Review: 60257 Service Station
Posted by CapnRex101,Service stations have appeared quite frequently within the Town and City themes, although their balance between different vehicles and the focal structure differs. 60257 Service Station certainly focuses substantially upon vehicles which might disappoint some people.
However, these new vehicles appear interesting in my opinion and I am particularly impressed with the teal camper van. The accompanying structures are comparatively small, although these incorporate some important details and omit certain extraneous features which have periodically appeared in other service stations.
Minifigures
Four minifigures are included, the first of whom evidently works at the service station. This torso has appeared in three earlier sets and features suitable Octan branding on either side. The dark blue hat and trousers complement the medium blue shirt and the head looks excellent too, despite its relative ubiquity across the City theme.
The second minifigure is intended to drive the camper van and is appropriately dressed, wearing a floral shirt that was introduced with 60153 People Pack - Fun at the Beach. This double-sided head returns from another People Pack. The differing smiles both look great and I appreciate the intricate stubble too, especially in combination with the black hair piece.
Both female minifigures also comprise components from People Packs, including their torsos which were introduced during 2017 and 2018 respectively. These elements appear relatively simple but the printing looks good and I like these colour combinations of lime green with blue and pink with medium azure.
Double-sided heads are provided for both minifigures. These elements are fairly common but work perfectly, particularly for the character wearing pink whose sunglasses match her attire. This blonde hair piece looks nice too and has only appeared in larger sets before now, excluding 4000036 LEGO Play Day Polybag, so I welcome its availability here.
The Completed Model
Large cars and trucks are exceptionally common throughout the City theme, although these vehicles differ significantly from previous examples. Dark blue, dark azure and black elements are combined to wonderful effect on this SUV which measures 11cm in length and is therefore smaller than many other off-road vehicles. Presumably this model is intended primarily for urban driving, despite its beefy tyres.
Trans-light blue headlights are situated at the front, complementing the dark blue bodywork. The 1x1 tooth plates are especially interesting because they have not been produced in this colour before and the dark blue wheel arches are also new. A sticker forms the number plate and looks good, although I would rather the black radiator extended slightly lower.
LEGO vehicles are sometimes criticised for transitions between their bodywork and windscreen and that problem seems notably prevalent here, unfortunately. However, removing the roof reveals some lovely upholstery inside. There is plenty of space for the driver and you can place their mobile phone and a Chihuahua behind them, as shown below.
Dark azure stripes run along either flank. I think that design could be effective but the stickers which form the central section of each stripe do not match the surrounding dark blue pieces. That colour difference is quite disappointing because it could probably have been rectified very easily. I like the trans-red light bar across the back of the SUV though and an exposed stud is provided to connect an electrical charging cable.
Camper vans have appeared in numerous sets but this model varies dramatically from past designs, loosely resembling the famous Volkswagen Type 2. This colour scheme of teal and white with orange stripes seems somewhat chaotic but I can imagine its owner painting those stripes on a whim so think these shades are successful here. The vehicle measures 12cm in length which appears small beside standard City cars.
Nevertheless, the designer has included some lovely details. A white boomerang is fixed below the windscreen and forms the badge, standing out against the teal bodywork. The bullbar looks splendid too and I like the black rear view mirrors that are situated on either side. Their round shape is unusual within the City theme but feels wholly appropriate for what seems like an older vehicle.
Identical windscreens are positioned at both ends of the model. This design was presumably intended to imitate the Volkswagen Type 2 which is sensible, although the execution leaves something to be desired in my opinion. Two similar windscreens could certainly have been included but I think the front should appear more streamlined than the back so would have favoured the 6x3x2 windscreen towards the front.
The camper van looks absolutely brilliant when viewed from behind though, displaying some bumper stickers. These include a flower which matches the aforementioned floral shirt, the surfing brand logo that appears in many City sets and King Kahuka's mask from Pirates! The number plate and exhausts look marvellous too, alongside two trans-red lights.
Minifigures can access the van through a light bluish grey door on its left side. I think this corrugated panel seems incongruous here but the interior is reasonable, providing adequate space for figures to stand or sit down. The furnishings look simple but offer considerable play value as the minifigures can prepare meals in the kitchen area or sit down, with one character driving while the other rests near the back.
While these vehicles are distinctive, the main service station seems exceptionally familiar, especially when compared with 60132 Service Station from 2016. Nevertheless, I appreciate its white, red and green colours which correspond with the Octan branding and the sign includes an interesting 1x4x3 brick. Stickers are placed on both sides of this component and two further stickers represent the fuel displays.
These pumps are fairly detailed, featuring printed consoles beside the black screens and appropriate colours. The hoses look nice too, although I think their connections with the pumps could be improved as these Technic bricks look awkward. Moreover, situating the pumps on different sides of the structure would have been more sensible in my opinion and I think the fuel pumps in 60132 Service Station were superior.
However, separating these pumps from the associated shop is perfect. This arrangement requires relatively few pieces and enables you to move the pumps around, expanding or reducing the space between them and the shop. Furthermore, I like how the roof is constructed sideways and integrates trans-blue windows which look very modern. Ideally, the light bluish grey brackets at the centre would have been white though.
The convenience store is remarkably small, occupying only slightly more than half of an 8x16 plate. That is disappointing when compared with previous models and I think it looks rather bland from the exterior, consisting primarily of white door frames and trans-light blue windows. Thankfully, the Octan sign above the door looks reasonable but that is formed using a sticker which is a shame.
An electrical charging station provides welcome colour to the model, featuring yellow, dark azure and black bricks. I love the Octan E sticker and the cable can be connected to either vehicle, although the SUV seems more appropriate. Of course, the energy from this charging point is generated using solar panels on the roof. These are becoming increasingly common in City sets so I hope they will be printed in the future.
Little detail decorates the interior. The cash register and coffee machine are both rather basic and I think some shelves with newspapers or food would have been effective here. One newspaper tile is included though which is excellent and I like the television on the wall, showing a live football match! The open design provides easy access to the interior but I think the shop should include a roof.
Overall
City sets which contain buildings have become increasingly scarce during recent years, hence I was somewhat disappointed when 60257 Service Station was revealed. This set contains 354 pieces but only 111 of those are dedicated to the structures and they are accordingly bland, especially when any comparisons are drawn against 60132 Service Station which felt much more substantial and cohesive.
However, devoting more elements to the vehicles has created two appealing vehicles which deviate from previous models and include some brilliant design features. Moreover, the integral play value in refuelling vehicles is definitely available here, despite the dearth of detail on the pumps. Even so, the price of £44.99 or $49.99 seems rather expensive so I would be inclined to focus upon 60258 Tuning Workshop instead of this set.
I hope you have found this review informative. Let us know by liking this article and share your opinion of the set in the comments below.
This set was provided for review by The LEGO Group but the review is an expression of my own opinions.
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38 comments on this article
60132 was notorious for being horribly overpriced, €80 here , $90 in the US.
Yes the set was more substantial but also far more expensive.
I think despite the tiny building, the vehicles/pumps look great.
Still overpriced but not terrible.
As much as I hate crossovers, that is a pretty good model.
It'd definitely feel better at 40, as is it's very "wait for a sale".
60132 is so much better and is an actual service station. this is more like a vehicle pack with little bonus builds to make up the piece count
A Model X (or possibly a 3), a VW bus, and a King Kahuka bumper sticker? Awesome!
^But gouged like a real gas station on California's I-40 stretch between Barstow and Needles.
Thid van looks adorable as that Chihuahua, but I am looking as well to the tuning shop.
^ The Tuning shop is definitely better in my opinion, although the SUV vehicle here isn't too bad. Still overpriced though.
Wow - I never would have given this a second glance but this review turned me around. Still don't like the price point - why are City sets so expensive in the US?
Some thoughts:
1. Like the last gas station, this price to part ratio is nuts, and there are no oversized or complex pieces or licences to justify the cost. For examples, in Canada this has 200 LESS pieces than the new CREATOR toy store, but costs $20 MORE ($69.99 VS $49.99)
2. The van is cool, the soccer mom SUV is ok, the pumps are useful, as is the sign and charging station. The store itself personally is parts bin only, but would be ok for anyone not building an actual city.
3. Like others have said, for me this will be a discount only purchases 20-30% at best.
Price is definitely on the steep side, and HATE stickers, but love the vehicle colors.
Guess that chihuahua is pure-bred, that's why this costs so much.
I never noticed this before, but do they drive on the left side of the road in the Lego universe? The door of the camper is on the left, and coming to think about it, so was the door of the caravan at 60182
I love how honest and brutal the review can get. Keep it up!
Great review but what a crappy set. They should call it "Cars with charger and gaspump". The "building" is a bad joke and both cars looks bulky and very little appealing. A no go from me.
Also- my line of work makes me very aware of fonts, corporate identities etc...
Why is the Octan logo in this set formatted differently than usual- the OC is italicized where usually the logo has the OC in regular and only "tan" in italics.
Small annoyance - but for consistency I'd have to replace those stickers!
I like cars, they are really awesome. Regarding structures I'm not sure if these are joke or insult.
Nice set, but it'd be a lot nicer if it had a road plate included.
so the SUV Karen is texting while driving too? was that a necessary accessory or was it a reference to all Karens
I still don't understand why the Service Stations are getting so overpriced. 60132 had a great design, but a terrible price. This new one has cool cars, but the station itself is disappointing. And well, once again a terrible price...
Yet another year where 7993 remains as the last good one, both on price and design. I'm glad I have it.
@graafderk said:
"I never noticed this before, but do they drive on the left side of the road in the Lego universe? The door of the camper is on the left, and coming to think about it, so was the door of the caravan at 60182"
Generally, yes. I live in Australia, so I always try to build vehicles like this as the "mirror" version.
It seemed like the designers were told they could be two (somewhat) detailed vehicles or a detailed service station, but not both.
They should have cut one of the vehicles to make a station with some substance... like they've done before. The service station set from 2007 had roughly 50 more pieces, a road baseplate, and just one small car, and adjusted for inflation cost exactly the same. :/
The Service Station is the side-build on this set. The van is great but that's about it.
Even at what will probably be a 20% discount at many retailers this isn't worth it.
Looks like the kind of micro-station that often gets squeezed into malls. As such it's a nice enough model, with cute touches like the recharger and two interesting small vehicles, but not likely to appeal to its natural market at this price. In fact, it feels like the price was chosen to absorb an immediate 20% discount--and I wonder how the average toy-buying public will feel about that!
Thank you for the entertaining review!
Another insubstantial set from the CITY theme.
Instead of focusing on the most essential aspects, designers focus on the more accessory aspects. From 7993 onwards it was only an involution. From this step we go in the same direction that the Town theme took in the second half of the 1990s.
oh no
they managed to make a lego version of Karen
Even though I would've personally wanted a larger station like the 2016 one, it makes a lot of sense to have the station as a side thing, kids most likely don't have much need for a service station
Why no car doors anymore? Especially the VW looks awful without front doors.
@graafderk said:
"I never noticed this before, but do they drive on the left side of the road in the Lego universe? The door of the camper is on the left, and coming to think about it, so was the door of the caravan at 60182"
When you drive on the right side of the road, the driver actually gets in and out on the left side of the car. So my guess would be, that in this case they drive on the right side of the road...
@AddictedToStyrene said:
" @graafderk said:
"I never noticed this before, but do they drive on the left side of the road in the Lego universe? The door of the camper is on the left, and coming to think about it, so was the door of the caravan at 60182"
Generally, yes. I live in Australia, so I always try to build vehicles like this as the "mirror" version."
So generally, they drive on the right side? (Given there are many sets with the steering wheel slightly moved to the left, especially in Technic cars). Are camper vans / caravans that specific to Aussie / Kiwi camping?
@graafderk said:
"I never noticed this before, but do they drive on the left side of the road in the Lego universe? The door of the camper is on the left, and coming to think about it, so was the door of the caravan at 60182"
This came up in the discussion surrounding the review of the new ice cream truck. https://brickset.com/article/47858
My guess is that it has to do with the images on the packaging where most cars are displayed driving from right to left, which, in order to display the side door on the packaging, means the side door would have to be on the left side of the vehicle.
A lot of trucks have their steering wheels on the left, which would suggest they drive on the right side of the road in LEGOLAND.
Even a good review cannot save this set - horrible, City is back to its dark ages.
The SUV is definitely what's known as a Chelsea Tractor in the UK. The chihuahua and the phone are exactly what the driver would have. She would be called Piffy or Topsy or something - not her real name but a nickname from her private all girls school days. The dog is called Lulu.
(sorry I am putting waaay to much thought into this!)
Just out of interest, why is this service station listed under Sets > City > General and 60132 under Sets > City > Traffic?
And @bookmum , you’re absolutely right!
Piffy would also be using her mobile while driving of course.
60258 is much better!
"but that is formed using a sticker which is a shame."
I feel that the word "shame" gets way too much usage in reviews. Especially in such cases like this, it would be much more appropriate to soften it a bit, by using "pity" or such instead.
That SUV looks like the Evoque, one of the milanese imbruttito favorite cars.
BTW, some months ago a kid saw me moving some old sets, he said he preferred modern ones... until he saw my 6394. His jaw literally dropped.
I like that they are trying to do cars/vehicles on a not-too-beefed-up scale. If only they could always be consistent like this...