Set Review: 75910 Porsche 918 Spyder
Saturday, May 30th, 2015 at 5:49pm by Andrew, BZPower News Manager
Today it's time for another set review! We're going to take a look at one of the sets from the new Speed Champions line, namely the 75910 Porsche 918 Spyder. Will this set based on the superfast car speed into your shopping cart? Or will you put the breaks on your purchase and give the green light to another set? You'll have to read on to find out!
Presentation
From the design of the box to the instruction manual, these are the first things you see before building the set.
The box for this set is quite shiny, which is usually the case for licensed themes. The Speed Champions logo is big and in your face, so you know this line is about fast cars. In the bottom right, we see the official Porsche logo, indicating that this model is officially licensed. Of course, there's also the normal information and a picture of the set speeding along. There's not much going on as far as the set goes - it is just a car, after all.
The back of the box shows the car zooming around in a couple different angles, and also highlights the interchangeable hubcaps the set includes. There's also an image of and some facts about the real Porsche 918 Spyder - it's a really fast car!
Building
Half the fun is had building the set. How fun is it to build and how easy or challenging is it?
There are 151 pieces in this set, crammed into a small package. There's a good amount of SNOT on the sides and rear, but a lot of the build is fairly basic studs-up. It's interesting how much blue, yellow, and red is hidden on the inside, just for structural purposes. There are quite a few stickers in the set to add various details, and some of them are tricky to apply. I find a steady hand and a Sword of Exact Zero are the best tools.
Set Design
Now that the set is complete, we can critique how it looks from every angle. New or interesting pieces can also be examined here.
Exclusive to this set are:
- Medium Stone Grey 2x6 half-circle plate
- Medium Stone Grey 4x3x2/3 slope brick
- Medium Stone Grey 2x4x2-1/3 wheel arch
Other new or uncommon parts of note include:
- Transparent Brown windscreen (only in two sets)
- Dark Stone Grey 2x4x1 brick/plate with Technic pinholes
- Silver Metallic rims (only in three sets)
- Black 2x6 half-circle plate (only in three sets)
- Silver Metallic hub caps (only in two sets)
In general, the most common color in the set is Medium Stone Grey, and there are a lot of pieces in it, from bricks to plates to slopes to tiles. As mentioned above, there's a surprising amount of red, yellow, and blue as well, in basic plates of various sizes. It's a good collection of parts if you like to build cars, or castles if you like to get creative.
The minifig is exclusive to this set, mainly because of the torso. The head, helmet, and visor have been used numerous times in the past. The legs only appear in this set and two Master Builder Academy sets. The torso though, with its 'Porsche Motorsport' logo is unique here. The printing is crisp and clear and it's a very nice race jacket. Of note, there's no yellow printed near the neck, so you can use it with yellow or flesh-toned minifigs.
The first thing you build is this little finish line. While it's nice to get something in addition to the car, it's not all that impressive.
What the finish line lacks the car makes up for. This is a very solid build with a lot of exterior details crammed in. The front is very smooth and has few exposed studs, giving it a very aerodynamic look. The back is not quite so tiled, but to me that grounds the model in the word of LEGO versus being a perfect miniature replica. I think the designers definitely did a commendable job of capturing the look of the Spyder and this model will look great sitting on your desk or a shelf.
Playability
The other half of the fun is in playing with the set. How well does the set function and is it enjoyable to play with?
Previously I mentioned the amount of exterior detail the model has - I worded it that way because the set lacks virtually any interior detail. There is a seat and a steering wheel for the driver, but there's no engine, no trunk, no steering, no opening doors or hood - nothing. As far as play features go - you can remove the windshield to put in or take out the driver, you can swap the hubcaps, and you can roll it across the floor. This tells me that the set is supposed to be more of a model than a toy. I'm sure kids can still have loads of fun racing it along, but I can't help but feel that it's lacking something more like you often see in other LEGO vehicles.
Final Thoughts
Once it's all said and done, how does the set stack up? Should I get it?
Pros
What's to like?
- Good selection of new pieces and exclusive recolors
- Captures the design of the Porsche 918 Spyder
- Solid build
Cons
What's not to like?
- No real play features
- Final product seems small for a $15 set
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I think this set looks awesome - it's a sleek super-fast car. At $15 for 151 pieces, it seems like a good value, but looking at the finished model it seems a bit small and I wish it did more. I feel like if they could have added opening doors and an engine detail this would be a no-brainer, but without that I would only suggest it if you like the pieces or really like cars.
Thank you all for reading and watching our review - hopefully it was informative and insightful. Please ask any questions you might have in the Talkback and leave your comments as well. And of course, keep checking back on BZPower for more LEGO set reviews and news!
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