Review Review: 60057 Camper Van

[jfbat]

on sale at £12.99 in the UK as opposed to last years which were all at £17.99 and continue to be.

Weird! Over here the only listed price that I can find is at bol.com, at € 24,99. However, I bought 60043 for 20,99 at Intertoys, which is the same price they charged for similar sized sets this year. So I think Bol is just a bit cautious in putting up the prices (they don't stock them yet) and in the end the price will end up at the 20-21 mark over here. With a bit of patience, however, Kruidvat (a drugstore that also sells a small selection of lego sets) will have them on discount in spring (I hope), which usually means around 14-15 euro's for these sets. Got quite a few of the "great vehicles" at that price in the last 2 years...

edit: ah, that makes more sense, so it was a wrong price after all!

Edited December 27, 2013 by jfbat

[Bricked]

Great review rufus, I particularly like the storage compartments on top, one of them seems just right for a bed. I agree with the blandness of the rear end, a window or a ladder would do. The play features of this is up with that of 2009's though!

[Rick]

Thanks for the in-depth review Rufus. I really like the exterior of the camper. Despite the bland back, they really managed to improve on the previous version. And although the interior is a lot better than its predecessor, it's still a little sparse though. I had hoped they had a try at a little kitchen and maybe a combined seating/sleeping area. I have to admit that I have no idea how that could be achieved though.

[autorazr]

good review, I'll probably pick one up now

[Commander Turtle]

I was surprised reading this because you reached further than usual: you commented on the trends in Lego design. I think it's really interesting to see Lego going for a muted colour palette with a touch of extra realism, and I appreciate that you touched on this trend in the review. I think I like it, though I am still not sold on the bonnet piece that can only be used in that exact scenario.

Other thoughts: totally missed opportunity to introduce another civilian female torso. I would have liked to have seen a cute window (with glass) offset at the rear, to break up that godawful chunky backside.

Anyway, I typically only get 1 or 2 vehicles a year, and I don't think the camper makes the cut. It's not too bad though, maybe it'd be #3 or #4 ;)

[jonwil]

Thanks for the review. Not really all that good as a parts pack for me so I will probably skip this one :)

[Vasko]

Amazing review, keep up the good work!

[TheLegoDr]

Thanks for the review. I immediately wanted this set when I first saw it, but after seeing the review and the comparison to the older camper, I will probably pass on this. I much prefer this one to the 2009 version, but I probably don't need two campers. If I didn't have the previous version I would buy this instantly.

I also like the car/caravan too. It's funny, I buy all of these campers, yet I've never been camping myself .

[Hey Joe]

Thanks for the great review! Nice set, dunno if I need another camper though.

Joe

[jfbat]

I was so not going to buy this set this year, or only if it got a considerable discount on it.

So, today I bought it.

Thing is, this weekend I began thinking about getting 31025 Mountain Hut and that started a train of thoughts, resulting in the idea to have a little camping site at the water, with 5766 Log Cabin, 5770 Lighthouse and 4435 Car and caravan. And that required the acquisition of this here vehicle.

Did mod it almost immediately though: added a "ladder" to the back to break the great wall of white (and give the guys a chance to get to the canoo and the storage compartments on the top) and also a bumper to break the great wall of bley.

[ETAV8R]

Thank you for the review and the comparison with the 2009 model. I too will most likely get this version as well.

[camberry234]

Great review Rufus! I have the 2009 camper, it's a shame that the new one doesn't have the ladder to allow access to the roof

[Sato]

60057 has no latching mechanism at all, but it isn't necessary: the stiffness of the plate hinges means the door stays in position.

I received and build this set today, But my plate hinges aren't stiff at all. They're comparable to the brick hinge version in looseness.

Which is odd, Because the plate hinges in all other 2014 sets that I have bought are all as stiff as they should be.

I'll be adding these to my short list of recent broken/heavily damaged/dis-functional parts to be send off to Lego soon.

