Review: 77256 Time Machine from Back to the Future
Posted by CapnRex101,
77256 Time Machine from Back to the Future is probably the most exciting 2026 set announced so far, hopefully fulfilling the enormous demand for a Speed Champions rendition of the famous DeLorean Time Machine. Thankfully, I think this car will prove worth waiting for!
21103 The DeLorean Time Machine was quite a decent attempt in 2013, but received a mixed reception then and has not improved with age. LEGO cars have developed a great deal since and the new DeLorean looks fantastic in official images, with parts to recreate the car from the first or second films and two minifigures.
Summary
77256 Time Machine from Back to the Future, 357 pieces.
£22.99 / $27.99 / €27.99 | 6.4p / 7.8c / 7.8c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
A long time coming, this iteration of the DeLorean Time Machine looks incredible
- Beautiful shaping and detail
- Impressive interior
- Many printed parts
- Two good minifigures
- Converts to Back to the Future Part II design
- Poor colour matching on the doors
- Slight gaps around the windscreen
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Minifigures
Doc Brown minifigures have appeared three times before, including two dressed in the same radiation suit. The new version is more detailed, however, fully laden with scientific equipment from the DeLorean's initial journey through time. The clock hanging around Doc's neck is a fun addition, even featuring the exact time from the movie: 1:21am!
A new puffer vest element was designed for DREAMZzz in 2024, perfect for Marty McFly. This minifigure takes full advantage and Marty's jacket looks predictably splendid. Much of the detail on the torso is hidden underneath, but removing the jacket reveals accurate stitching, with a few little pins and the patterned shirt as well.
Marty features a common double-sided head initially designed for Han Solo, though also used for Marty in 10300 Back to the Future Time Machine. Doc Brown's head is unique though, with cheerful and concerned expressions, plus the plasters seen after he bumped his head and had the idea for the flux capacitor in 1955.
Reference
Source - Petersen Automotive Museum, www.petersen.org
The Completed Model
While doubtless a challenging model to develop, the DMC DeLorean is famously angular and the accuracy of its shape in LEGO form is immediately apparent. The proportions look superb and the mix of smooth bodywork with intricate mechanical detail is brilliant, finding an effective balance between the front and back to match the onscreen car.
The angle of the bonnet completely derailed 21103 The DeLorean Time Machine and remains hard to recreate at this scale. However, rather than angling the bonnet, the designer has given this whole model a slight forward rake. I think this is a reasonable solution, as the car does lean forward a little in the movies, albeit not quite so much.
The front of the car looks perfect, capturing the angled corners and dark grey band around the headlights. The headlights themselves are printed on window elements to recess them slightly, which is clever, while the trans-light blue tiles and curved slopes are also printed with the silver temporal field stabilisers. I wish the black grille was printed too, but perhaps that is greedy!
A sticker suffices there, applied on a new 3x1 slope. I have no doubt these will appear in plenty of 2026 sets and beyond. Printed 2x2 round tiles are attached to the wheels and flexible cables wrap around the wheel arches, again matching the films. The 1x1 clips seem awkward, but they are necessary to hold the cables in place.
I think keeping the bonnet flat was a sensible decision, as the bodywork over the wheel arches would also need to slope downwards and there is not enough space to accommodate that. The tiles on top look great, though I do not mind the four studs grouped together, which are basically unavoidable. There are only eight exposed studs around the exterior!
However, the gaps just in front of the windscreen are annoying. It would have been possible to extend the bonnet further back, but you would lose some detail inside, so I can understand the decision. Regardless, these gaps are not really noticeable from further away, fortunately.
There is enough space for Doc and Marty inside, even though the side windows are angled in quite severely. Maybe a new windscreen piece could have been created, with a five-stud-wide roof and therefore steeper sides, but the existing component works well enough for me.
The windscreen is attached to a black 1x2 brick on the dashboard, decorated with the famous time circuits display. The time of day beside each date is not included, but realistically, there is not much room on a 1x2 brick. The neighbouring monitor for the plutonium chamber requires a sticker and this graphic also omits a dial, but it looks good.
Like the time circuits display, the flux capacitor is printed and correctly positioned between the seats. This design is too small for text to be legible, which is one way of avoiding the infamous 'SHEILD' misspelling found on the flux capacitor in 21103 The DeLorean Time Machine!
Four of the seven included stickers are applied on the doors, comprising a black trim alongside printed 1x1 tiles. Annoyingly, the grey shade on the stickers differs from the adjoining bodywork and the doors cannot open. Gull-wing doors would have been amazing, but they would certainly need specialised parts at this scale, so I understand their absence.
Several more decorated tiles and slopes complete the temporal field stabilisers, also known as flux bands, around the car. Additionally, the aforementioned cables continue to the back before vanishing into the mechanical details, passing through a couple of click hinges under the doors along the way.
