Okay, I bought this set off BrickLink for $360 dollars and It is a great set for a bargain price now let's get to the review

The Locomotive:

A good looking locomotive and I know a little bit on American Railroading and European Railroading, This train is based off the German version of the Crocodile also known as the "Krokodil" locomotive which served the German railroads from 1919 to 1921 and then the trains were rebuilt in 1942 to 1947. The locomotive itself is very durable and fast when at full speed. The Horn and LED lights are great accessories to the locomotive and I noticed that the LED lights in the back do not light up unless you hook a wired brick into it. And the LED lights get brighter as the locomotive picks up speed

The Onboard Crane:

The cab of the front of the train car looks like the locomotive but then it does not have a somewhat resemblance to the locomotive of the set. The crane itself has a durable winch and the car has stabilizers to keep the crane from ending up on its side

The Flatbed:

A typical European flatbed car despite only being able to hold one car while 7939's flat bed car can hold two small cars this car looks better and can carry a full sized LEGO car

The Box:

Not much to say but this car looks like the typical American boxcar on one of their trains but some versions of this train set have air conditioners but the version I have does not have an air conditioner. This car is able to hold two pallets of cargo which are either two four cylinder engines or four fuel tanks of different colors

The Gondola:

A typical coal hopper, not much to say

The Truck:

A nice little addition to the set it can hold two pieces of cargo and can dump the cargo it is carrying

The Car:

A cool little sports car that fits great on the flatbed car it looks like it could fit in your city

The Forklift:

Just a forklift, two things I noticed about the forklift. I has a spring loaded lift. Another thing I noted about the forklift is the propane tank in the back. It appears to be a propane-powered forklift

Overall, I think this set would be a great addition to anyone's LEGO City

this is pretty cool set. got it awhile ago. like all the cool stuff but i gotta problem. my train wont move. i replaced both batteries and the horn on the controll works but the train wont go. rebuilt it today and opened the back of the remote and put the batteries back in and now the horn wont work and the train still wont work. can you email me some help my email is [email protected]

Just so you know, this is going to be one long review, probably one of the longest I have ever made. Since it is so long I will divide it into parts of the set. I remember this set, but not as much as I used to. Before starting, this set is perfect except for one very minor flaw.

Cargo Truck- This blue truck can carry up to two cargo trays at a time. It has the Lego National Cargo Sign and color and a nice tipping function to unload the cargo it is carrying for the forklift to load the crane.

The Forklift- This forklift is differently shaped than most other forklifts I have ever seen in real life or build with Lego before. I like the spring function to bring the cargo up and get it ready for loading and unloading. The little tank at the end confuses me for its purpose, Is it a weight ballast or an engine, an oxygen tank of some sort? Good add on!

The Cargo- I included those grey cylindrical pieces and the car as pieces of cargo. In all this set consists of five pieces of cargo: two engine blocks, four red pieces with black tops, what I think is supposed to be four barrels of some sort of liquid, ten grey cylinders (which I think is supposed to represent metal or grain), and a sports car. The cargo is something you can find on a real train.

Track Layout- The track is laid out in an oval shape, but not quite. It has a point where you switch for two straight track pieces and then switch back to the oval. There is a crossing for the forklift and the to come through that doesn't derail the train. I'm not sure, but I think there are two extra curved tracks left at the end.

Minifigures- The minifigures in this set are among my favorite, as I do love Lego Trains. They include a Train Conductor, Forklift Operator, Truck Driver, Crane Operator, and the Crane Car Operator. Most of these minifigures are all unique in their own ways.

Remote- Well, the most I can say is that it is easy to control the train with this remote. You can control the up to three trains at a time and they go pretty fast at top speed. I also noticed, and like the studs on the remote so you can decorate it with Lego pieces and figures.

Hopper Car- This is a highly detailed set and looks a lot like a real one. There is not much more to say other than it is for holding the grey cylindrical pieces and has space to hold a lot more!

Flatbed Car- Again, not much to say about this. The piece of cargo this holds is the red sports car, which is very cool. The car is a snuggly fit between the two yellow pieces and stays in place most of the ride. I like the realistic barrier pieces at the each side.

Box Car- As I stated before, I do not remember this set that well. I know it's supposed to hold to pieces of cargo on the beige pieces but not if it holds all three or only two. The door pieces on this car are like nothing I have ever seen before in Lego pieces. This is, one of my favorite parts of this set.

Breakdown Crane Car- Is again, one of my favorite parts of this set. But here lies the problem, I'll get into it soon. It includes a cab (probably so it can drive itself if not connected to anything), and a crane to lift the red sports car onto the flatbed car. It is a nice, green color and rides smoothly on the rails. The crane has the little problem. When my friends broke my Lego's apart (as stated in another review of mine((contact me if you want to know why))), and I tried to fix it, the top of the crane would not snap together the right way.

Locomotive- This is... my favorite part of this set. As stated by other reviewers, it is based off a real locomotive engine in Germany that was only used once:

Anyways, the locomotive is simply beautiful! it is detailed, and has enough power to carry everything. Not much more to say, sadly.

The overall train is one of the- no, the best train Lego has ever made, it could have used more cars behind it, but then again, it wouldn't have had enough power to carry it.

The Instructions- The instructions are fairly easy to read and not very confusing at most points.

