Life-Sized LEGO Technic Bugatti Chiron To Go On a European Tour

Last month, LEGO was able to prove the impossible when it unveiled its fully drivable  and life-sized LEGO Technic Bugatti Chiron during the kick-off of the Grand Prix Formula 1 racing tournament in Monza, Italy last August 30. Powered by 2,304 LEGO Power Function motors, this fully functional LEGO vehicle patterned from its smaller counterpart, the LEGO Technic Bugatti Chiron (42083), managed to churn out a max speed of 20 km/h. Though this seemingly impossible MOC is still a far cry in terms of speed as compared to the 420 km/h top speed of its original predecessor, the brilliant engineering that went through in creating this brick masterpiece is simply amazing.

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this MOC. According to Promobricks, this life-sized LEGO Technic Bugatti Chiron will go on a European Tour, which already started in Milan, Italy. It will make the following road stops at these locations.

  • Dusseldorf, Germany (Schadowplatz) – September 20-23
  • Munich Airport, Germany – September 28 & 29
  • Paris, France (Motor Show) – September 30 to October 14
  • Utrecht, Netherlands (LEGO World) – October 18 to October 24
  • Great Britain (exact place to be announced) – October 30 to November 11
  • Wolfsburg, Germany (Autostadt) – November 11 to December 12

There is no exact location yet where in the UK will this LEGO engineering wonder will make a stop, and I’ll keep you posted once new information comes by. I hope this build will eventually find its way to the US and the rest of the world – it serves as a reminder that with LEGO bricks, building for real, even what seems to be the impossible, can be a reality. For now, check out these images shared by Promobricks. Special thanks also to Francesco Frangioja for snapping these images.

 

The LEGO Creator Expert Winter Village Station (10259) and Winter Holiday Train (10254) Available Again at LEGO Shop@Home

Just in time for today’s early VIP release of the LEGO Creator Expert Winter Village Fire Station (10263), shop.LEGO.com now brings back two previously released Winter Village sets to add more Christmas cheers to your collection. In case you missed out on these, the LEGO Creator Expert Winter Village Station (10259) and Winter Holiday Train (10254) are both listed again for sale at LEGO Shop@Home. Released in 2017 and 2016 respectively, it is rather unusual for LEGO to offer a Winter Village set that has been released two years ago. However, due to the positive reception of LEGO fans for these two sets since they ideally go together to create one complete Winter Village track system, LEGO decided to offer them again.

UPDATE: As of this posting, the Winter Village Station (10259) is now on Backorder at shop.LEGO.com.

So if you missed out on these two lovely LEGO Winter Village sets from two years ago, be sure to check them out at LEGO’s official shopping portals (and stay away from the fake ones) by simply clicking these links below.

 

LEGO Creator Expert Winter Village Station (10259)

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Head for home with the festive Winter Village Station holiday set, featuring a snowy railroad station with wreath adorned lampposts and clock tower, platform, mailbox, green trees, snowy grade crossing with twin barriers and lights, and a beautiful, festively decorated bus with opening doors and a luggage rack with removable luggage and gift wrapped packages. This LEGO® Creator Expert model also includes a ticket counter with a timetable and a transaction counter window with room for sliding out tickets to travelers, plus a coffee shop with a serving hatch and a detailed interior with an espresso machine, cups, cash register and a menu. Includes 5 minifigures.

 

LEGO Creator Expert Winter Holiday Train (10254)

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Gather the family for some festive LEGO® building fun with this charming model featuring a full circle of track, boarding platform with bench and lamppost, a Power Functions upgradable train engine with brick-built smoke bellowing from its stack, coal tender, flatbed wagon with a rotating holiday tree, toys and gifts, and a red caboose with a detailed interior and table. The train engine also features large and small red-colored locomotive wheels and the train is decorated with green wreathes, string lights and white tree elements. This LEGO® Creator Expert set includes 5 minifigures.

LEGOLAND Brick-or-Treat Party Nights Are Coming Back this Halloween

It’s never too early to plan for a party, and what bigger party for everybody can there be at the end of next month, except for Halloween? We can bet that theme parks across the country have got their own spooky celebration events planned, including the various LEGOLAND theme parks of course. The LEGOLAND yearly Halloween extravaganza is called Brick-or-Treat Party Nights, and guests of the LEGOLAND parks and Discovery Centers across the US can be assured that they’ll be having an awesome monster bash wherever they may be. Each location has its own dates for Brick-or-Treat, so let’s go over these.