Lots of little pieces form the impossibly complex mechanical systems towards the DeLorean's rear. These include a pair of binoculars as the tachyon pulse generator and various dashes of red, sand green and dark blue. A decorated 2x2 dish depicts the nuclear reactor, while the pole needed to collect energy at the first film's climax is represented by a fishing rod.
The all-important 'OUTATIME' number plate is included, printed on a 1x2 tile and matching the film exactly. The 1x8 tile underneath uses a final sticker for the DeLorean branding, while trans-red, trans-orange and trans-clear plates and slopes comprise the rear lights.
Doc Brown further modifies the DeLorean in 2015, installing a hover system and the Mr. Fusion Home Energy Reactor. Pieces are supplied to make the same changes to the LEGO model and it looks marvellous in this configuration too, with the wheels facing down as they do onscreen.
The wheels do not actually fold down, so you need to remove them and attach 1x4 plates with hooks under the wheel arches before replacing the wheels. Nice though a working mechanism could have been, I expect including one would affect their standard position, which was another issue with 21103 The DeLorean Time Machine.
Mr. Fusion is installed on top of the nuclear reactor and incorporates yet another printed piece, displaying the branding from the films. Technically, there should be a whole panel between the nuclear reactor and Mr. Fusion, but I think mounting the 2015 device on top suffices.
Moreover, the original 'OUTATIME' number plate is swapped for its 2015 equivalent, printed on an orange 1x2 tile. The barcode-like design and numbers underneath both correspond with the source material and you can swap the tiles easily, once the 2x2 plate with two studs is removed.
Overall
Like a genuine time traveller, I can already say with confidence that 77256 Time Machine from Back to the Future will be among the best small sets produced in 2026! A new minifigure-scale DeLorean has been long overdue and this design definitely lives up to expectations, accurately recreating Doc Brown's time machine with very few compromises.
There are a few problems, as the side windows should be steeper and the gaps in front of the windscreen are awkward, but these are small flaws. In fact, this set comes alarmingly close to perfection and the price of £22.99, $27.99 or €27.99 feels very reasonable, especially with two minifigures and so many printed elements included. I almost never describe a set as a 'must-have', but this is one!
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58 comments on this article
I'm looking forward to getting this set. Not a day one purchase, but one I will eventually do. I love it!.
Nice, 2 preordered already.
Calling 21103 quite a decent attempt is generous though.
Probably a must buy early next year, I am impressed with the level of detail and accuracy to the screen version in a relatively small set.
Great looking set and figs with a good probability of a discount, nice review again folks.
Wish they'd included a few more parts for the 1885/1955 version with the valve circuitboard on the bonnet, but can understand why they've not included them. Thats my only complaint other then a few more accessories, ie the Hoverboard, would have been welcome.
It's on my day one buy list.
The bands are all printed? I was already planning to buy this set, but now January can't come soon enough!
I totally understand the compromises made for the set to work, and they don't detract from the overall experience. This is easily the highlight of the entire 2026 range revealed so far.
I wish they included some different characters from the movie for once, like Jennifer, Biff, or George.
Not quite perfect, but surely as good as it gets at this scale without having to resort to specialized pieces! And all those prints......you gotta love those rare times when Lego goes (almost) all out. Looked great when it was revealed, and the reaview only confirms it. This is gonna be a 100% certain buy, and I might not even wait for a discount.....
Almost perfect set, if it wasn't for the stickers
I have the big one, but I'm still tempted to get this, lel
I'll buy 3 and try to make my own 1885 version. I have 3 of the other Delorean versions released. Annoying they could throw in a few more pieces to complete the set. Probably a speed champs limitation.
I'm really pleased by the number of printed pieces. I half expected the flux capacitor to be a sticker on this one, so I'm really happy it's not! I'm really glad I didn't buy either of the previous cars, because this version of the DeLorean time machine is perfect! It's minifig scale and much more affordable than the last version.
Thank you for the review!
Finally, after all those years, I will be able to recreate the "Doctor. Doctor. Doctor." scene from Lego Dimensions with the 21108 Ecto-1 (Dr. Venkman) and the 21304 TARDIS (Doctor Who) !
I’m really annoyed they didn’t include any grammatical errors. How dare they make an iconic set from a beloved IP and spell everything correctly?
Despite any inaccuracies and challenges, I do think this is an almost perfect Lego set: an extremely iconic vehicle that fits both characters and is priced rather well, available for anyone interested.
The main promotional image made the windscreen element look a bit too small and rounded for the Delorean, but it looks better from other angles. I'm rarely a day 1 purchase guy, or even a full price guy, but I think this one might be a day 1 purchase for me. Absolutely need it.
