Bull’s eye! This Lego alternative from Mattel holds its own

Stephan Lamprecht

4-5-2026

Translation: Elicia Payne

Pictures: Stephan Lamprecht

The moment I saw the Mercedes 300 SL’s press photos, I fell head over heels in love with it. Now we just have to see if the set lives up to what the photos promise.

With its distinctive gullwing doors, the Mercedes 300 SL was one of the very first supercars. It was the first production vehicle to feature direct fuel injection, and with a top speed of 260 km/h in 1954, it was technologically ahead of its time. Its timeless design makes the car one of the most sought-after classic cars in the world.

With 1,600 bricks, this smaller 1:10 scale version is best suited for advanced building block enthusiasts. That’s why Mattel’s age recommendation for this is also 17+.

One difference from other manufacturers is apparent at first glance – Mattel includes a Hot Wheels model of the same vehicle with its models. You can’t get this on the open market.

The box contains 28 numbered bags and a 330-page instruction manual. When I opened the manual, a small sheet of stickers fell out. I was surprised because Mattel actually advertises that the bricks are supposed to be imprinted. Inside the blister pack in the box, I also found metal parts such as the Mercedes star and four hubcaps. And with that, it was time to get building.

Getting started

Two bags are used for the first phase of construction. Thanks to the clear illustrations in the instructions, I came quite far. The bricks didn’t feel cheap and had a good grip. What I did notice, however, was that some of them look a bit dull. Interestingly, I was able to wipe away this slight haze on some bricks, but not on others. You can also see the remnants of sprue marks on most of them. However, you can’t feel the marks and they don’t interfere with construction either. So this minor flaw didn’t bother me.

At the end of the first phase, I set aside a handful of bricks – small parts needed for connections. The instructions don’t tell you to do this, but these pieces are exactly the kind that end up on the carpet the moment you open a bag and struggle to find again. I assume Mattel’s trying to make sure you have enough bricks, which is only a good thing.

Yikes, what’s that?

The second section revealed a major difference to Lego because I had to place the «temporary bricks» first. The bright orange bricks are attached to the bottom of the model and support the structure during assembly.

The vehicle frame consists of three interconnected components. When you need to press the top bricks down more firmly, the temporary bricks prevent the joint underneath from coming loose again. I’d never seen that with any other manufacturer. I think it’s smart and well thought out.

There’s some bad news, though. There are quite a few colourful bricks in this Mattel set – the «colour plague» that so many building-block enthusiasts hate. There’s even «pastel pink» in there. Fortunately, this didn’t bother me. Quite the opposite, in fact. The colours sped up the building process because I was able to find the bricks faster and didn’t have to go through the hassle of sorting them by size first.

This has probably happened to everyone who works with snap-together building bricks: one moment of distraction, one push too hard, and suddenly it’s a real struggle to fix the mistake. That’s why manufacturers usually include a «special tool».

The one from Mattel has several different features. You can pry two bricks apart with it, but you can also loosen pipe connections. One end even looks like a bottle opener. The instructions told me that I’d need this end later on, in case I wanted to change the hubcaps. I like the tool and it does the job. It was a bit fiddly to remove the hubcaps using just my fingernails.

There we are!

After a good hour, I’d made it to the fourth section. And there they were at last: the first bricks with imprinted designs. The original features chrome lettering and the obligatory star on the trunk lid.

I’m glad the bricks already have the designs on them. My experience with Lego tells me it would’ve been a real hassle to stick stickers of the same size onto the brick and perfectly align them. That’s exactly what always bugs me about Lego sets.

My collection of spare bricks slowly grew and grew. Mattel seems to have genuinely good intentions.

Lots of lovely details

The rest of the construction proceeded in the same structured manner as the initial phases. Nothing wobbles; everything fits perfectly. The gap dimensions are comparable to those of Lego. Putting the bricks together is a lot of fun, and I think the size of the bags is just right. There are no rogue pieces, above or below.

I was super keen to complete it. Time and again, I came across things that made me go, «wow!». Whether it was the imprinted controls in the cockpit, the straps for securing luggage, the ignition cables, or the lever for raising the hood from inside the cabin. Not to mention the metal interior and exterior mirrors and the treaded rubber tires.

Of course, the model gets heavier with each section. And when assembling the body, the temporary bricks on the underside really come in handy. I tried my best to prevent anything from wobbling or coming loose later on. That’s why I pressed the outer shell parts onto the chassis with a little more force. The special bricks underneath stand the pressure well. Nothing bent, nothing flew off.

And that’s it!

It took me about ten hours to finish. The Mercedes is now parked in front of me. It made a great first impression – and kept it up. I didn’t have any problems, and everything fit. The instructions didn’t raise any questions either.

All that was left was two bags of small bricks, which I can use to convert the model into a race car. That also explains the few stickers that jumped out at me at the beginning. These are the race numbers and sponsor stickers for the race version. In the end, my collection of spare parts had grown quite significantly. Mattel’s certainly generous in this regard.

Now I’m finally putting together the display case for the Hot Wheels car. According to the instructions, that’s actually what I should have done first. But I didn’t. I rebelled.

Stephan Lamprecht

Editor

Stephan.Lamprecht@galaxus.de

Hamburg local, bookworm, and ice hockey fan. Dad and granddad. Constantly tinkering around with my smart home setup. I love DIY, the outdoors, fashion, and cosmetics.

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