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First we have LEGOLAND California Resort. They’re having Brick-or-Treat Party Nights as early as September 29, and so on every consecutive Saturday until October 27. LEGOLAND Florida Resort is starting late, but with more dates on schedule including on October 31st itself (though with limited activities and no fireworks display). Their Party Nights will happen in all weekends of October.

True to expectations, the LEGOLAND Brick-or-Treat Celebrations will start at around 5 PM on all selected dates, featuring attractions running from flashy colorful costumes to creepy (yet still kid-friendly) scares. In California, they’ll have a new “Dr. Frankenbrick’s Lab” show that invites its kiddie audience to participate in the Doc’s experiments to animate a slime, with fun science lessons extra.

Other exciting things to look out for are the Meet and Greets, the costume contests, build-and-craft sessions with the LEGO Friends at Heartlake City, and all the yummy candy for sale at treat stations everywhere.

You may book your tickets at the LEGOLAND parks’ respective websites; California even has “Early Bat” limited-time offers in store. Each LEGOLAND Discovery Center in North America has their own Brick-or-Treat days so you can check them for yourself here. Look under “News and Events”.

New and Exclusive LEGO Store D2C Sets Available Now

It is almost the weekends, and for those of you who are looking forward for that weekend build, this could only mean one thing: you can finally open this month’s next wave of new and exclusive LEGO Store D2C sets that you have just purchased today, thanks to your LEGO VIP membership perks. But before you do, be sure to wake up from this daydream and go out there and actually get your hands on the new LEGO Star Wars Betrayal at Cloud City (75222) and the holiday-themed LEGO Creator Expert Winter Village Fire Station (10263). These direct-to-consumer sets are now exclusively available for early VIP access starting today at all LEGO brand stores and at shop.LEGO.com.  Just click on the affiliate links below for more details.

LEGO Star Wars Betrayal at Cloud City (75222)

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Relive a world of unforgettable moments from Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back or add your own fun twists to the story with this LEGO® Star Wars 75222 Betrayal at Cloud City set. The amazingly detailed set is divided into 4 sections, each depicting scenes from the classic movie. There’s a landing platform complete with Boba Fett’s Slave I ship, a detailed promenade, a dining room with seating for 5 minifigures, a garbage processing room with incinerator, and a sensor balcony for epic Luke vs. Vader Lightsaber duels. There’s also a carbon freeze chamber with a function to ‘freeze’ Han in carbonite, an interrogation chamber and prison cell, a secondary landing platform for the Twin-Pod Cloud Car, and so much more. Add an astonishing 18 LEGO minifigures plus 2 droids to the mix, and you have a set that Star Wars and LEGO fans of any age would be proud to add to their collection.

 

LEGO Creator Expert Winter Village Fire Station (10263)

Exclusive LEGO Store D2C Sets

Welcome to the snowy LEGO® Creator Expert 10263 Winter Village Fire Station, where the firefighters are enjoying the calm of the holiday season. This delightful LEGO set features a 2-level, holly-adorned building with an upper-level kitchen, complete with a red telephone, table, fold-down bed and a LEGO light brick. Behind the large red fire station doors, you’ll discover firefighting equipment and a fire pole, while outside there’s an ice rink with a decorative firefighter statue, a decorated Christmas tree with transparent star and gifts, plus a bench and lamppost. This set also features a classic red fire truck with a turntable ladder, hoses, toolbox and deep-tread tires. Gather the family and bring the magic of the holiday season to your home with this festive LEGO Creator Expert set. Includes 6 minifigures, plus baby and Dalmatian figures, and a brick-built snowman.

 

For a closer look at the features of this new and exclusive LEGO Store D2C sets, you may watch this first review video for the Betrayal at Cloud City (75322) set, and a nice designer video of the Winter Village Fire Station (10263). Happy building!

The LEGO Education Master Educator Program 2019 Officially Announced

It is no secret that the LEGO Group has always been an advocate of learning through play, so much so when it is facilitated by the cutting edge technology and creative use of the LEGO brick. This is the impetus behind a particular subtheme of LEGO products which is widely known among schools and the academe, particularly the LEGO Education line of sets. These are non-retail sets and can only be ordered directly from LEGO, or any of its authorized international partners. LEGO takes education and learning seriously that it even came up with a certification program to recognize those dedicated builders who choose to utilize their teaching skills by utilizing LEGO bricks. Earlier this year, TLG introduced a new certification scheme connected to their LEGO Education line, dubbed as the Master Educator Program.