All I can say is "Great Scott!"...especially when i saw the wheels which can flip to hover. Great start to 2026 already and it hasn't even begun yet! XD Also I wonder id they'll make a set of Doc's time travelling train (from the 3rd movie)? It's begging to be made!!!
Great set, not normally into Speed Champions but as an 80s kid this is a must buy. Only thing keeping it from being perfect is the lack of parts to make the BTTF III version.
Also, not sure how to put this, but does anyone else find a review for something that won't be available to the public for nearly 6 weeks kinda strange? No shade meant to the site or the reviewer, it's all sponsed reviews. More a comment about the state of TLGs marketing. Doesn't apply to this set, but something I was on the fence if I'd be more likely to forget about it.
Seeing how BTTF is my favorite movie series of all time, I'll be buying three so I can have versions from each movie. It's a fantastic model given the limits of the bricks!
This is going to sell like crazy. 12 years later and £12 cheaper than the original CUUSOO set, at about the same scale.
It would be useful to have a photo of the stickers in any review set, so we can see instantly how much of the decoration is down to stickers.
Very well done, especially considering the size. Justifies a full price purchase rather than waiting for £15 on Amazon.
Not worth compromising any future GWP by pre-ordering of course!
Under Cons, it really should include “I have to buy nine copies of this thing”. Or maybe eleven copies. Or thirteen.
The amount of printed parts in this set is really quite exciting. I’d have bet some money that there would be at minimum 10 stickers, but I am pleased that there are less. The amount of new parts in this set is pretty outstanding as well. The scale seems to fit nearly perfectly. For me, there is only one major issue: sticker matching. Grey parts have suffered from this in recent years, and there are really no excuses. Lego used to match very well… and now they have suddenly gotten terrible? If you’re going to use stickers, use them well. Regardless, still probably a day 1 purchase, at least definitely that month. Wonderful set!
@MLF said:
"Also, not sure how to put this, but does anyone else find a review for something that won't be available to the public for nearly 6 weeks kinda strange? No shade meant to the site or the reviewer, it's all sponsed reviews. More a comment about the state of TLGs marketing. Doesn't apply to this set, but something I was on the fence if I'd be more likely to forget about it."
Yup, my thoughts too. I get why they want to have the reviews out before the release to create some hype, but this far in advance? I'd think they want people to spend their money now on stuff that's already available (even more so with Sinterklaas and Christmas coming up), and then say 2nd half of December get those reviews for upcoming sets out.....but hey, I guess someone studied marketing for this!
Jack Sparrow's Firespray-class Time Machine from Back to the Future
@CCC said:
"This is going to sell like crazy. 12 years later and £12 cheaper than the original CUUSOO set, at about the same scale.
It would be useful to have a photo of the stickers in any review set, so we can see instantly how much of the decoration is down to stickers."
I’d normally agree, and I do think there should be one, (Capn, still a great review) but I think there are 7 stickers. 2 for each door (the second of which probably should have been printed, they’ve printed that piece other times), 1 for the DMC on the front, 1 for the DeLorean logo, and then 2 for the control panels.
@GrizBe said:
"Wish they'd included a few more parts for the 1885/1955 version with the valve circuitboard on the bonnet, but can understand why they've not included them. Thats my only complaint other then a few more accessories, ie the Hoverboard, would have been welcome.
It's on my day one buy list. "
I'm sure they'll be plenty of BTTF3 mods online when it's released (if not already). An excuse to buy 3 I guess...
@classicstylecastle said:
"I'm sure they'll be plenty of BTTF3 mods online when it's released (if not already). An excuse to buy 3 I guess..."
Wouldn't surprise me in the slightest. Just need to get the red wheels, and luckily those exposed studs on the bonnet make a good attachment point without having to do any heavy redesign.
The car looks great and I like the price so it's a definite buy.
But for me, gull wing doors was the most important part...
The Indiana Jones theme started playing in my head when I saw this!
99 % sure 3 sets. Prints <3
No Einstein? He was the first time traveler.
the Han Solo faceprint is the new smiling Spider-Man faceprint (6192037) which is the new Jyn Erso faceprint (6163442) which was already the new AngryClone faceprint
IT'S EVERYWHERE
I like it! Cool movie, cool car. I might need to buy two (that doesn't happen very often) so I can cobble together a plain DeLorean besides this one.
I pre-ordered as soon as I saw it revealed on here and looks fantastic, two excellent minifigures and mostly printed pieces is a great decision by LEGO and a win for consumers. Can't wait to display it next to my 10300 !
Preordered one of these, and will likely buy more. Especially if they ever go on sale.
What's the best source for 1955 wheels to use for BttF Part III?
Excellent.
Oh a tachyon pulse generator! That's what that is. It's not binoculars.
Will it baldy go where no Time Machine has gone before?
