After years of coaster fans dreaming and waiting, LEGO finally released their first official, full circuit, working roller coaster model in 2018. This colossal 4,124 piece set very closely simulated a real-life working roller coaster and included two three-car trains and 11 mini figures. The amount of detail was astounding, with everything from a working transfer track to chain lift to ticket booths. Sadly, this stunning set was recently retired, along with many of the other best LEGO sets for theme park fans.
Today, LEGO announced a new official roller coaster set and it’s the first to go upside down. The LEGO Loop Coaster is the 7th in the Fairground Collection and is comprised of 3,756 pieces. It’ll also be one of LEGO’s tallest sets at 36 inches.
The LEGO coaster ride starts out with a vertical elevator lift (which you should already be able to picture what it will look like from reading our article on roller coaster lift hills) to take the three-car lap-bar only trains up to the point of maximum potential energy. Out of the box, the lift is powered manually via hand crank but that’s not to say you couldn’t figure out a way to hook a power functions motor up to it.
From there, the coaster proceeds around a U-turn before dropping ninety degrees straight down, proceeding to careen through the first of two loops. The first is taller and is drawn out in a more realistic tear drop or elliptical shape. The second loop is shorter and is a simple circular loop. The g forces on the riders must be extreme. Disappointedly, the ride then navigates an unbanked U-turn and a short, zig-zag jog back to the station.
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What We Like About the LEGO Loop Coaster
Just by looking at a few pictures and our past experience building LEGO and other coaster models, here are a few thoughts on what we like about this set and the things LEGO does well.
The inflexible track doesn’t allow you to build whatever crazy elements come to mind (so no, you will not be recreating any RMC inspired layouts) but it is very durable and easy to build. I like how the top of the big drop is actually two horizontal curve segments turned on their sides.
What LEGO has really excelled at recently is attention to detail and this set is no exception. They’ve included everything you could think of to operate a real roller coaster at a real amusement park: control panel, station gates, on ride photo, queue, height checker, etc.
I really like the look of this set, from the colors to the slick Loop logo on the side of the lift. Another thing that sets LEGO apart from the LEGO-compatible sets are mini figures and this set, like its predecessor, has eleven of them.
Where the LEGO Loop Coaster Has Room to Improve
The one big negative that jumps out to me immediately is how much energy the cars lose in such a short time. It’s crazy. The car and track system is not efficient at all, especially when it comes to trying to do any interesting maneuvers – like turns or inversions. They need to read our article on what influences roller coaster speed and eliminate some of the rough transitions between elements and stabilize the shaky loop.
This set is aimed at adults (18+) and it seems you would have to have an adult job to afford it. The LEGO Loop Coaster cost is expected to be $400.
Taking the previous two points into consideration, if you want to build a realistic working looping roller coaster without breaking the bank, then I think the CDX Sidewinder is your best bet, currently selling for only $128. Of course, the CDX coaster don’t come with mini figures or the other little details.
CDX beat LEGO to a working, full circuit looping roller coaster set by more than 2 years!
Ideally, I’d love to see a LEGO roller coaster with the versatility and the energy efficiency of the CDX track and car system combined with the attention to detail and fun of the official LEGO kits. One can always dream.
LEGO Loop Coaster Review
It’s exciting to see LEGO release another official roller coaster set, and one that’s so different than the previous. The attention to detail is just as good as ever but the energy management along with the track design could still use some improvement for future roller coaster designs.
The LEGO Loop Coaster is scheduled to be released on July 5th, 2022.
Update July 10, 2022
Alright, after seeing the Lego Loop coaster operate in person, I now want one. It’s very impressive. The initial promos did not do this thing justice. The vertical lift mechanism is so cool, really a very clever piece of Lego engineering. Check it out:
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Are you going to purchase and build the LEGO Loop Coaster as soon as it is released? Let us know in the comments below!
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