LEGO builds life-size replica of McLaren Formula One race car

LEGO has built a life-size replica of the McLaren Formula One race car that made an appearance at the Australian Grand Prix recently, the home race of McLaren driver Daniel Ricciardo. The full-size LEGO Technic model has been made using at least 288,315 individual Lego bricks and took a total of 1,893 hours to assemble, CarScoops reported.

The construction was carried out by a team of expert builders led by Lego Certified Professional and Lego Masters Australia judge Ryan ‘Brickman’ McNaught. Interestingly, the life-size model is a replica of the LEGO toy set of the McLaren race car, instead of the actual F1 car. Each brick, peg, and panel of the LEGO set has been replicated. This implies that the car is actually a full-size model of the scale model of the actual car.

Key highlights of the life-size model include moving pistons in the engine, a locking rear differential, and a fully detailed steering wheel that actually steers the car. The model comes complete with knobs, buttons, paddles, and a screen. One missing element is that of a working suspension, yet the vehicle can easily seat a driver.

This is not the first full-scale car that has been built by LEGO. Over the past years, the company has made life-sized versions of the Bugatti Chiron, Lamborghini Sian, and McLaren Senna. Not just super cars, LEGO has also made life-size models of Chevy Silverado, Toyota Camry, and VW Type 2 Bus. Yet the difference is that all these models were replicas of the real cars, not their respective Lego sets. And this makes the latest LEGO McLaren F1 race car life-size model an exception.

The Australian GP track has also undergone a number of changes since the pandemic, with the aim of making it faster and more flowing for race cars.