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The Master Educator program is a LEGO Education network that brings together primary and secondary educators who effectively use products from the Education line and other LEGO sets as tools for teaching. This is in conjunction with LEGO Education’s objective of promoting hands-on learning for skills development. Already LEGO Education has an initial group of certified Master Educators. In the US they comprise teachers from primary and secondary education – elementary, middle school and high school – that integrate various LEGO teaching tools and methods when educating their students.

Master Educator Program

But LEGO is keen on growing the number of Master Educators under their Education label. If you’re a schoolteacher who loves LEGO and are interested in learning how to make the best use of them for education, you can sign up for the Master Educator application. You’ll be notified by LEGO Education on when in 2019 their application process begins.

New Target Exclusive LEGO Bean There, Donut That (40358) Spotted

Looks like Target has been getting some LEGO love lately. We already covered that they now have available a set of themed costumes from Disguise that are directly licensed from LEGO – bricks and minifigure bodies. As if that weren’t enough, there’s a certain set spotted that’s apparently a Target exclusive. The said LEGO-Target exclusive comes in a bright yellow box that calls to mind LEGO’s Plants for Plants (40320) gift-with-purchase set released last month. The LEGO Bean There, Donut That (40358) comes in at 146 pieces and features an outdoor coffee-donut shop that would go nice with LEGO City sets.

LEGO Bean There, Donut That (40358)

Word of this set was first spread on Reddit, and picked up on by LEGO news source and set guide Brickset. It’s said to be sold on retail at target for $19.99 but is also believed to be part of a later promotion. That “exclusive to Target” tagline on the box indicates that only the retailer has it, or there may be other sets with different packaging made available elsewhere.

This Target exclusive LEGO Bean There, Donut That (40358) looks great with its shop stall, but is also a great source of donut props and LEGO mugs. It also comes with a bike and Dalmatian figure. The set’s simple but visually appealing design brings to mind similar minibuild vignettes from last year such as the Romantic Valentine Picnic (40236)Easter Egg Hunt (40237)Thanksgiving Harvest (40261) and Christmas Train Ride (40262) just to name a few.

You can try looking for this set yourself outside of Target if you like through the product’s DCPI, 204-00-0606. Otherwise, it’s time to visit your local Target store to see if they’ve got it stocked.

LEGO City Magazine Issue 7 Now Comes With Two LEGO City Freebies

The latest issue of LEGO City Magazine is now available, and Issue #7 has double treats for subscribers and fans that will pick up a copy. The LEGO City Magazine Issue 7 now comes with two foil bags instead of one, and for this month’s issue we have a free LEGO City Octan Race Car with a driver minifigure, PLUS another mini vehicle set with its respective minifigure driver as well. The second foil bag may vary though, as shared by Brick Fanatics.

Images courtesy of Brick Fanatics.

The second foil bag freebie seems to be based on previously released free sets as bundled before with past issues of the LEGO City Magazine. Though the LEGO City Octan Race Car foiled bag is pretty much consistent across copies of the LEGO City Magazine Issue 7, the second freebie is somehow random as observed by Bricks Fanz. This particular copy of issue 7 has in fact, an extra minifigure instead together with several fire fighting accessories.

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Image courtesy of Bricks Fanz

Inside, the LEGO City Magazine Issue 7 is jam-packed with the usual comics, activity sheets, puzzles, posters and even post cards to share with friends. This current issue also gives us a glimpse of what free item to expect from next month’s issue which is a policeman minifigure and a motorbike. If you’re still missing a mini motorbike in your LEGO City collection, then this is the most cost-effective way to bag this.

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Image courtesy of Brick Fanatics.

WATCH: LEGO Creator Expert Winter Village Fire Station (10263) Designer Video

Along with the early VIP-access of the LEGO Star Wars Betrayal at Cloud City (75222) set slated for tomorrow, September 13, it will be joined by another direct-to-consumer set which is the LEGO Creator Expert Winter Village Fire Station (10263) that I wrote about last week. This year’s winter village set features the classic fire station, with several mini-builds that perfectly conveys the holiday cheers. Behind the creation of this set is Lars Joe, one of the creative minds behind the LEGO Creator theme, and the LEGO Designer of the Winter Village Fire Station. He shares some of the things that he love about this new set, and the many cool features and details that go along with it. You can hear more from Lars in this LEGO Creator Expert Winter Village Fire Station (10263) designer video. Watch this.

One of the things that I like about this set is the level of details that Lars gave to it. From the features of the fire station itself, even to the small details included with the minifigures such as the nice printed sweater for the baby minifig, and the new firefighter uniforms that closely resembles the classic policeman minifigure. There’s also the inclusion of a light brick that adds to the Christmas evening vibe, and the new botanical elements made from sustainable materials adorning the fire station’s facade. It may not be as big as a typical modular building, but it is by far the tallest among the Winter Village sets, and would stand out very well together with the rest of the sets included in the theme.

