A recent visit to Lego Land Windsor was all it took to sew the seed in my mind that I NEEDED to get my hands on the Lego Porsche GT3 RS, whilst the model has been available since 2016, I’ve never thought it looked quite right, however to see the finished model in the flesh in the ‘hard to find’ display at the Lego shop set my mind on getting my very own.
Tempted in the store, I put my sensible hat on and decided not to buy there and then, the cool £259 price tag, eclipsed only by the Star Wars Death Star in the entire store, proved just enough to keep me at bay. The drive home however gave me ample time to decide that I really wanted the Lego GT3 RS and once home, a quick browse online was revealed a pleasant surprise in that most other retailers were offering the exact same model at discounted rates for £179, a cool £80 cheaper than the Lego store direct! A brief look around for a discount code from my favourite online retailers saved another £20, making the purchase far more justifiable. By 9pm, the order was placed.
2 days later, the package arrived. Upon opening the box it became immediately clear that this Lego model was no toy and the 16+ age brackets justified by the 570 page instruction manual and the 4 ‘build boxes’ required to complete the model.
The manual itself is worth a read alone for its background in to the car itself and the access that Porsche granted Lego to ensure the model was as close to the actual car as possible. The bodywork and appearance of the car is just a small part of what makes this arguably the best Lego model ever, from the functioning DCT gearbox and iconic flat 6 engine mounted over the rear axle.
BUILD BOX 1 – approx 4-5 hours
The largest of the build boxes, box 1 consisted of the drive train and chassis construction, the complexity of the DCT gearbox, diff and engine is very impressive, it is a shame however that the majority is lost under bodywork, however knowing what went into the build is very impressive.
BUILD BOX 2 – approx. 2-3 hours
The start of the shell structure including the roll cage and front and rear sections was less complicated than build box 1. The dash board and steering rack is fitted during this stage and also the wheel hubs front and rear.
BUILD BOX 3 – approx. 1-2 hours
Thankfully the build does seem to get easier, whether that is due to familiarity with the pieces and methods, or just simpler is hard to decide, however progress seems to speed up here as major body panels are added.
BUILD BOX 4 – approx. 1-2 hours
An extension of build box 3, the final body work pieces are added included the adjustable rear wing, bonnet roof and doors. The flexible rubber ‘arms’ are added to the front bumper, wings, windscreen surround and rear wings to bring the car to life by adding the ‘curves’ that standard lego pieces cannot adopt, albeit a very simple method, the result is superb. Finally the wheels are added and Porsche crested luggage added the front boot.
TOTAL BUILD TIME - approx 10 hours
From start to finish was approximately 10 hours and as you can see, a glass of wine of 2 was consumed during the process. I had a few minor hiccups along the way, paying strict attention to the manual is required throughout the build, it's easy to see how a little mistake early could mean serious dissassembly further down the line!
The final model is in my opinion the best Lego model available and well worth the money (I’d struggle to justify the RRP however!). It now sits proudly on display in our office!
