Review: Lightailing LED light kit for Mini Cooper
Posted by Huw,
Lightailing is a British company that sells LED lighting kits and accessories for LEGO models.
Each kit is custom-designed for the model in question and contains everything needed to illuminate it: the LED lights, wiring loom and battery box.
The company recently offered to send me a sample kit to review so I opted for the one for 10242 MINI Cooper MK VII which is one of the least expensive offerings and for a model that I still have on display.
To be honest I was dreading having to fit it: I thought it would require a lot of disassembly of the model and be very fiddly. Thankfully I was wrong on both counts.
Package contents
It's packed in a small high quality box.
Inside, two instruction manuals, one generic and one specific for the model in question and two antistatic bags containing the electronics: a battery box in one and the wiring loom and LEDs in the other.
The battery box accepts three AAA batteries to provide 4.5v to its female USB connector.
It took some time to unravel the wires, although it was easy enough with patience. You can see that the LEDs come pre-mounted in LEGO, or LEGO-compatible, parts, so all the fiddly work has been done. All that's needed during installation is to replace the appropriate parts of the model with those in the kit.
Installation
Installation instructions consist of a small book containing photos of every step of the process.
They show exactly what parts to remove, to replace, and how to route the wires, and I had no problem following them.
No tools are needed although a pair of tweezers is handy for routing the extremely thin cables.
I didn't take many photos during installation because I didn't want to keep moving the model downstairs to my photographic studio, to avoid tangling the wires again. So, here's a couple of smartphone camera shots.
Here, the front end has been removed and the lights and indicators have been replaced by those in the kit.
Once installation is complete the wires can be tucked away under the chassis. I added a couple of 2x8 plates to keep them in place.
Overall, I think it took me about half an hour.
Without looking very closely you would not know that the lights have been fitted. You can just about see the wires behind the lower lights.
It's the same at the back. The wires do not impede access to the boot. In fact they are so thin that they fit in the gap between bricks and can be routed between plates on top of each other without having much effect.
You can see here how the 1x2 grey plates behind the lights have a tiny hole drilled on the side to route the wires. That should give some indication of how thin they are!
Once done, you're left with a handful of parts that have been replaced by those in the kit.
The illuminated model
This kit provides six lights for the front, a strip of LEDs for the interior, and six lights at the back.
Of course on a real vehicle they wouldn't all be illuminated at once but nevertheless it looks great.
Verdict
I'm very impressed with the packaging, the quality of the kit and the installation instructions. Purists may be a little upset that some of the replacement parts are not actual LEGO parts but then neither are the lights and cables so it didn't bother me.
The illuminated model looks fantastic and it's great that it's powered via a USB connector which means you could connect it to, say, your PC at work and display the model on your desk always lit-up.
This particular kit costs £25.56 or $32.99 with free worldwide delivery which I think is pretty good value. No doubt the individual components can be purchased separately for less but then you'd be left with a lot of hard work: soldering, drilling, cutting wires to length and so on, which has been done for you already in the kit.
Lighting models is an area that LEGO woefully neglects so if you're looking for a third party solution to illuminate a special model, take a look at the 189 kits that Lightailing has to offer for vehicles, buildings, Technic models and so on. You're bound to find one, and if not, you'll find individual lighting accessories there, too. You can also view plenty of photos of lit-up models on the company's Instagram, @lightailingco.
The kit was supplied by the manufacturer for the purposes of this review, which is an expression of my own opinions. Brickset will not receive a commission on any orders placed via the links in the article.
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26 comments on this article
Damn you Huw! :-P As soon as I read this I instantly figured they'd have one for the Ghostbusters HQ and they do. Now I'm eyeing it and the one for Ecto-1.
I find some of the kits odd choices, for example Wall•E but others like the Carousel and Ferris wheel would probably really enhance the set assuming they have no trouble with a motor being in use.
In your verdict section you say the kit you reviewed costs £25.56 or £32.99, I think the latter is meant to be USD?
Very, VERY tempted to get the ones for WALL-E and the Volkswagen Beetle.
Wow. I'm sincerely impressed by the quality and final result. I have already done such a custom work on some of my sets (first of all with 10188 Death Star) but have to objectively say that it's not so good of course. When I see those tiny holes in 1x2 plates I know specific tools are necessary. Very tempted by this product, as I have been with the display cases reviewed a few days ago. Thanks for all this, I am going straight to check what could come improve my display shelves!
Where did the battery box go?
^ Wherever you want to put it, outside of the model.
Is that car named “Mimi Cooper” in UK or is it a typo?
Lightailing is an odd named for a company...… basically implies the lights are ailing, ie weak, sickly, in poor condition.
Looks lika a 1 to 1 copy of Ali Express : https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/LED-light-up-kit-for-lego-10242-and-lepin-21002-technic-series-MINI-Cooper-Model-Building/32764521744.html?spm=a2g0z.search0104.8.4.68b45fe14tuPkh&priceBeautifyAB=0
@Bricklunch - Light + Retailing?
^ Probably Light + Detailing
Has anyone had experience with LightMyBricks? I'm curious how Lightailing's hardware/installation compare with LMB's (in general...but LMB's Mini Cooper is linked below).
https://www.lightmybricks.com/collections/vehicles-cars-trucks/products/mini-cooper-10242-lego-light-kit
@Sinister Stairs, the two kits appear very similar, although the LMB's kit doesn't seem to include interior lighting, and also appears to be considerably more expensive... Thanks Huw for providing us w/this article as lighting for my city and models has been something I've been interested in for a long time, yet reluctant to take the plunge due to novice (non-existent) level micro electrician skills and the foreboding cost involved. If you could provide us w/a comparitive review of similar lighting kits/brands I for one would be very happy :) Thanks again for the excellent work on the best LEGO fan website ever!
Thanks for bringing these to my attention.
Seriously considering the Winter Toy shop kit and some street lights as they will really make the set pop this Christmas.
@Peter1975 , they may well be the same product. The kits are made in China and the site I linked to is the distributor for EU, US etc.
@Peter1975 - Looks like the Ali Express product doesn't include the battery box (keep scrolling down)
Copycat!!! A Hong Kong seller (Brick Booster) design this light kit in 2015.
@TheOriginalSimonB & @Classicsmiley: Both of those make sense. Would suspect Light and Detailing is the most likely thinking behind it. To my mind it is now stuck as Light & Ailing.
I ordered some of the LED lightsabres from them, they were free and only had to pay postage. Playing the waiting game to see if they turn up from China.
Wow, lighting really brings models to life when they’re on static display! Some of them even blink. Maybe you could use something like https://www.ikea.com/se/sv/catalog/products/00291891 to power many models from a single wall power outlet?
Does anybody know for how long these lamps last, can they endure being on for many hours daily?
Yes you could but you'd need USB extension cables.
I ordered the set for the Dectective's Office. Gonna see how it looks and get a few more for the modular buildings if it looks good. Will make them look nice at Christmas.
USB power (from a PC) is 5V, just 0,5V over the 4,5V from the battery, I presume this is no issue, it just might make the LEDs lifetime a bit shorter?
Funny, I never saw a review for such sets here. And a few days ago I ordered a lighting set for my T1 Bus and it is incredibly nice looking! And now a review here ... coincidence!? :D
Anyway, the T1 set is georgeous! And I am thinking about equipping my Mini and Beetle as well. Thanks for the review!
Anyone who has this for the Modulars, what was that install like?
Just ordered lights for the DO. To my surprise these will be send from China and not from London. I guess I could better order it directly from Ali. A lot cheaper!
And to think that I tried to make other models light up with one Power Functions light, when other people are custom making their own!