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The LEGO Creator Expert Winter Village Fire Station (10263) comes in at 1,166 pieces and includes 6 minifigures: 3 firefighters with new classic firefighter uniforms, ice hockey player, musician with saxophone, and a girl with a scarf. It also includes a baby minifigure with a printed sweater, a Dalmatian, and a buildable snowman with a curved top hat. It is expected to retail for $99.99 USD and will be available for LEGO VIPs on September 13, and a general public release starting October 1. You may check out shop.LEGO.com for other holiday-themed sets.

Check Out This Very First Video Review of the LEGO Star Wars Betrayal at Cloud City (75222)

Starting September 13, LEGO VIP card holders will now have the chance to bag the very first LEGO set tagged with the Master Builder seal approval. The LEGO Star Wars Betrayal at Cloud City (75222) brings together the most memorable and iconic scenes from the Empire Strikes Back under one, featured-pack LEGO Star Wars set. So before you head over at your local LEGO Store or hit that buy button at shop.LEGO.com, the cool guys of IGN gives as a sampling of what to expect from this 2,800+ piece set. Thanks to Max Scoville and Brian Altano, it looks like we have our very first video review of the LEGO Star Wars Betrayal at Cloud City (75222). Check out their video below.

Nothing beats seeing the actual set, and this is especially true with the Betrayal at Cloud City (75222). I have to say that I didn’t imagine this to be this huge. The footprint alone for the completed build is quite impressive. As revealed by LEGO through the set’s official press release earlier last month, this very first Master Builder set comes with tons of play features that sets it apart from other LEGO Star Wars UCS, sets which is mostly meant for display. However, I have to agree with the IGN people that the set does not even remotely look like the Cloud City as we know from the films. In fact, the overall feel and design of the LEGO Star Wars Betrayal at Cloud City (75222) makes it look like a cross-sectioned Death Star.

75222 review

Though some older LEGO fans may consider this as a turn-off for certain reasons, the Betrayal of Cloud City (75222) set makes up for it through the sheer number of minifigures and play features that are included into it. The set comes with a whopping 18 minifigures, including minibuilds of Boba Fett’s Slave I, an all-red Twin-Pod Cloud Car, and the iconic Han Solo in carbonite prison plus several action-packed features to relive those unforgettable Star Wars Episode V scenes.

Thanks once again to IGN for sharing this first video review of the LEGO Star Wars Betrayal at Cloud City (75222). And in case you’ve set your eyes to this set as a first day buy (and with enough cash to spare), this first Master Builder set will retail for $349.99 USD and will be available starting tomorrow at shop.LEGO.com and all LEGO brand stores in the US and other parts of the globe.

Details of the Bricklink AFOL Designer Program Officially Revealed

After Bricklink released a teaser on their upcoming partnership with LEGO, many within the LEGO community were curious about what the commotion was all about. Dubbed the Bricklink AFOL Designer Program, this Bricklink-LEGO partnership aims to “celebrate creativity by realizing AFOL designs with truly original themes.” A lot has been said about what this program may all be about, and as promised, Bricklink announces the details of what to expect from this collaboration and how exactly the AFOL Designer Program will work.

As it turns out, AFOLs are now given the opportunity of having their original set designs turned into an exclusive, limited edition LEGO 60th anniversary set to be released in April 2019. The Bricklink AFOL Designer Program has three phases: Accepting Entries (September 18 to November 18), Crowdfunding (beginning February 2019), and eventual Release (April 2019).

Bricklink AFOL Designer Program

During the first phase of accepting entries, LEGO will only take digital designs made using Studio 2.0. Plans should also be non-IP based, meaning that it has not been released by LEGO before. The submitted design should also consist of not less than 200 LEGO elements and not more than 2,000 elements. For more information, check the Bricklink AFOL Designer Program Selection Criteria Guidelines.

A total of 20 finalists will be selected, which will be officially announced in February next year. During this, these 20 selected final entries will be open for pre-order crowdfunding. Suppose a particular threshold can meet its financial goal. In that case, it’s on its way to becoming a limited edition LEGO 60th Anniversary set, which will be exclusively available via Bricklink starting April next year.

Remember: all entries must be submitted in digital format using Studio 2.0, which you can download here. Check the fine print and other important details mentioned on the rules page. May the best build win!