Set Review ➟ LEGO® 40532 Vintage Taxi GWP
- Gift With Purchase (GWP) January 28 - February 13, 2022
- Qualifying purchase of $200 / €200 / £200 across all themes
- Second run planned in March/April tied to specific sets
- 163 pieces, 1 minifigure
We’ve seen some great GWP sets in recent times (personally, I’m a fan of the Star Wars vignettes, but Amelia Earhart’s plane also comes to mind) and this model continues that strong trend. With an economic use of parts, LEGO have produced a sleek and stylish Vintage Taxi in a catching two-tone colour scheme.
Box & Contents
The box art is in the 18+ style, showing off the vehicle, minifigure, and street side-build. The reverse of the box shows the same, but with the figure inside the car. Inside we have 3 bags, an unbagged (and in my case slightly battered) instruction booklet, and the black vehicle chassis.
In terms of useful parts, the set contains two 2L bars (78258) in dark bluish grey (one used in the build and one spare), two black 1x3 inverted arches (70681), and six 1x1-1x2 down brackets (79389) which are new here in black.
Build Process
The minifigure and street side-build are assembled first, and both raise a few questions. The minifig features a black beret and sideburns, and appears to be a criminal. Beyond his shifty appearance he also carries a donut in a briefcase (with a second donut included as a spare). Remember the 10278 modular police station with its pastry thief? I strongly suspect this vagabond is receiving those hot donuts to sell on the black market, and that the taxi is merely a front to elude authorities. Something here is definitely not all above board.
The street side-build is a nice inclusion, featuring a street lamp (oddly colour-coordinated with the taxi) and a garbage can. The latter isn’t empty, and contains a suspicious 1x1 round ‘chocolate swirl’ (plus a second as spare). No animals are included, so I’m not sure who is responsible for leaving this particular item in the trash. I mean, there’s only the one figure here so… ew, gross! Please tell me he didn’t do that!
Moving on to the taxi itself, the sturdy chassis is built up, unusually plating over the recess in the chassis piece, before building up the side walls and including - to my delight - an engine piece (in light bluish grey) behind the sloped front grille (in pearl dark grey). The red modified 2x2 plate at the rear becomes interior lining for the luggage space, though the green 1x2 plate at the front seems out of place. The build is fairly straightforward, with slopes and brackets used very effectively to produce the sleek curved lines over the front and rear fenders. The roof and wheels are added last to finish off a quite striking little vehicle build.
Features & Functions
The taxi will comfortably fit a driver, passenger, and suitcase, though only the one minifig is included here. The single-piece roof easily detaches for access. One miss here is that the front engine cover is attached with two more studs than is necessary, meaning it isn’t easily detachable as a play feature (though this can be easily corrected by substituting a 1x2 tile or grille).
While a second minifig might have been too much to ask for, I do feel an animal could have been added to really elevate the set (and explain the garbage can contents!) A dog would have been nice, though I’ve added a rat next to the garbage can on my copy.
Overall Impressions
I really love the design and look of this taxi, and I’m left both curious and amused by the intended or implied storyline for this model and figure. If you pick this up and have the spares, I do recommend a few colour swaps. The side mirrors should really be flat silver (matching the wheels), as should the engine, and the streetlamp is better in all black. As mentioned earlier, I also recommend making the engine cover more easily detachable.
The only other miss here, other than needing another figure or animal, is that the wheels chosen are arguably too small in proportion to the vehicle. Judge for yourself, but I recommend swapping out the wheels for larger ones (pictured below is a swap to the Speed Champions wheels from the 76900 Koenigsegg Jesko). Beyond that, this GWP gets a solid thumbs up from me, and certainly will make a classy addition to any city or modular layout.
Original set wheels
Substituted larger wheels
# We wish to thank LEGO for providing this set for review. The opinions in this review are not supported or endorsed by LEGO.
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