed with functionality and a set that should belong into every Technic fan's collection. I'm very glad to have gotten my hands on it finally. Finally, here's a comparison between the classic 8880 Super Car, and the 8070 Super Car from 2011. I was rather surprised to find that they are almost identical in size. However, the new 8070 of course uses studless construction, and the body form is created from using flex axles and panel pieces, giving it a much rounder look. I do prefer however the functions in the 8880, as the four speed drive is in my opinion much more exciting and does a better job at teaching mechanics to kids (which is in my opinion the prime appeal that Technic should be sold under as a kids toy). The only real design flaws I see with the 8880 are the somewhat too large "windshield", and I think the car body is a bit too high off the ground. Ideally I would love for TLC to produce a gar with a design like the 8070, but functionality like the 8880.

Well done. I guess we're having dueling Super Car reviews today :) You are definitely a better photographer than I though.

While I also don't like unnecessary bumps, particularly without any additional contents, I think this thread is one that should be stickied.

I've decided to get into the modular houses. I really love the high detail of them in everything I've seen so far. I just hope I'm not too late because the prices of early sets of the series such as Green Grocer and Cafe Corner are already kind of scary, reaching beyond the 500 € range. Thus I decided yesterday to order the Fire Brigade from Lego.com, before it goes out of print and the price starts to skyrocket. This set is definitely also one that will be in my house some day.

Looks to me like a decent set for a beginner. Doesn't have a lot any function besides the common car features (steering, motor, suspension, doors) so I'm not really interested and I'd much rather save my money for bigger sets (i.e. the Unimog, and I'm thinking about getting into modular houses), but for someone starting out those basic features like for example the differential might put them on a good path. Thanks for the review though. Much appreciated.

Indeed, as mentioned in my post about the Air Tech Claw Rig. They aren't MISB, but I'm okay with that. I wouldn't keep them MISB anyway.

Not trying to brag, but I think I just did it again: 8880 Supercar for 52€. Also today I bought, somewhat on impulse, an 8853 Excavator for 15,60€. And the best part is that I'm probably only paying shipping fees once, because it's from the same seller. Actually also bid on two Model Team sets he/she had offered (5550 Custom Rally Van and 5581 Magic Flash) but got overbid on those. Only lowballed them (20€ max) because I was only marginally interested. He also had an 5510 Off-Road 4x4, but I already own that set. The one I was really after was of course the Supercar, and for that price I can hardly complain. My max bid was 75€, so I'm paying only about two thirds of what I expected to There were several instant-buy ones at about 120€.

That's some good blogs and very insightful. However, I think you could have discussed a few more minifigs in the overview, i.e. animals and in particular skeletons and figureheads.

I'm a big fan of pirates overall. Pirate lore, One Piece, Flogging Molly, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and of course the Pirates of the Caribbean movie franchise. Pretty much the only pirates I don't like are from Pittsburgh, and that's mostly because they're from Pittsburgh (I'm a big Philadelphia Flyers fan, so I'm contractually obligated to dislike everything and anything from Pittsburgh). Also, most Lego sets of my youth that weren't City or Technic are pirates. Unfortunately, I never had a real pirate ship. When I got a big set for christmas or some other event, it was usually either a big Technic set, or a City set. However, friends of mine had a pirate ship, and I was of course jealous. Now that I'm out of my dark ages and well on my way to become a full fledged AFOL, I thought I should maybe tie up what I left out in my youth. So today, I went out and bought the Queen Anne's Revenge. It wasn't that complicated a build and finished it in around 3 hours, but it's one damn nice looking set. I thought it was a little expensive, but I'm looking forward to getting the Black Pearl in the fall. While I think I'll stick mostly with Technic, I do enjoy myself a good pirate vessel :)

