Building my Mazda MX-5 from Lego

[harveyword]

I like to build the cars I've owned out of Lego, and at the moment I own a Mazda MX-5 or Mazda Miata if you happen to be that way inclined. In particular I own a Soul Red Fourth Gen (ND) example.

Here is said car, with the top up

or top down

It's tiny, and it's little bit curvy, which are things that are not really good for making it adaptable to Lego, with it's traditionally blocky building blocks, and small is difficult if you want to build in MiniFig scale, which I do because I was my minifig in it

But a trip around the internet and I managed to find someone who had done a replica and written some instructions, armed with those, and a list of parts which was about 80% of bits I own and 20% of things I need to buy off Bricklink and it was time to start building

All the pieces needed after a delivery some guy in Thailand and a lady in NSW (see that grey axel piece at the front, that will be a problem later)

The start of the process with cars is a solid base, and this is it

The building techniques in these instructions are odd to say the least, and certinaly not built for strength, but it's a impressive way to get the sometimes weird angles of the MX-5

This main part of the bonnet is a classic case of this, this is held onto the car using a couple of pieces that I know as arms from Star Wars battle droids. But it does allow for the nice slope to the bonnet. The two 'nipples' at the top will eventually hold on the windscreen which is made with Minifig hands and a rubber hose.

Here's the rear of the car, look at those collections of angles, all of this is built and all sorts of angles, really I don't understand how you think of doing these things.

and yes those angles are about right too....

There was of course some things I needed to fix in the instrcutions, The seatbacks weren't high enough, and even after the fix still probs aren't, but they are better. And weirdly the wheels were done with the wrong connecters with was frustrating as I had to take it completely apart to get to those parts, and of course the swap of the steering wheels and dash for Right Hand Drive.

But then it was finished and I could put in the mini fig versions of myself and my wife and yeah it's a tight fit, but so is the car itself.

Comments

[jacobtothe]

Aside from the windshield being too tall, it's not a bad reproduction of the silhouette. LEGO really should make an official Miata set for their "Speed Champions" product line. It's such an iconic roadster.

[harveyword]

Agreed - I'm thinking on cutting the rods to make the windscreen shorter, but I don't want to break lego pieces, may need to look for so other piece of plastic.

[jacobtothe]

No, one does not cut LEGO. I'm not sure what assembly to try instead though.