As a Lego Technics and Ferrari fan I just had to have this car. I bought this set second hand after building the 8070 super car earlier (which I actually like more than this car, except for the looks). Although this car does not have all the functions that other Technic cars have (hey, it is actually a Racers set, not Technic), I still like it.

Box/Instructions

The box is quite large, but that is ok for a set of this size (over 1300 pieces). The instructions are detailed and, in my opinion, don't require a lot of building skill, just close attention.

Parts

This set comes with a very good amount of parts. You get 20 body panels, suspension with ball joints, unfortunately no shocks for the suspension, very nice wheels, a v-12 piston engine, a differential and two big air dampened shocks (for opening the doors). If you don't like this car, you can still get it just for the parts and build your own.

The build

The completed model

Lego did a good job modeling the Ferrari Enzo. There is a good amount of detail, like the lights, the v-12 engine and the exhaust system. I like the way the doors open with the air dampened springs. The opening engine hatch is nice too and even when closed, you can see the v-12 engine and the exhaust tubes. It is really great for display.

As for functions, I would have liked to see working suspension and working steering wheel in the cabin. There actually wasn't much space for a transmission (would require making the car wider) so that is fine with me. There is still plenty of room for modifications.

Summary

As a Technic set it gets 4/5. The build is enjoyable and the few functions it has are very nice. Still, it could easily have had working suspension and steering wheel in the cabin, like in the older Lego sets. For a Technic set, it has only little playability. Ok, it is a Racers set.

A good thing is that you don't need to completely rebuild the car for some little modifications, like adding suspension and working steering wheel in the cabin. (just need to remove some parts that are really in the way) Maybe make it remote controlled.

As a Racers set it gets 5/5 for all the details, like v-12 engine, the exhaust, the lights and the wheels. It is really great for display.

This model follows on in the tradition of Lego building large car models (853, 8860, 8865, 8880, 8448) and for the first time it was modeled on a real car. Lego now used all the specialised panels to recreate the shape of the whole car. With cool doors which opened up with half the roof, and the trunk / boot lifted up to get a closer look at that engine.

I have never owned a Technics set before, as I prefer traditional bricks with a solid appearance. With no new sets coming out for a while, and Christmas money to spend, I found myself studying the box art in my local store. The more I looked, the more I was convinced it was a very clever and complex set. I was intrigued to find out what it would be like to build a large Technics model, so I handed over 80 GBP and took it home. The fact that it was a Ferrari helped persuade me I should get this, as I have all the other “solid” Ferrari sets - including 3 of the excellent 8652 Enzo/F333 SP. I write this therefore as someone who is not a Technics aficionado.

The set is amazingly complex to build compared to normal bricks, so from that viewpoint I found the build an enjoyable challenge – getting familiar with and enjoying this new genre. The parts come in numbered bags, which limits the amount of parts you have to search through at each stage. This helps with the construction, but even so, it took me several hours over 3 evenings to complete the 1,300 odd pieces (I was in no hurry) and I was constantly in awe of the guys who designed this set – very complex and clever. An important factor to me, whatever I build, is accuracy and likeness to prototype. When finished, it does look like what it is supposed to - an Enzo, it is not some mythical Lego creation that does not actually exist, but a real car, which obviously made it more difficult to design – no modeller’s licence here.

I have read the other reviews before writing this, and am aware of the criticism of others. I do agree that it is unfortunate that the steering wheel is not connected to the steering mechanism and I shall try and achieve this if possible, as I think it detracts from the set. However, part of me thinks if the designers could have included this perhaps they would, or more likely perhaps they were constrained by price. I am not so sure about the suspension as the Enzo is basically a F1 car in a 2-seater body and does sit very low on low profile tyres. The V12 engine is very clever with its working pistons and crankshaft, but as I was not aware there was a Lego transmission anyway, I did not miss it. There is a differential though which works well. The doors open assisted by hydraulic rams, which again is cleverly designed. The engine compartment opens (unassisted) to reveal the engine as detailed above – though with the see – thru appearance of Technics this is not really necessary. I notice there is a version of the set on the Brickshelf site where someone has filled in some of the holes to make a superb model – as well as changing it to right hand drive – being English I approve of this.

I love this set. Despite the criticisms – it is large, very enjoyable to construct, fascinates and intrigues everyone who sees it (including me) and this is what I bought it for. I think the fascination with Technics is in being able to see the outside and inside at the same time – especially the working features. I am now considering getting more Technics sets - the 8421 crane looks similarly intriguing. They say expectation is everything and it lived up to my expectations (steering wheel aside) and I thought the price was about right, so for that I will give it a maximum score. The only downer is I just found out you can currently buy it from Argos for half price in the sale, but the crane is half price there as well so all may not be lost - if you can find an Argos store that still has one!

I got this set 2nd hand for $80, a very good price. As it was my first technic set, I was very impressed with the design and functions. After buying 8421 and 8868, it begins to look rather pathetic, but the looks and quantity of pieces makes up for it. On to the review:

Build: ****
It took me 5 hours to build, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. When compared to other technic sets however (8421, 8868, for example), it falls short, due to the lack of technical functions.

Pieces: ****
It has a good selecton of pieces, especially ones used for styling. I particularly liked the red styling pieces, the silver rims and the large quantity of ball joints.

Looks: *****
This is the main plus point for this model - it looks fantastic. It is a great model to display, and generally gets a good reaction from dark age people. I don't like the looks of the Enzo in real life, but it still looks great in lego.

Technical: **
Not impressive - should at least have independent suspension, and steering linked to the steering wheel. The gull wing doors are brilliantly designed, much better than previous models, which really helps the set.

On the whole, it is a good set, and the perfect starter set. LEGO can definetely improve on it, but I definetely don't regret buying it.

I just completed assembly of the Enzo, and I have to point out that I was incorrect in stating that the doors are unassisted and the rear hatch was assisted by the dampened shocks, it is actually just the opposite. all other points in my review remain the same, with one note- the current lego transmission layout would not have fit in this model, without it being a bit wider. That said, I did enjoy building it. It was a minor challenge level to build, and TLC did a great job on the mechanisim to open scissor doors. The "Down" position is a bit tricky to get the doors to set, but once set, they do stay down until triggered by a slightly hidden button. The mag wheel inserts aren't as nice looking up close, but as a static model on a shelf, they do give the model unique styling. My rating remains an 8 for this.