8297 Off Roader Recently, TLC announced that their newest Technic building competition would be building a super car. Me recently coming out of my dark ages remember the 8880 Super Car from the catalogs as a set I always wanted to have, but never got when I was a kid. However, and of course far from coincidence, TLC recently released the 8070 Super Car as a set, which I went out to buy. Except that at the time when I wanted to buy it, I came across the 8297 Off Roader. I know that the Off-Roader was an older set and thus less likely to be in stores, so I picked it instead and it was for the same price (I actually bought the 8070 today and a local toy store was having an easter sale with 20% off on all Lego and Playmobil products). The term super car is kinda wird. What most picture are is a sports car with a gear shift and a multitude of functions. While I agree with the latter, the requirement of "sports car" is rather unwarranted as I see it. The 8466 4x4 Off-Roader is considered by many a super car, and in my opinion the 8297 also fits the bill. It has a small gearbox, though not a "stick shift". The gear box channels the Power Functions medium motor the set comes with into either a winch, or a mechanism that raises or lowers the body. The latter is achieved by shifting the point where the shocks are attached to the body and it works quite well. The B-Model, a buggy, uses the motor to raise or lower its body. The main model as well as the B-model make use of power function lights for the headlights. Both also have a fake motorblock that moves its pistons when the car is rolled across the floor, and the A-model also has wing doors which work quite nicely with some air pistons. And of course, both models have a steering mechanism. Both models are also fully suspended with individual shocks for each tire. Stats: Model Number: 8297 Model Name: Off Roader Number of pieces: 1097 Date of Release: June 27, 2008 (US) / July 2, 2008 (UK) Original Price: US $119.99 / € 109.99 / £94.99 Set out of the box: Box: Quite the standard box. Besides the box box for the 8043 Motorized Excavator (which I unfortunately had to get rid off. The box, not the Excavator), it's the biggest box of my recent purchases and I actually keep the other boxes inside this box, russian doll style. Of course, like with other Lego sets, the box doesn't actually have to be this large to keep on the parts in it, but it serves as advertising real estate. Instructions: The instructions are pretty high quality. The weird thing however is that the 3rd book is only 16 pages. Why they didn't just fit those pages into the other 2 is beyond me. Unfortunately unlike old sets, not all Lego Technic sets come with a book for the B-Model instructions, which have to be downloaded from the TLC website. I do appreciate though that TLC is putting up all instruction manuals as free downloads on their website. I make use of that feature rather often to decide what sets I buy, but a book would be nice. Some of the steps given are rather minuscule in nature, particularly compared to older sets. Parts: This set is quite large with more than 1000 pieces and there's a lot of connectors. I actually didn't get the whole bunch of small beams and other parts on the photo. There's actually quite a lot of the loose, light-brown parts, which are rather rare in other sets. The really interesting parts are of course the power functions (battery pack, medium motor, lights, switch) as well as the air pistons for the wing doors. Lots of gears, including a differential, and the type of suspension that is in my opinion some of the most indicative of super car style sets. A-Model Construction: In the first stages the A-Model consists of four main parts: * The front, which houses the power functions motor, as well as the steering and the winch. It will later also house the headlights and the motor block. * The gearbox, which switches between the power functions and also has the axle from the back wheels to the motor pass through it. * The a small worm-gear to 28 tooth transmission which drives the mechanism that raises or lowers the body. * The back which houses the differential. These four parts are put together in the chassis, add steering, the two axles that run and raise or lower the point where the shocks connect to the main body of the car, and with it the body itself. In this photo you can also see the air pistons for the wing doors and the lights. Next you build the car body starting from the back, which also holds the battery pack for the power functions. The V8 Motor block is added and the body finished. Attach the tires for the finished model. Also included a shot from the bottom, which showcases the gearbox and differential quite nicely. B-Model Construction The B-Model starts out with the rear differentl which later drives the motor block, sitting right above it. The start of the differential is actually very similar to the back-axle part of the A-Model. It then builds up with the steering function and the insertion of the motor to the front. The front also houses the switch, which is later rather hidden. The B-Model also houses a winch on the front, though it is turned manually. After the chassis is finished, a body is constructed which is pretty much put on the chassis like a hood. The motor function is to raise and lower it. Attach the tires and you're finished. Thoughts This set is very nice. It is rather large and a lot of fun to build., There are a few points of annoyance though. The biggest is that the cord for the medium motor is rather short, and you will have trouble actually getting it to the switch in the back. The function of raising and lowering the body is also also interesting and somewhat unique, particularly the way it was implemented, but not that interesting either. I do have to admit though that this model taught me how a differential works, though perhaps I was just too lazy to look it up and I never had a differential in any of my previous models (weird, I know). The weakness of the power functions that are used for raising and lowering the body in the main model is also present in the B-Model, where it simply raises and lowers the roof, and leaves the chassis standing. The B-Model could actually be a quite nice standalone model, building it out of the set lets a ton of pieces remain left. What I really liked about the B-Model however was the "motor block" type of detail that hides the switch for the power functions. Despite its flaws, I really like this model and it was definitely a good purchase.

Got a second-hand 8868 Air Tech Claw Rig off ebay today for only 38€ (plus 5,50€ shipping). I thought it would be a lot more. Saw several other with instant buy options at 100€ and more. My maximum bid was 69,50€ (so it would be 75€ with shipping), so I more or less payed half of what I expected to pay. I guess it didn't go to a high bid because apparenty the box is missing and the set was without the instruction booklet. Ironically, I got an instruction book for 8868, but not the model. I got the book bundled when I bought a couple of big boxes of Lego from a 2nd hand shop. Apparently some parts of 8868 (e.g. two of the wheels, and I believe the compressor piston) were in the boxes, but no complete model. The model I bought looks to be complete though, judging by the photos on e-bay. Very excited to get it into my hands. A model I wanted to have when I was a child, but never got.

