Considering the LEGO® NINJAGO theme wasn’t meant to last beyond the usual 2 to 3 years cycle and was even retired at one point. The theme continues to go from strength to strength, with gripping new storyline lines and variety of impressive sets. As the TV show enters its ninth season, the sets based upon it have already arrived in stores. After the Sons of Garmadon resurrected Lord Garmadon, the ninja find themselves split between two realms. With the far off Realm of Oni & Dragons terrorised by a band of evil Dragon Hunters, lead by Iron Baron. This is one of the largest sets to be released in the new wave of sets and depicts the Dragon Hunters wasteland battle tank – the Dieselnaut. So let’s take a closer look at the new set and minifigures.
Product Description
Team up with ninja warriors Teen Wu, Jay and Zane to confront the LEGO® NINJAGO® 70654 Dieselnaut tank, featuring rotating turrets with spring-loaded shooters, an opening minifigure cockpit, minifigure platform with fully opening roof, crane function, jail and hidden weapon rack. This set also includes a statue with all 4 of the collectible Dragon Armor elements, plus 7 LEGO NINJAGO minifigures with assorted weapons.
- Set Name: Dieselnaut
- Set Number: 70654
- Pieces: 1179
- RRP: £89.99
- Minifigures: Teen Wu, Jay, Zane, Iron Baron, Heavy Metal, Muzzle and Skullbreaker
- Measurements: over 18cm high, 49cm long and 23cm wide
- Availability: General Retail, LEGO Brand Retail Store & shop.LEGO.com
The Build
I’ll get this out the way now, I found the build a little boring, not entirely sure why, but it didn’t excite like some other sets I’ve built. However and it’s a big however, the actual final build is amazing. The NINJAGO range has given us some weird and wonderful sets over the years but it isn’t until recently that we’ve been getting some interesting vehicles. With the latest wave of sets, the Dragon Hunters storyline has set introduced an apocalyptic wasteland setting, think Max Mad with less canibolism. This has resulted in some pretty cool looking sets, in particular the thundering Dieselnaut. The tank like monsterous machine, may not be an inspired build but my it is a great looking set.
The first thing you’ll notice about the set is its size. It’s pretty big set, which has all-sorts of means looking dodads built into it. All of which add to the imposing mass of the Dieselnaut. These include a fang-lined platform on top of the mid-section of the vehicle. A hidden trench under the half cement mixer drum, set along the front of the Dieselnaut and a spinning platform on the top of the rear of the Dieselnaut. This is where the Iron Baron surveys his domain as well as tracking down the relams dragon population. This also has a nice couple of play features, of course there is a spring-loaded missle crossbow and the platform can be rotated with the circular disc on the left-hand side of the platform. These is a printed element as well which is a nice bonus. Also along the left side of the vehicle is another outrigger platform, which also features a spring-loaded shooter, this time armed with a harpoon.
Another great little feature can be found to the rear of the Dieselnaut and is best described as a containment chamber. This is built independently to main vehicle and is connected to the rear of it via two Technic rods. These are hinged so the container can be snuggly pushed close to the main body of the vehicle. Once there it looks as if it’s just part of the Dieselnaut. Once disconnected the container acts a prison with a rubbery net draped over the top of it. The perfect place to pop a pesky ninja, should they get in the way of your dragon-napping mischief.
When they aren’t trying to capture dragons, the Iron Baron’s motley crew are also in the market for the legendary golden Dragon Armour. If you’re barreling across the wastelands of the Oni & Dragon Realm, you’ll be needing a speedy method to grab the goods on the go. Which is where this claw hook comes in handy. This is largest constructed with Technic elements and features a winding chains, complete with grabber claws
One of the Dieselnaut’s most impactful features are the wheels. These are all different sizes and combines chunky wheels on the rear and midsection with a couple of tank tracks on the front. These not only give the set a unique appearance, they also let the set a move very smoothly over most surfaces. The track run are a little fiddly especially pushing the little rubber tacks into some of the holes but they do look pretty cool. They also standout against the pale green and orange colour scheme of the resr of the set. Which does give off a strong CHIMA vibe, you can just see Cragger and his crochet chums cruising around the land of CHIMA in the Dieselnaut.
