Review: 60084 Racing Bike Transporter
Posted by CapnRex101,
The 'Great Vehicles' are certainly living up to their billing this year with four excellent new sets priced at £17.99 or $19.99. This one, 60084 Racing Bike Transporter, contains 178-pieces and was the second model I picked up after 60083 Snowplough Truck.
Although the truck itself is well worth adding to your city, the main selling point for this set is going to be the brand new motorcycles included, which are currently exclusive to 60084! They are far sleeker than previous models but are not so different as to render the older versions obsolete, giving the buyer the best of both worlds!
Box and Contents
The LEGO City brand has undergone a slight redesign this year with a softer logo and the blue borer extended across the top of the box. Nothing has changed about the artwork though which shows the team gearing up for a race with a substantial crowd behind them ready to spectate. On the back the features are shown off and there are some dynamic racing shots featuring the two motorbikes.
Inside are two instruction manuals, two numbered bags and one rather large sticker sheet. It is unfortunate to see so many stickers (twelve in all) in such a small set, but this is necessary for any racing related set which is bound to feature advertising all over the vehicles just like in reality. None of these stickers are particularly difficult to apply and you have the option of not applying them at all of course.
Minifigures
Two minifigures are included to double as racing crew and drivers. They both wear the same uniforms featuring a red cap, new red and black motorcycle leathers and plain black legs. The torsos are printed on the front and back to match the colour scheme of the bikes and truck which looks superb. Crash helmets are included for when the minifigures are riding the motorbikes and there is also a fire extinguisher and a wrench, both of which can be clipped to the sides of the truck.
The Completed Model
Lots of these kinds of sets include a truck and trailer, but few offer as much playability as this one. The racing decals plastered all over the bikes and team transport look brilliant in my opinion and I love the black, white and red colour scheme. The design of all the vehicles featured seem pretty realistic to me and I appreciate the variety of accessories included.
A white podium is included with places for the first, second and third placed drivers as usual. An enormous trophy awaits the winner, which is a somewhat rare piece having only appeared in five other sets in light bluish grey.
The most exciting thing about this set is undoubtedly the two brand new bikes! The same motorcycle chassis and fairing pieces have existed since 2008 and 2005 respectively, but both have now been redesigned for 2015. As you can see in the photo below there are many more attachment points on the new chassis component and therefore more options for customisation. The fairing is outwardly not vastly different to the older version but for the smoothing of a few sharper edges, the absence of side-mounted headlights and the addition of a windscreen like those seen on these kinds of motorcycles in reality. Probably the most significant change is that the rider can now sit much lower in the seat and therefore looks more streamlined, as one would expect of a racing bike. I look forward to seeing this new design in another colour when 76032 The Avengers Quinjet Chase is released later this year.
The truck itself is similar to any other 6-wide City vehicle, making use of a single piece chassis with a SNOT headlight and grille section. The bonnet features a chequered sticker and this stripe continues onto the roof of the truck where there are also some lights. There are opening doors to access the cab and the roof can be easily removed to reveal seating for one minifigure in front of the steering wheel and a mug on the dashboard. The flatbed section of the truck stores an Octan fuel drum, which makes use of a new 2x2 round tile with one stud, and the two crash helmets. There is room for one of the bikes here as well, although you might wonder: how do the minifigures get a motorbike all the way up there?
Well, probably my favourite element of the truck is the neat loading ramp which can slide out of the back for when the motorbike is being wheeled onto or off the transport. This kind of attention to detail is pretty impressive and gives plenty more display options. The ramp does not slide out of the back unless you remove the white 6L bar, to which the ramp then attaches when it is replaced.
The trailer is a simple little build but it does its job, storing the second motorcycle and also including a loading ramp. I initially thought the tiny wheels look a bit too small when compared with the wheels of the truck, but actually they look fine once it is constructed in my opinion.
Overall
There is a great deal more to this set than meets the eye. The racing decorated transport truck is, in many ways, the standard City affair. However it has some lovely details, the best of which in my opinion is the ramp.
