Review: 71763 Lloyd's Race Car EVO
Posted by CapnRex101,
Dragons and mechs are consistently associated with NINJAGO, although futuristic vehicles are also quite common. 71763 Lloyd's Race Car EVO represents this subject effectively, featuring the conventional broad tyres, aerodynamic shaping and decorative blades.
Despite sharing the same age recommendation as both 71760 Jay's Thunder Dragon EVO and 71762 Kai's Fire Dragon EVO, this model more closely resembles standard sets. In fact, the green and pearl gold colour combination seems very reminiscent of 70641 Ninja Nightcrawler, potentially improving upon the earlier vehicle.
Summary
71763 Lloyd's Race Car EVO, 279 pieces.
£24.99 / $34.99 / €29.99 | 9.0p/12.5c/10.7c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
An enjoyable, but not outstanding, addition to the NINJAGO Core range.
- Perfect colour scheme
- Attractive bodywork
- Bland functions
- Relatively expensive
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Minifigures
Lloyd Garmadon invariably features green attire, although combining four different shades of green on a single minifigure is unusual! The combination of green, dark green and lime green across the torso looks reasonable to me, although I dislike the olive green legs which appear decidedly drab alongside the colourful torso and head wrap.
That abrupt contrast seems particularly apparent when viewing the minifigure from behind. The dragon design looks splendid though and continues the scaly details from the front, interrupted only by a Ninjargon emblem that reads 'ninja'. Removing the head wrap reveals Lloyd's double-sided face, with striking green eyes and two suitable facial expressions, as always.
An alternative hair piece is included as well, returning from The Island subtheme released last year and featuring lovely texture. Lloyd carries a pearl silver wrench and his lime green katana. The colour matching between Lloyd's robe and this weapon is strange, but seems effective and the pearl dark grey sheath secured on his back is a welcome addition too.
Snake-themed villains appear consistently throughout NINJAGO and the Snake Warriors are undoubtedly derivative of earlier characters. Nevertheless, I like the Cobra Mechanic, whose dual-moulded head combines orange and pearl dark grey shades to great effect. This element was originally developed for the Pyro Vipers, but appears similarly impressive here.
The accompanying Python Dynamite features the same head, although with inverted colours. Satisfying texture remains though and I love the orange eyes. Furthermore, the torso displays superb details, sharing metallic silver highlights and intricate snake decoration with the Cobra Mechanic. These minifigures are equipped with mechanical arms, a bundle of dynamite and a stud shooter.
The Completed Model
Lloyd's racing car balances aerodynamic styling and raw power more successfully than many equivalent vehicles, featuring curved bodywork throughout this whole model. The wheels and rear wing appear disproportionately large, although such excesses are quite appropriate here and certainly differentiate this vehicle from others released recently within NINJAGO.
The car measures 19cm in length, so looks absolutely enormous beside minifigures. However, this is noticeably smaller than Lloyd's closest comparable car, 70641 Ninja Nightcrawler, or the recent 71737 X-1 Ninja Charger. Complex functions are therefore excluded, but I think focusing upon the appearance of this vehicle instead was sensible.
EVO sets are intended for development, beginning with relatively simple dragons, mechs and cars before additional details are added. The packaging displays three versions of this model, starting with the basic design which appears more suitable for off-roading than its successors. That distinctive character is appealing, but I dislike the truncated nose.
Fortunately, the second stage involves attaching the nose, alongside the cockpit canopy, lime green details and decorative blades. Those blades are surprisingly important because I was expecting the vehicle to appear unbalanced without its rear wing, but it actually looks good. Nevertheless, the final rendition is undoubtedly my favourite, as anticipated.
The stud shooters and air scoop are only fitted when the model reaches its third stage. These stud shooters are integrated perfectly and I like the neighbouring stickers, which feature some mechanical detail. The exposed wheels look superb too, but the pronounced central section of the nose seems odd and there is an unsightly light bluish grey band visible behind the nose.
The bodywork around the cockpit is more appealing, with sweeping curves complemented by pearl gold katana. The windscreen also looks marvellous and I find the gap behind the driver surprisingly effective, since I can envisage Lloyd needing to jump quickly from the vehicle in combat. Completely enclosing the cockpit would hinder such surprise attacks!
Of course, you can easily remove the canopy to place a minifigure inside. The interior is fairly spacious, but only accommodates one driver. That could easily be modified though. Moreover, the engine features wonderful detail, nestled between two decorative blades which return from Seabound. This model also integrates the new armour component, mounted on either flank.
