Review: LEGO Speed ​​Champions 76904 Mopar Dodge // SRT Top Fuel Dragster & 1970 Dodge Challenger T / A

We end the series of reviews of the 2021 novelties of the LEGO Speed ​​Champions range with the set 76904 Mopar Dodge // SRT Top Fuel Dragster & 1970 Dodge Challenger T / A, a box of 627 pieces sold at the public price of 64.99 € since June 1st.

This set highlights two Dodge brand vehicles with on one side the dragtser in the colors of the "Angry bee"driven by Leah Pritchett in NHRA Drag Racing competitions and the other a Challenger T / A from 1970. The selection of vehicles offered in this box seems a little confusing to me, there was probably better to do by combining the 1970 Challenger to the 1320 Challenger R / T Scat Pack 2019 or a recent Charger, and the automaker may have had some say in the selection on offer.

The dragster of more than 30 centimeters long at least has the merit of offering a different experience from that generally offered in the boxes of the LEGO Speed ​​Champions range and the LEGO version of the machine is really very successful. The assembly of the front fuselage composed mainly of a stack of bricks with tenons on three sides stiffened by a few flat takes only a few minutes, the longest step being the installation of the many stickers on the different Tiles that dress the structure. The two rear tires seem a bit undersized on the LEGO version, but we will do with it.

The cockpit and engine are a bit more fun to build with some nice details, a handful of stickers, and a gorgeous pad printed canopy. Leah Pritchett is dressed in her racing suit with seams that run down her legs. It is therefore possible at LEGO and I regret that all pilots in uniform do not systematically benefit from this level of finish.

The 1970 Challenger T / A, on the other hand, seems successful until it is compared with the benchmark vehicle. The cause is understood, we cannot efficiently reproduce curves with square bricks, and the LEGO version of this muscle car suffers once again from its too sharp angles and the usual approximations.

As often, the front and rear of the vehicle are the most faithful parts and we install "real" headlights, the rest is a somewhat crude adaptation using elements that struggle to embody the attributes of this muscle car. The windshield has neither the curves nor the proportions of that of the "real" vehicle and it is all the upper part of this Dodge Challenger that is affected.

Unfortunately, things don't get better when the side stickers have to be placed on a transparent background, the glue of which remains visible on the purple color of the parts. The icing on the hood, the roof is a 6x6 matte plate with a large injection point in its center. It seemed to me that LEGO had learned a lesson from the LEGO Batman set 76139 1989 Batmobile marketed since 2019, for which the same roof plate has been replaced by three tiles 2x6 smooth and shiny. This is clearly not the case, or the designer will have felt that the Speed ​​Champions range does not deserve this level of aesthetic refinement.

Unsurprisingly, the three transparent elements delivered in this box are scratched when unpacking, they walk around in bags that are too large thrown into boxes themselves too large. Once again it will be necessary to call on customer service to obtain impeccable parts.

The four rims of the Challenger T / A are pad printed and the result is rather faithful to the reference elements. If you lose one, be aware that LEGO provides a total of five copies in the box. The minifig that accompanies the vehicle benefits from a very nice torso which takes up the symbol of the angry bee, the mascot of the brand used for its muscle cars in the 1970s.

I would have gladly done without one of the two vehicles in this box sold for 65 € to keep only the Challenger 1970. The dragtser is successful but it is a bit off topic in this range which usually mixes supercars, vintage vehicles and sometimes SUVs. . Dodge will undoubtedly have had the final cut on the content of the set and will have imposed its dragster instead of offering us a recent Charger or a new generation RAM pickup in racing version.

In the end, the content of the different sets that will join the LEGO Speed ​​Champions collection this year is in my opinion very uneven, but all these products mainly suffer from recurring technical faults at LEGO which sabotage the work of the designers a little. The absence of new parts specific to this range, such as more suitable windshields, is felt and the compromises made are far from convincing on certain models. Stickers on a transparent background can be useful in certain configurations but they also sometimes ruin the aesthetics of certain models.

We can finally say that it is only LEGO and that it is an exercise in style with its constraints, but at 20 € the vehicle alone or between 40 and 60 € both, I think that we are entitled to expect a little more than the sometimes disappointing level of finish of the reproductions offered. The shift to eight studs wide of these vehicles is a good thing, in my opinion there is now room for improvement in other areas so that this range, much appreciated by both collectors and the youngest, is at the level of what it is. 'we can expect a high-end toy in 2021.

Note: The set presented here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at 21th June 2021 next at 23pm. For newcomers, know that you just need to post a comment to participate in the draw.

Update : The winner was drawn and was notified by email, his nickname is indicated below. Without a response from him to my request for contact details within 5 days, a new winner will be drawn.