Review: LEGO 40370 40 Years of LEGO Trains

Today we are interested in the LEGO set 40370 40 Years of LEGO Trains, a box that will be offered at LEGO from March 1 to 15, 2020 from 99 € of purchase without restriction of range and which pays tribute to the set 7810 Push-Along Steam Engine marketed between 1980 and 1982.

The 7810 Push-Along Steam Engine set (97 pieces) was not the first to offer to assemble a locomotive or train, there were products on the railway theme at LEGO from 1966. The manufacturer however chose this reference, which could then be motorized in 4.5v or 12v, for the commemorative set that will be offered.

On this new "tribute" version of 187 pieces, we will notice that the logo of the railway company German Federal Railroad, present in the original set on the sides of the driver's cabin, disappears in favor of that of the fictitious company imagined by LEGO. At the time, a large sheet of stickers also made it possible to personalize the train according to your favorite company with stickers bearing the logos of the main European railway companies. For the rest, the reproduction of the locomotive is rather faithful to the reference model.

The instruction booklet does not contain any anecdote or specific reference to the fortieth anniversary celebrated through this box and that's a shame. I also note that the only two pad printed elements of the set are the torso and the driver's head. Everything else is based on stickers, even the decorative plate attached to the presentation support and the name of the set placed on the Tile black.

The presentation support is rather well done even if it lacks in my opinion a piece of rail to stage the locomotive in a more successful way. The machine fits in the spaces provided and the whole is of a foolproof stability. Like the model of set 7810, this locomotive can be motorized without too much effort by replacing the axle with a train motor Power Functions (ref. 88002) or the new element available since the launch of the ecosystem Powered Up (88011 ref). It will then be necessary to build a wagon to hide the Battery Pack or the Smart Hub.

The assembly process of this locomotive is as vintage as that of the original: big pieces to stack without particularly inventive techniques, a little rough shapes, we are well in the spirit of the LEGO products of the 80s and this tribute is satisfied simply to reproduce the original version with a few details.

The minifig delivered at the time in the 7810 Push-Along Steam Engine set was rather common, it was found in about fifteen boxes marketed during the 80s. The 2020 version takes the design of the original minifig with the same simple pad printing on the character's torso, the same smile on his face and the same red cap. For those who might be wondering: no risk of getting ripped off in the future by receiving a new version of the character instead of the old one, the vintage minifigure sells for less than a dollar on the secondary market. ..

For a product offered on condition of purchase, this small set with its box with vintage accents is a nice gift even with the relatively high amount of € 99 to spend to be offered. I would have appreciated some more information on the anniversary celebrated here in the instruction booklet, but it is already very correct as it is.

Note: We do as usual. Deadline set at March 5, 2020 next at 23pm.

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.