[MOC] BMW M8 GTE from Le Mans in 2018

[Lasse D]

Update: See final model in the last post of this thread.

 

This is a scale 1:20 (Legoland Miniland scale) BMW M8 GTE. I built this car for Le Mans in 2018 and brought it to the race for some pictures because, why not.

The car was initially built from pictures and size information available before the big race. This is why it has a big ///M-logo on the roof.

As always I have been using Griddy for the design and this was the setup I was using during the initial design:

Stickers and updated pictures became available shortly before Le Mans and I had just enough time to remove the ///M logo and get stickers made before leaving for the race. There was no time for a nice picture of the car before leaving, but here it is right in front of the real deal:

And we were also allowed out on the track itself on the Friday before the race. Here it is together with the other GTE PRO race cars next to the historical Dunlop bridge

Now. The thread title says [WIP] instead of [MOC]. This is because I have only been spending 3 weeks on the car before it was brought to Le Mans in 2018. Now I want to improve it before making building instructions as has been done with most of the other cars (only the Vantage and M8 are currently not done).

One of the details I want to improve is the front. The "hood" on the real car has a significant slope. In the LEGO model that should translate into a lowering of the headlights. In order to do this I have reduced the height of the lower assembly from 2 to 1 brick in height:

I also want to see if it is possible to make a more realistic headlight design. Option 1 is this one with 1x1 plates with tooth in trans black, while another option could be what you see on the other side:

I am personally partial toward the original headlight design as it looks more "BMW like", but I would love for others to give their input and nudge me in the right direction of this design which has been bothering me for... well 2 years now.

Update on July 7, 2020

I have decided on continuing with a version that combines the trans black side as shown above with the original headlight design. This allows for the inside of the headlights to curve together, while the outside remains "BMW-like". Continuing with the sides. These are mostly carried over from the original design. The main changes here are the lower black trim pieces and the sides being pushed half a plate outward.

The height is a massive change, as can be seen by placing the two cars with their noses next to one another

One of my main challenges with the front is to get the fenders right. I might add 1x6 tiles over the wheels to recreate the sloping hood of the real car. The center of the hood also needs a complete overhaul with the angular ///M lines while maintaining the aero elements.

The next update will most likely first be in 2 weeks, but any suggestions are as always welcome.

 

Update on August 2, 2020

 

The new model is complete. It is now time to compare it to the previous model and the real deal.

Starting with the front. Here The new model has the lower projectors reduced in height. This allows the whole nose to be lower, but also requires a sloping front end. I think the new nose is more accurate, and the change to the hood and fenders is acceptable. Ideally I would have smoother slope.

The windscreen now contains a windscreen wiper (good), but my attempt at using wedge plates and staggered 1x2 black tiles has resulted in some unsightly gaps (bad)

Moving to the top view, the roof has received additional detailing, such as antennae, grilles and an intake as on the real race car.

Unfortunately my attempt at using a SNOT roof has caused the white lines to be too close together, and upper line of the side windows no longer flows as nicely.

The graphics on the nose have been simplified. I prefer the simplified version, as the old one was a bit too blocky with the coloring.

The colored lines neat the mounts for the rear wing have been reduced, as BMW updated the livery a bit before the cars raced at Le Mans. Even though the old version looks cooler, the new one is more accurate.

The rear is almost all new. The design of the diffuser has been updated after clearer pictures arose, allowing me to build it more accurately.

The size and shape of the rear lights is also more accurate now, while there is a small upper lip in the bodywork which has been included from the real car (not visible in these two pictures)

The shaping of the front fenders and how they join the center of the car has been redesigned to be less blocky. This also allowed proper repositioning of the side mirrors.

I will get back to the drawing, I mean, building board.

 

Edited August 15, 2020 by Lasse D
Added video of final model

[Lasse D]

The car is now complete and I have made building instructions for it.

The building instructions are available for both cars:

#81: https://brickhub.org/i/681

#82: https://brickhub.org/i/679

See the video in the first post for how this final version compares to the one from 2018

The biggest redesign is probably what has been done to the rear

The diffuser has been rebuilt to better mirror the one they actually used at Le Mans in 2018. The rear lights are now more accurate with how the curve up in the sides, and the top "lip" on the trunk is now curving outwards like on the real car.

The roof has been redesigned (again). This time with stacked panels to make the white line as thin as possible.

The rear window now has both grilles and an aur scoop similarly to what you see on the real car

And I settled on this style of headlights:

A small detail that has changed is the use of heat-resistant material behind the exhaust:

This concludes the building instructions for all 17 cars from the class of GTE PRO of Le Mans 2018. You can find all the building instructions here: https://brickhub.org/i/themes.php?theme=Miniland

[WvG_853]

Hi Lasse, just to tell you that I deeply admire your work. It is absolutely brilliant. I have so far done nearly exclusively Technic building, but your models and knowledge sharing are truly inspirational. Keep up the great work!

[Edwin Korstanje]

Stunning work again Lasse and the details and building techniques are amazing, only not a fan of the black windscreens on your race cars, but that's personal and not nowing how to build that better.