An enormous wing attaches behind the engine, making further use of those pearl gold blades. Removing these elements narrows the wing for slightly improved realism, but I like its present shape. The printed Adaptability banner is welcome too, especially because I can envisage the temple design proving fairly useful elsewhere.
By comparison with Lloyd's vehicle, the Snake Warriors' buggy seems rather underwhelming! However, the addition of a second car is ideal for play and this model includes adequate detail, considering its small size. The orange and teal colour scheme looks reasonable and the control console is also welcome, even though its location seems strange.
Overall
Futuristic cars are never among my favourite NINJAGO sets, but 71763 Lloyd's Race Car EVO looks quite attractive. The proportions and aerodynamic shaping are excellent, while the colour scheme of green, lime green and pearl gold is visually striking. Additionally, this vehicle is more affordable than many comparable NINJAGO cars, costing £24.99, $29.99 or €29.99. Even so, I consider that quite expensive.
The reduced scale and price restrict the functionality though, creating a model which arguably appears larger than really necessary. However, this racing car looks impressive and including the Snake Warriors' buggy benefits play. Despite these qualities, I think futuristic vehicles like this example remain among the weaker NINJAGO sets.
51 likes
14 comments on this article
Cool car, but I already have too many Lloyds. Plus, it will cost R$299,99, which isn't a good price.
"L. Loyd. That's your name. I know because I named you." -G
What does the acronym EVO stand for?
@woosterlegos said:
"What does the acronym EVO stand for?"
Evolution
Nice review! I think I'll probably pass on this set, to be honest. It doesn't look terrible but it also doesn't excite me much, and it really doesn't offer much in the way of functionality compared to the older Ninja Nightcrawler and its clever pop-up, wheel-activated six-shooters.
I would be curious to see how this set looks next to the larger, more complex Jay and Nya race car set from the same wave.
I already collected most vehicles from Nexo , so those Ninjago vehicles don't really attract me.
70355: Aaron's Rock Climber in particular was a very big "car" , and 70315: Clay's Rumble Blade had excellent play features.
Still, I think this a standalone car , looks like an okay playset, and having 2 of those snakes is nice.
As a 2022 car set I'd probably prefer 31127: Street Car , but even then the wheels are a bit too big on that one.
@lynels said:
"Cool car, but I already have too many Lloyds. Plus, it will cost R$299,99, which isn't a good price."
What currency is that? Here in the U.S. it’ll be like $30 lmao.
@Emperor_D said:
" @lynels said:
"Cool car, but I already have too many Lloyds. Plus, it will cost R$299,99, which isn't a good price."
What currency is that? Here in the U.S. it’ll be like $30 lmao."
Brazilian real. Add another 9 to the end of any USD price and you'll have our local prices.
I really like the design of the car. I'll probably get this because I never got the Ninja Nightcrawler, which I wanted back when it came out.
I thought this was a Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles set at first glance
I do like this and the other EVO car, but I’ll probably sit it out. The dojo, big dragon, and combo mech are the real standouts this wave.
That Buggy <3
@lynels said:
" @Emperor_D said:
" @lynels said:
"Cool car, but I already have too many Lloyds. Plus, it will cost R$299,99, which isn't a good price."
What currency is that? Here in the U.S. it’ll be like $30 lmao."
Brazilian real. Add another 9 to the end of any USD price and you'll have our local prices."
What's that in beer money? During the 2014 World Cup, beer was readily available for the Real equivalent of $1 or less. Is that still a thing?
@StyleCounselor said:
" @lynels said:
" @Emperor_D said:
" @lynels said:
"Cool car, but I already have too many Lloyds. Plus, it will cost R$299,99, which isn't a good price."
What currency is that? Here in the U.S. it’ll be like $30 lmao."
Brazilian real. Add another 9 to the end of any USD price and you'll have our local prices."
What's that in beer money? During the 2014 World Cup, beer was readily available for the Real equivalent of $1 or less. Is that still a thing?"
Back in 2014 during the World Cup, the US dollar exchange in Brazil was US$1 = R$2.20. A beer can was around R$1.00 back then, which was roughly US$0.40.
Nowadays the exchange is US$1 = R$5.30. Our currency suffered a severe devaluation the last four years due to a lot of factors I don't want to talk about. A beer can costs around R$2.50 now, which is roughly US$0.45. For someone in the US seems like nothing changed but it is not the case here.