There are two little minibuilds which add a little more detail to the two, the first of which is a small weapon rack. This is a simple little piece of scenery that holds some of the many weapons included in the set. Each section features a trio of clips to allow for the storage of a number of different weapons. It’s also hinged so it can be closed in on itself or fully opened out. In all honesty it’s a little redundant and doesn’t bring much to the overall set, but at least there is somewhere to keep all the little accessories together when not being used by the Minifigures.
Speaking of weapons, there is a vast array of on offer in the set, which bot the ninja and Dragon Hunters all having their own weapons of choice. The Dragon Hunters definitely edge the ninja out in terms of cooler weapons, the Iron Baron has a cyborg arm device and cool staff. The other stand out weaponry is part the legendary golden Dragon Armour. This includes a great printed golden shield featuring a soaring dragon and the Dragonbone Blade, which has a golden hilt in the shape of a dragons head and dual coloured blade, which clips into it.
Various pieces of the Dragon Armour can be found across various LEGO NINJAGO sets, but if you pick up the Dieselnuat set, you get it all – the Dragon Helmet, Dragon Chestplate, Dragonbone Blade and Dragon Shield. All of which are mounted on a plain light grey Minifigure torso. This is a much better piece of scenery compared to the weapons rack and also plays a major role on the overall events of the Hunted storyline.
The Minifigures
As well as being a rather impressive looking set, it also includes a decent line-up of Minifigures. There are seven in total, with the bad guys slightly outnumbering the heroes. With the ninja split across different realms, there main characters are also split across different sets as is always the case with most LEGO sets these days. However of all the ninja Jay and Zane appear in the most sets of the Hunted subtheme. Their appearance continues to use the new look outfits which have been inspired by the LEGO NINJAGO Movie. Graphic design of both characters is nice, with little tears and battle damage to both characters robes.
One of the most intersting new Minifigures is Teen Wu, who can only be found in this set. After the events of the Sons of Garmadon series, there has been a little bit of timey wimey shenanigans occurring which allows us to witness Master Wu in his prime. Gone are his trademark beard, hat and white robe instead you find Wu in a battle-worn sleeveless black outfit, with a white hair piece, which is a recoloured version of Cole’s new hair from The LEGO NINJAGO Movie range.
As cool as Teen Wu is the bad guys are the best of the bunch, in particular, the Iron Baron. This mean looking mister, has a lot going on – a top hat, a peg-leg, a cyborg arm and a evil looking staff. Plus a rather cool looking piece of shoulder armour, that can hold a tanto. With the lack of LEGO IP ‘in/out’ themes such as Ultra Agents and Monster Fighters these days, it’s nice to see the same creative flare from those sorts of themes has found a place in the NINJAGO line.
You’re not doing the whole evil bad guy thing right unless you can a couple of hence men on hand to carry out your dastardly plans. The delightfully named Muzzle and Skullbreaker fill that role perfectly. Both are fairly similar in their appearance, which both featuring the same torso, legs and head pieces. The only variance is their weapons and face covering.
Finally you need someone to keep those hencemen in check, which is where Heavy Metal comes into play. A little more unique looking compared to the guys above. Heavy Metal has a chained crossbow and a great head piece. Which is a little hidden under that oriental style hat.
The range of Minifigures included here are quite impressive especially the Iron Baron. It’s also nice to see plenty of characters included as well, as they will help to inspire plenty of play scenarios.
Overall
Although the building of the set didn’t excite me as much as some of the others I have built recently, the final product is really good. There are plenty of fun play features with the containment pod at the rear and the spinning platform on top being the highlights. I also like the choice of featuring different sized tyres and tracks, with helps to add to the apocalyptic mismatched feel of the set. The Dragon Armour statue is a nice addition to the set, especially has you get all of the main pieces of it. Finally there is a nice spread of Minifigures included. For those collecting the NINJAGO characters, this set is a must thanks to Teen Wu, who is a very unique version of a much-loved character. In fact the whole set is quite unique, as there hasn’t really been any sort of similar large scale wheeled vehicle in past LEGO NINJAGO sets.
These sets were provided via The LEGO Group for the purposes of review. The thoughts and opinions of the set reflect those of BricksFanz and not that of the LEGO Group.