The new motorbike is brilliant and the design allows a minifigure to sit far lower than before which looks great. We get two red fairings with black windscreens printed in this set and we know we have a black version on its way. Hopefully we will see plenty more colours produced in the next couple of years.
2 likes
17 comments on this article
Great set at this price point. The new bikes are definitely the main appeal here in terms of playability and collectability. The only thing I can think of that might have been nice was an extra fig (a truck driver? or Race announcer?) and maybe a sticker for that trophy!
A great set, and I'm anticipating this one will fly off the shelves!
The new bikes can be narrower because the handlebars are no longer fixed to the frame. Added benefit is that you could put the Friends handlebars on. Haven't tried putting a Friends fig on the new bike though.
I found the stickers on the fairing hard enough to put on and a 5 or 6 year old is going to struggle with them. There used to be a printed version of the podium bricks (6617).
I agree on the truck; that loading ramp is brilliant.
This review has convinced me to get this set next! If I head into Bristol this weekend I will try and get one (and maybe another set too - possibly the Snowplough!).
We'll have to get this set to add those new bikes to the bike shop in our Town Square. Need a moped/scooter too!
I'd say the best set out of the entire Great Vehicles series since it began. I don't really buy smaller City sets anymore (usually sticking to Creatir Expert, Marvel and Ideas) but I may have to make an exception
Yes! I knew it had to be a new design. I've been waiting on a new motorcycle design since forever! The old one was so clunky and awkward. This looks sleek and elegant. I can't wait to pick this up!
Also cap'nrex, I don't mean a whole lot of disrespect here, but you must be blind. The new fairing is much narrower, sleeker, and shorter than the old one. It is radically different, and a huge improvement. Thanks so much for this review! I'm so pumped to get this.
So which set is better, this or invizable gold getaway?
@peterlmorris - I meant that the two models are similar in style, but I know what you mean, there have been some substantial changes!
@DERKaiser - I prefer the Invizable Gold Getaway, but both are excellent sets.
Wow, its a cooler set than I thought. I might actually get it.
I saw this set at TRU today for $29.99...and laughed out loud. An employee was close by and asked what I was laughing at, I told him that many of their sets are overpriced by 50%! He didn't think that was very funny...I just don't get how they can sell so many sets for way over MSRP.
On a related note, this set looks AWESOME. Can't wait to get it (at regular or discounted price).
Great review - thanks a lot! This seems to be a pretty nice set. Those 20€ City sets are seriously the stars of the town line and some of the best Lego sets, up there with the Ecto 1, Bagend and the Mos Eisley Cantina imho.
black red white!? come on, really!?
corporate colour design of european fascism has finally reached lego. sad
but that's what you get when you just have north american set designers without knowledge of history, or even legos own history to avoid this colour sheme.
maybe lego just doesn't care anymore that much for the european market.
i made this list a long time ago
http://brickset.com/sets/list-3412
even world racers was trying to avoid that. why this shift now!?
I love LEGO and I love motorcycle racing. So why does this set leave me feeling totally cold and disinterested? Hmm....
@mxtp: Black, Red, White are also the colours of Snap On Racing, sponsored by Snap On tools. And the Marussia F1 team. And of the White Stripes.
Don't get me wrong, I'm dead against fascism but I think you're looking for something that isn't there. Red, black and white is just a colour combination that works well and has been used a lot for race car liveries.
On a different note, a Friends fig doesn't fit well on the bike. You can't turn the Friends handlebars down low enough to position the fig properly; they hit the sides of the fairing.
@yuffie Some people are walking Rorschach Tests, projecting their own biases and prejudices on everything they see and anyone who fails to agree with them. It says a lot about him and precisely nothing about anyone else. Ignore it.
Wow, those bikes are just fabulous! I want two.. oh wait, it comes with two! Huzzah! Seriously, it's worth the $20 for the motorcycles alone. Love that. Also looks like it has more possibilities for MOCing than the last one, seeing the addition of a handlebar clip and studs on the sides.
EDIT: Why do they only make the trophy in LIGHT GREY?! They made it in silver for EVERY SINGLE World Racers set, so only having it grey and not silver or gold makes me really angry.