About a week and a half ago I bought the 8297 Off-Roader. Originally I had intended to buy the 8070 Super Car, but I saw the Off-Roader right next to it. I hadn't seen it anywhere else and considering that it had come out in 2008, there was a smaller chance to pick it up in a store than with the 8070, and both were going for the same price. The 8297 also falls into the super car category for me due to the large number of functions and some of the parts included, e.g. the type of wheel suspension, the air pistons for the doors, etc. I really like the Off-Roader and may post a full review of it on a later date. Anyway, I also wanted to try and make my own RC car using the infrared controllers of the 8043 Motorized Excavator that I had bought a few weeks earlier (absolutely astonishing model, but everybody of course already knows that). Unfortunately, I don't think I have quite enough skill yet to do it all on my own, though I'm working on getting there. Instead I decided to mod the Off-Roader to support remote controlled steering and drive via the excavator parts. The following is the result of it. I did it mostly by stripping down the Original, removing a number of parts and putting in the parts that I needed, than following the instructions (for the largest part), building the model back up again. For example, I removed the gear box on the bottom that relayed the motor to either the winch on the front of the car or the function that raises or lowers car by shifting the position where the shocks attach to the car. Actually, I didn't remove the gearbox entirely, but used its outer frame as a case for a medium motor. The motor connects down an axle (which also passes through this part and was intended to drive the fake motor block of the car (also removed) to the differential and then into the back wheels. From the right, the car still looks mostly like a completely normal 8297 Off-Roader Model. You may notice though that the front is a bit different, as I had to modify it pretty heavily. You will also see that I took some liberties with the shocks, both on the front and the back. You'll also notice that I had to remove the fenders on the front. From the left, you can open the wing doors (a function I retained) and reveal that I took out the passenger seat and put the Infrared receiver. The receiver connects to both motors. From the front it looks heavily modded. Still kept in the lights, though they're in a different area. The grill is also much lower. Finally, under the hood. The construction on the front is a bit loose, since I only used three beams to attach it. The front motor controls the steering. I had trouble slowing it down with regular gears since I couldn't quite fit it in. So instead I just used a worm gear into an 8-tooth. A problem of my design is that the two brown gears I use to get around the corner easily get apart if the motor is stalled because the steering is on a far end and can't go any farther. Thus it is necessary to steer carefully. After the corner, the gears go down similar to the way it is in the regular model, but in the front whereas mine is in the back to have some space for the corner. Sorry that the picture is a bit out of focus. It's not a perfect conversion. The front is a bit loose, the steering can be troublesome and some of the parts I had to remove, but overall I'm happy and I think it is a decent effort. It was actually rather easy once I had figured out how to motorize the steering, since the rest was just replacing the gearbox with a motor and then following the instructions again, omitting the parts that raise and lower the body. I used exclusively the parts of the 8297, except for one 12L axle, a second Medium Motor and the IR receiver and remote control.

I can hardly believe that the 8297 is "tiny". It's actually quite a big set in my opinion. Anyway, about the suspension. If you know the 8297, it has a mechanism that rotates an axle on either side of the car. Attached to that axle are small 2L connectors with a pin and an axle hole, which in turn connect to the shocks. Depending on how the axles are turned, the body of the 8297 rises or lowers. However, I had to remove that feature for the most part. I could have perhaps kept the axles on the side of the car, but they would have turned freely and the shocks wouldn't have quite stayed in place. Perhaps my course of action to attach the shocks to the body was a bit haphazardly though. Weakest point on my mod, I know. Also, I'm currently working on a full review of the 8297, which should be forthcoming on the weekend.

Wow, that makes me wonder whether or not someone could build Kaneda's bike as an alt for the 8070.

I really like the design on the front of that cherry picker. Also, white beams aren't all that common if I'm not mistaken.

This looks like a lesser version of the 8297 Off-Roader. Doesn't seem to have a lot of function except the usual (suspension, steering, opening doors/hood). At most a set for a very rainy day.

This set looks amazing and I'm probably going to buy it. Well, how could I resist with it combining pneumatics and power functions. I especially like the apparent modularity of it, and the angled pneumatic switches in the back.

Sorry for the somewhat dumb/insecure question, but is there some sort of semi-official definition of "Super Car" or a list of Technic Sets that are considered "Super Cars" other than those specifically labeled as such (8880, 8070)? I recently got back into Lego after a long time and bought my first Lego set since my childhood about four months ago. Since then I've been worming myself through the current Technic catalog at a pace of about a set every three weeks or so. Since I got some extra cash, and getting into the taste after reading some building instructions I got off Lego.com, I wanted to buy the 8070 Super Car. Instead I bought the 8297 Off Roader because I saw it in the store and knew it was an older model and thus I'd have less opportunity to pick it up if I wanted too while the 8070 Super Car should stay in stores for a while since it was only recently released. They were also for the same prize. From reading its construction manual a few weeks ago, I also knew that the Off Roader had features that are usually typical of a Super Car, in particular the suspension. However, I'm not quite sure if it is actually considered a Super Car itself due to the fact that the sets that are usually labeled Super Cars are usually sports cars. Thanks for answering if you take the time. I don't think I'll be entering the contest though since I'm probably not at that stage yet. The set itself is however very, very nice and I'm quite happy with it. It should also provide some basis for future Super Cars I may or may not build once I'm at the level, and it was a good change for once since I had been more or less tripping out on construction vehicles (8043 Excavator, 8053 Mobile Crane, 8069 Backhoe Loader).