@Klontjes said:
"I like it! Cool movie, cool car. I might need to buy two (that doesn't happen very often) so I can cobble together a plain DeLorean besides this one. "
With the windscreen, wheels, and parts, it will make a great 6 wide plain DeLorean.
@MLF said:
"Great set, not normally into Speed Champions but as an 80s kid this is a must buy. Only thing keeping it from being perfect is the lack of parts to make the BTTF III version.
Also, not sure how to put this, but does anyone else find a review for something that won't be available to the public for nearly 6 weeks kinda strange? No shade meant to the site or the reviewer, it's all sponsed reviews. More a comment about the state of TLGs marketing. Doesn't apply to this set, but something I was on the fence if I'd be more likely to forget about it."
You make a fair point and some of the review embargo dates for January sets are earlier than usual this year, but necessarily so because there are expected to be over 100 sets released on January 1st and we will be reviewing a lot of them. It is useful to get started early.
This is another in a string of smaller IP-licensed sets where Lego is just killing it - great looking set, high value for the money, first rate in pretty much every way.
Great review, Capn! I am so excited for this set. Definitely a must-have, as you said.
love this. I do wish they had included extra parts to make the BTTF3 version, but obviously they didn't have the budget
All the Janurary Speed Champions sets are day one pick ups for me. I said this last year, they keep getting better every year.
Minor note, but this doesn't seem to have the DeLorean licensing, so there's a limit to how accurate it could really be.
(And the license would probably add to the cost, so I'm not complaining or anything. I just think it's interesting how separate licenses seem to work.)
Part of what made the Delorean great and a major reason it was used for the Time Machine had to do with the gull-wing doors. It's a shame they did not look for a solution for that construction. I'll be either working on my own or a Rebrickable solution.
@eiffel006 said:
"I'm looking forward to getting this set. Not a day one purchase, but one I will eventually do. I love it!."
Why not DAY 1?
Love it!! Just need a Modular clock tower now!
There are some new 1x2 wedge tiles revealed in the new LEGO branded F1 set that in light grey could have filled in the gap under the windscreen. Unfortunate.
Model is great though!
I insist: why did they stop making transparent stickers? On doors, considering the color mismatch, it would be a much better solution.
@classicstylecastle said:
" @GrizBe said:
"Wish they'd included a few more parts for the 1885/1955 version with the valve circuitboard on the bonnet, but can understand why they've not included them. Thats my only complaint other then a few more accessories, ie the Hoverboard, would have been welcome.
It's on my day one buy list. "
I'm sure they'll be plenty of BTTF3 mods online when it's released (if not already). An excuse to buy 3 I guess...
"
1. Plutonium reactor
2. Lightning rod
3. Flying
4. 50’s whitewalls
5. Horse-drawn
6. Train wheels
I'm still shocked by the fact that this is less than $30 USD in the year 2026. It's a nice shock, though!
@Wallace_Brick_Designs said:
" @CCC said:
"This is going to sell like crazy. 12 years later and £12 cheaper than the original CUUSOO set, at about the same scale.
It would be useful to have a photo of the stickers in any review set, so we can see instantly how much of the decoration is down to stickers."
I’d normally agree, and I do think there should be one, (Capn, still a great review) but I think there are 7 stickers. 2 for each door (the second of which probably should have been printed, they’ve printed that piece other times), 1 for the DMC on the front, 1 for the DeLorean logo, and then 2 for the control panels."
Yes, you can look carefully at each picture and read the full description to work it out. But seeing the sticker sheet does this in an instant.
@FARLANDER said:
"I insist: why did they stop making transparent stickers? On doors, considering the color mismatch, it would be a much better solution."
Possibly finger prints under the sticker, but more likely cost.
The grey matching is not great, but masking tape and a sharpie is a good option for straight black lines.
This only belongs in the Speed Champions theme when the time circuits are turned off, in which case (according to Wikipedia) the Delorean can hit 130MPH. If the time circuits are on, it has a maximum speed of 88MPH. Of course, it could technically arrive at its destination before it even leaves, which would make it the fastest Speed Champions vehicle ever…
Delorean for sale: only driven from time to time.
I can't wait to get my hands on my copy!
I was just going to get the minifigures on the secondary market, but they would probably cost (combined) as much as the whole set, so I might as well buy the set.
Sold! (Dagnamit!)
The source pics side proportions give more to the door section with a more stretched front.
But it’s Lego.
I’m just looking forward to what people can achieve with gull wing doors and the sought custom versions.
I do go on but Marty McFly gets a lovely puffy ‘life preserver’ but Iron Man and war machine don’t get chest armour. Just saying but please.
The fact that this and the 77258 F1 Academy has the same RRP is beyond weird. It will be interesting to see how other retailers set their prices.