---

I did figure out a way to lower the front mudguards using only the parts in the set. But its not really good looking as it uses a light gray 2x6 plate, Makes the chassis weaker and makes the front bumper look like its way too high. (Which I realized when I read your comment on that in the review.)

[Mofo Jones]

My son got this for Christmas and we put it together tonight. I think it is a great set - I like the color scheme, I like the canoe/kayak, and I like the details such as the opening side, the wing mirrors and the storage compartments. I'd agree that it could use a ladder and an actual rear window. However, the build has made my 5 year old very happy!

[alexb420]

I think the car and caravan is my favorite... Still, the new set looks very nice. I might have to pick one up.

[Bornin1980something]

I think the car and caravan is my favorite... Still, the new set looks very nice. I might have to pick one up.

I would say pick one up as soon as possible, as this is not a new set any more! Most Lego sets have a very short shelf life (possibly due to the brick offering infinite redesign possibilities!), and I believe this set has already disappeared from at least one German catalogue. A shame, as this is an exceptional set, still my favourite city vehicle from last year.

[This set] makes up for the loss of Classic Town cuteness with a huge dose of realism: 60057 looks like a LEGO version of a real camper. Whether this is the right direction to take is up for debate; however, if this is the designer's intent, I would say it has been a success.

I believe this is the right approach for all present-day themed Lego sets. Realism in Lego was probably the aim of all the best classic town sets. Particularly among the vehicles, their 'cuteness' was rooted in recapturing the real-life look of that era. Modern Lego sets are first and foremost for kids born after 2000.

Rather surprisingly, in most cases the use of less specialised elements seems to help the realism of a Lego model, and many Lego models now look more realistic than the Playmobile equivalent. In this case, however, the new bonnet piece really enhances the modern look, taking Lego into the future much better than Town Jr's printed grills ever did! It also offered an unexpected bonus in in this set; there is so much empty space below the bonnet, I found it possible to convert front-end to allow piece to slide out, and add a rather detailed engine.

Even though there is no longer any latch, the fit is so snug that the piece rarely falls out (unless the vehicle is dropped!).

As for the models other features, I think the single opening side panel is far better than the 2009 sets foldout back. Gaining full interior access without parting the roof (or leaving utensils hanging over the ground) allows for full playability without sacrificing realism. It is also a very simple 'classic town' type solution.The uneven height of the mudguards might actually add to the realistic impression. This set seems to represent a low built specialist body attached to a standard van front-end. This really can look a little strange. As for the absence of a ladder, it seems that Lego were trying to go for the sleek modern motorhome type look here. The boat was then added (somewhat unrealistically) to enhance playability. Modern motorhomes seem to go for external ladders less than they used to, and I think tourists who carry loads on the roof would carry folding or roll out ladders inside. Personally, I usually display mine without the boat!

On another subject: is something wrong at the Reviewer's Academy? Myself and two others have yet to receive replies to our applications to join.

[DanFraser]

Great review Rufus! I have the 2009 camper, it's a shame that the new one doesn't have the ladder to allow access to the roof

This bugged me like crazy. LDD (and then bricklink) to the rescue!

[eurotrash]

It's a good set and it definitely needed the ladder to make the rear more interesting, but I think the proportions were improved by making it seven-wide and losing the rear wheel arches.

Here's a link to the thread.

http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=105061

[MGCJerry]

Great review Rufus. I just got this set (and 4 others) last night, and I definitely agree about 'problems'. The rear is the most bland and I think ti really detracts from the overall model. I will mod my camper at a later date to add something to the rear to make it better. I like eurotrash's approach to the rear of the model as well as Bornin's engine access. I may also move the rear lights one block lower too.

Edit

I modified my camper last night with purely extra parts, and parts left from "executive build decisions" (deviate from instructions) from the Arctic sets. I added an engine, and put a small ladder on the rear of the camper. It looks much better at this point. My other main collection is at the new house already. I will probably mess with it again after I move.

Edited August 9, 2015 by MGCJerry