The Box- Is a large mass of cardboard that is very appealing to the eye. It is colorful and makes you want to buy the train for all it's features.

Building- The build is challenging for younger folk and easier for adults. I build Lego's a lot more slow for some reason when I can build them very fast.

Parts- Are rare when it comes to color, and in some cases, shape. They are easy to work with though.

Playability- The playability in this set is endless, by buying more cargo pieces and track, you can spend hours loading and unloading cargo, and driving it around your city! Makes an awesome display piece too!

Price- Just a tiny bit more than I expected, if you find one now for just a little bit more than original price, still go out and buy it! It is a very valuable set!

Conclusion- This is my favorite Lego set, if you are building a Lego City, THIS IS WHAT YOU NEED. The new train is OK, but this is the best you can get. Thanks for reading this very long review. I hope you enjoyed!

This isn't just a train. It's a diorama on it's own. And a great one, at that. Check this list of set components out.

1. Locomotive - accurately detailed electric locomotive (European style, but still very cool). This guy can be driven from either end and the engineer can go through any of four doors. The light brick for the front lights was a welcome surprise, as well. The integrated plow on both ends adds some utilitarian realism to it.

2. Hopper car - nice and simple design with both sides hinged. The small amount of payload provided doesn't do much except show you what you should put in there. I need about 100 more pieces to make it more realistic. This guy is typical of what you would see on any freight train. Nice.

3. Crane car - outstanding!! There's a driver's cabin up front (it's not a powered car, but it doesn't matter) that looks great and realistic. In the back is a beautifully engineered crane that swivels and lifts. A manual knob in the back allows you to raise or lower the hook. The cabin also opens smoothly to get the operator out. A set of outriggers stores cleverly underneath to use when supporting "heavy" loads. The car also stores a great little spreader bar apparatus that cleanly lifts the car on the next car.

4. Flatbed car - beautiful simple little flatbed car that is slightly customized for carriage of the car. This is just a short flatbed, but it can carry either the car, or the included freight. Some small barriers at the end keep the freight in place. The brackets for the car are great, too.

5. Freight car - This is a smoothly-engineered car. I love it and plan to build several more just like it. It has sliding "barn doors" on both sides that operate seamlessly. As another reviewer mentioned, it was a bit flimsy until the roof was in place, but then it's very sturdy.

This kit didn't just give you the train, there were some great extras, too! These items weren't necessary for the kit, but really add a lot of value to it.

6. Truck - a nice little flat/tilt-bed blue truck (very common in Asia) that is able to haul the included freight, or will hold just about everything else you can think of. the short sides have slots that allow simple loading and unloading with the forklift.

7. Forklift - nice little freight yard propane-powered forklift. The fuel tank in the back is an excellent addition for some realism. The forks are the same ones I played with as a kid 30 years ago, so nothing new here. They stay raised, unless your thumb holds them down. It works smoothly.

8. Car - A mediocre little red sports car. Not a lot of time was spent on details, but it's an ok car for my cityscape or for the freight train. The spreader bar on the crane car lifts this little guy from the wheels and places it in place on the flatbed. Nice.

9. Freight - three pallets of goods. One is a set of Octan-themed fuel barrels similar to other sets. One is a set of what appear to be gas cylinders. The third looks like a set of high-power 4-cylinder engines. Either the crane car or the forklift can easily pick these pallets up.

10. Track - Gobs of track. Straights and curves galore. Also, a set of smooth-operating switches. It allows for the train to get off of the main track for loading and unloading while other trains can continue by. The instruction booklet (1 of 8) has a nice example of three layouts. One can be created with the included track, while the other two require some additional track sets and they tell you which ones. I built the second recommendation because I had enough extra curves and straights from another set. Very cool, indeed.

11. Remote control - Since the train is remote controlled, it had to have a controller. While not quite as sleek as the newer sets, this is cool. Forward and backwards each have 7 speeds from a single rocker switch. Up for forward, down for backwards. The other side has a horn button (my daughters LOVE that one) and an "emergency" stop. That's good for those high-speed corners that exceed the physics involved with intertia.

12. Track crossing - only 8 studs wide, but it allows cars and trucks to get over the tracks easily. No crossing bars or lights, but even the passenger train didn't come with a means to cross the tracks.

13. Minifigs - A full complement of these little guys. All are unique and well-suited to the role. From the concentrated look on the crane operators face to the look of glee on the engineers face (with his bandana), they all fit the role wonderfully.

14. Box - I haven't mentioned a box in any other reviews, but this one is brilliantly done. It's a huge box with an opening lid with lots more excellent photography showing what you could do if you had nothing but money and time. The rest of the box artwork is nicely done, too. Excellent marketing by the LEGO Group on this one.

If you are at all interested in LEGO trains, this is one you can't miss. I have the passenger train and the new cargo train, but this one really means "deluxe"!! I am currently looking for a second train to make this one longer. This is what LEGO is all about - absolutely brilliant!

i got this set as well as the passenger train and train station. i got the passenger train on sale and thought i could use the extra track! i also got a points set and crossover set. what i am trying to find is the loco shed for a reasonable price (the world city one). i think lego should bring out a level crossing to tie it in with the city buildings and road plates.
you can use some of the city sets (container stacker) to load the flatbed instead of the car. the cargo truck and forklift also work in and the cargo from the truck fits into the cargo carriage.