LEGO Ideas Vintage Car 40448 Review!

LEGO has a plethora of vehicles in their collection but a large percentage of them are modern day or sports cars, don’t get me wrong the Speed Champions line is great and there are some cool looking super cars to build & collect but LEGO seem to over look and pass on the more classic models

The LEGO Downtown Diner set included a very smart Pink Cadillac which proved popular with fans, so adding another six stud wide classic automobile into the mix was a no-brainer.

This is where LEGO Ideas and Arne Jahnke (aka Versteinert) comes in. Arne created this magnificent vehicle and submitted it to the LEGO Ideas platform for an AFOL contest back in 2019 to design a vintage car to cruise the mean streets of your Modular City.

Introducing the Aedelsten Deluxe – based on several American Classics, most notably the 1950s Sedan Two Tone. 

The Build:

First off the box looks great, the whole design of it with the beach road, lighthouse, and hills really set the scene. Spin the box around and we’re presented with alternative views of the car along with how the LEGO Ideas process works.

Carefully opening the box and sliding the contents out we see the instruction manual. As usual, with all LEGO Ideas sets, we get a short write-up about the creator which features a little bit about them and why they choose that particular design. I always start off every Ideas build reading it just so I know the context and any vital details surrounding it, it’s usually very interesting.

The basis of the car at first seems quite long & narrow, but as you start to flesh it out you soon realise that it does indeed suit the proportions.

Built primarily on two 2×14 and one 4×8 plate(s), which in turn sit on two wheel axis, making it extremely sturdy and solid enough to pick it up and play with it.

The main part of the body you build first is the rear. Being a convertible and with its roof down the boot, or trunk, is hidden and covered by the collapsed roof. The backend looks great and expresses the curves and shape of most American Classic cars of that particular era, the 1950s!

This two-seater setup works pretty well and allows for the two included Minifigures to enjoy the ride together. The 1×2 jumper tiles are realigned and no longer offset due to the centre divider which overlaps the steering wheel. Using those jumper tiles here and in this way is genius and works so well, you don’t even have to alternate the Minifigure’arms in order for them to sit side-by-side, nice.

The front of the car is of course the most iconic part of it, with curved grille and bulky grey/silver bumper. They make great use of the teal 1×1 curved bricks that run down each side and the hood ornament is unique and looks the part.

Teal and white is the colour scheme used to achieve the two tone look, which suited so many of the real life American Classic cars of yesteryear.

Fun fact, and I guess an Easter egg, the ‘AM 0937‘ written on the license plate actually refers to the creator and the LEGO designer that made this a reality. Quote taken from the

“Look for this fun detail on the license plate: A is for Arne (the German fan who won) M is for Mel (the LEGO designer) and 0937 is “LEGO” written with upside-down numbers.”

The doors are none existent and are simply just panels that slot and clip into place by just one clutch point. I am actually OK with this as it allows the two Minifigures to sit side-by-side. It wouldn’t be possible to have doors anyhow as they’re blocked by the use of the surfboards. The wing mirrors are also attached to the side panels and are made up of paddles and 1×1 round tiles.

One of the two disappointing parts of the build is the steering wheel & drive shift lever. Don’t get me wrong the look of it is good, albeit 3 parts, it’s just after adding the centre column you can hardly see it, and that they’re slightly more centralised than I’d like. Once you pop in a Minifigure, who sits to one side, the steering column looks a tad awkward and again not aligned to the driver. Overall it’s not that obvious and I tend to over look it, it’s just a small gripe I have.

The second gripe are the surfboards either side of the car. As design and looks go the surfboards do the job well and definitely finishes off the whole build nicely, but boy are they fragile! There are two SNOT elements, one either side, in which you attach one end of the  surfboards to, the clutch power is almost non-existent and they constantly fall off. Holding the car in the most comfortable way possible is hindered by the surfboards and their inevitable falling off. They’re easy enough to reattach but as we’ve all most likely come across something similar on a different build we all know how frustrating it is!

Putting those two minor grievances to one side this set is actually really nice and pretty well designed. The whole look and feel of it feels right, from the front to the back bumpers, the head lights, hood ornament, unique windscreen, seats, surfboard decal, to the white fenders at the rear. Well done to Arne and the LEGO designer who created this bad boy!

The Minifigures:

There are two Minifigures included and both of them are exclusive to this set, there are however no new exclusive prints unfortunately. Both their heads and torso prints have been used before, mainly from the LEGO Hidden Side and LEGO City themes.

The girl is wearing a cool leather jacket with a white & blue striped shirt underneath. The pink shades and summer-esque look is very reminiscent of the time (1950s) and matches the Minifigures to their ride. Her neck printing is a shade darker, this is because of the black torso base, it does look somewhat strange but it doesn’t really effect her overall look. She has an alternative face which sees the shades removed and a more softer grin coming through.

The cool guy sports a Newbury Squids jacket, the School from the LEGO Hidden Side theme. I particularly like this torsos’ print, it’s bright & colourful and very detailed, LEGO have done a great job in the design and execution. Sadly this guy doesn’t come with an alternative face, which is quite surprising as there is obviously room for one as the hair would cover it, perhaps one without shades?

Both Minifigures look amazing and compliment the car so well. The 1950s attire, hair styles, and sunglasses really finish them off nicely!

As free (GWP) sets go this is definitely up there with the best of them, it’s only the 2nd LEGO Ideas freebie in existence, the 1st one of indeed the Space Rocket Ride (40335) set.

A quote from our good friend Dave (TheBrickSnapper) about the build…

Great design, great build, looks awesome.

We highly recommend this set, although it may be harder to get ahold of now that its related promotion has ended (GWP of £85). Your best bet would be either Bricklink, Brickowl, or a popular online auction site.

Thank you for taking the time to read our review of LEGO Ideas Vintage Car 40448, please checkout our other reviews and content. Why not leave us a comment below, we love knowing what you make of the sets we mention.

Gallery: