This set is the only set focused around a wheeled vehicle in SPIII so far. Despite the wheels, it is an excellent set.

Minifigures:

The minifigures are not that bad. Slizer looks very threatening with his spiky helmet, just like Snake. Underneath the helmet, however, Slizer looks very silly with a strange face. Luckily, only the eyes are exposed by the slit in the helmet. However, even without the helmet, Snake looks very menacing with his multiple eyes and his teeth. The SP officer isn't quite as impressive. This is because Only his head is unique, and it isn't a two sided face. I also don't like the helmet as much, unlike the new SP Commando helmets.

The missile armed speeder:

This part of the set is quite a let down, as it look pathetic and doesn't stand a chance against the Max Security Transport (MST). I think the only reason for this to be in the set is to shoot at the target on the prison pod. However, I would happily pay more for an improved speeder that looks good.

The Front + Back of MST:

These sections of the MST are fairly good, and together form a fairly neat escape pod (albeit with multiple weapons). The cockpit has a sloped piece with a controls print on it. This piece is also found in the Galactic Enforcer. i think the only criticism of teh cockpit is that you cannot put an SP officer with an airtank in because there is no space. Although the two side guns are raised and look awkward, it is for holding it in place on the body of the MST. The jets are nicely designed, even though they have less mini jets connected than the VX Falcon in Hyperspeed Pursuit (4 compared to 8 per engine). It also has two small folding wings that add wings to the escape pod. Together, the pod looks brilliant (to me at least) and is a key highlight of the set.

The Body of the MST:

This is where the majority of the pieces is in. Multiple long parts form and support a frame, with extra parts to add details. The centre is hollow, to allow the prison pod to pivot about. On the side, there are two gun pods, which pivot up when the prison pod is pushed down. The prison pod cannot be opened when pushed down. On the piece that holds the side gun pods, there are two armour like pieces which, from certain angles, protect the pod from fire. However, when the gun pods are down, they would fire through the front wheels. Apart from these parts, there are pieces to hold the wheels on the MST. I feel that there is a lack of parts in the centre of the MST. I would happily pay extra for more pieces in the body, like the missile speeder.

'Flight Mode'

The 'flight mode' is in fact when the four wheels (eight wheels parts, actually) flip down and appear to act like the jets on a Harrier jump jet, although being a lot larger than a Harrier's rotating jets and also possibly a lot more clumsy. I think that the flight mode should have been imrpoved, even if it would cost more, because it improves the way the MST looks in flight mode.

Overall:

Despite having a few flaws, I think that it is a fairly good compromise, and that the MST is a good set. I recommend this, although there are other sets that are better and have less flaws.

I LOVE THIS SET! IT IS SO AWESOME ! well i think i've got that outta my system!Well this is a good set it can do lots of stuff like turning it into flight mode, pressing a piece to make the prison pod open....... and .....taking off the front and back of the ship,combining them to make a mini speeder!Here are the pros and cons:

pros:
good figs
can do lots off stuff
very fun
cool speeder
handcuffs

cons:
none!

overall:
well i don't have that much stuff to say, apart from GET THIS SET!

This set is absoloutly amazing.

1. Slizer's ship.
One word to describe it, dinky. It is a iny little ship that seems to be added because LEGO needed somthing to shoot the target.
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2. The cockpit/engines.
These are noted together because they both detatch from the main ship and come to gether to form a nice little stealth ship.
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3. The Prison pod and guns.
This is called max security transport for a reason. When you press down on the pod, the guns pop up along with the side shields. Another plus, when the pod is pressed down, the enemy ships cannot shoot the target because the part underneath it makes it so that it cannot move.
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4. The main body.
The body is very, very sturdy and does not fall apart. The wheels are awesome and can roll over anything that you can dish out. The flight mode is not what I thought it would be. The picture on the box is small so it is hard to make out. The wheels do not face forward, but rather downward so it is like a hover-craft. Even though it is not what I expected, it is better. The hover-wheels are each indipendent and that allows you to do things to the ship like barrel rolls and front flips.
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5. The build
The build is very simple and takes less than an hour but it is a very enjoyable hour. The numbered bag system is divided into three sections this time, each building a little bit more of the ship.
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6. Minifigs
Snake is the most common minifig in the space police III line so nothing special there. The police man looks very tough and looks like you don't want to mess with him. Slizer is the coolest minifig here. His face under the mask is not what you expect. It is this crazy face with fangs and a whole evil look.
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Overall

The set is very good and offers much playability. It is totally awesome and worth the money. I leave you with this message:

BUY THIS SET.

I've been pursuing the Lego Space Police III sets to complete the collection. I've reviewed every one I have so far. What made me rush to get this one was that it was no longer available in any toy stores or Lego.com. I managed to nab one of BrickLink for a decent price. I've got to say that I wasn't necessarily looking forward to this one because of several things, but I as utterly surprised.

PROS
As in every other review of mine of the SPIII toyline, I just love the minifigures. The Space Police Officers have a great look to them. I just prefer that they come with airtanks, but they don't in this one. It's still not a big issue though. The alien criminals are excellent too. Snake, though extremely common, has a thuggish, rugged look to him. This was also the first set I got that had Slizer in it. I was surprised when I built him, because his helmet was partially rubbery, and from the side the helmet didn't look quite the way I had pictured it. But these are not complaints! Slizer still looks great!

This was also the first set I got that included a "prison pod." I had heard great things about the Prison Pod "breakout" features and was looking forward to testing them out for myself. Not at all to my surprise, I loved it! It's a brilliant system Lego came up with; it makes you have a good time aiming and outright blowing the pod up, saving your criminal buddy! On occasion it doesn't work perfectly, but it's still such a blast. I also like the little caption on the Prison Pod sticker "May contain alien atmosphere." It's just great!

Another great feature of this set is that you can raise and lower the side laser weapons. What this set does is simple but effective; you press down the prison pod, and it pushes up the laser cannons. My guess is that LEGO was intending this to be a kind of "high security function" because in this mode, the Prison Pod is pretty well secured in place with those lasers raised up. And if you want it back to normal, it's just as easy, just press the knob on the prison pod upward and it lowers the lasers. It just works.

The last thing about this set is an aspect I never really embrace much, but a lot of other people who are LEGO Space fans do. The back thrusters of the Mas Security Transport can be detached. The front cockpit of the vehicle can also be detached. Like many other ancient, past LEGO Space ships and machines, you can make a miniature ship by connecting these two parts together. I've tried it and it works quite smoothly; I just don't really use that ability much.

CONS
One of the touchier aspects of this set is its "flight mode" ability. Some fans think it's incredible, others not so much. To me, I don't mind having the wheels act as hover-devices, simply because the bars on the sides of the wheels look like they cover up very large fans, making it look believable that the wheels could propel the machine through the air. My issue with the set is the method in which the Max Security Transport transitions between driving and flying mode. The axles of the machine rest on rather loose bars. This is really fine when in driving mode, but when you go to flight, you just watch the wheels swing down, sometimes they don't even go down so you need to push them down yourself. Its also a bit of a pain bringing it back to driving mode, because you have to flip up all of the wheels to land it. I think that if LEGO included some sort of lever mechanism that you could use to turn or move the wheels between modes, it would've been perfect.

Also, I doubt few will disagree with me that the alien vehicle is despicable! The ship is apparently propelled by one, VERY tiny engine about the size of the "Space Speeder" set's engine. The ship has a clunky design and just is stupid looking IMO. I guess LEGO needed to put in some kind of blunt launcher to make use of the Prison Pod feature. But come on! Couldn't they have made the ship a little more convincing, or maybe make the blunt launcher stationary, like a turret?

One more minor Con is that large wheels on the set don't move very well over flat, smooth surfaces, and are better suited to carpets. That in itself truly though is fine because the wheels are meant to be heavy duty and to be used on "rugged" terrain, not stable smooth terrain.

This set blew my expectations. The set proved far more entertaining that I had imagined and some of the set's features are quite remarkable. IMO, it's still well worth your money; that is, if you can FIND it!

As a kid, LEGO Space was my favorite theme, and within that theme my absolute favorite sub-theme was Blacktron 1, followed closely by Space Police 1. Having just come back into the scene some nearly 20 years after supposedly 'growing up', I was elated to see the cool new Space Police 3 sets. I was lucky enough to find this set on the 'sale' rack at my closest LEGO store, so bear that in mind - I might not have found as much value for $40 as I do for $30.

The reason why I bring up my fondness for Blacktron as well as Space Police is because this set conjures up nostalgia for both of those series - SP1 directly by being a continuation thereof and BT1 because of the modular nature of the main vehicle, which was one of the most distinct features of BT1. I grinned ear-to-ear when I realized that the front cockpit section and rear engine section disconnected from the main vehicle frame and reconnected to form (what I view as) a light chase vehicle, used to intercept the secondary vehicle after either villain (Snake or Slizer) is rescued from the containment pod situated in the middle of the main vehicle by a (very well placed) missile shot to the round black dish. This already sets a high mark for playability.

The two 'action features' are hit and miss - the 'hover conversion' is rather cheap, as noted in other reviews, with the wheels merely hanging down below the undercarriage of the main vehicle. The other feature, however, is top-notch - by pushing the containment pod all the way down, you activate 'attack mode' which doubles to secure the target of the pod in place, preventing escape of the detainee, while bringing the two large guns to bear. It's this type of articulation that reminds me of the original Space Police four-wheel transport, the Spy Trak 1 with its steering mechanism. Very cool.

The villain's ride is not much to speak about, as again noted in other reviews. the engine is cool looking enough and the missile launcher is actually impressively strong, but other than that it's a few antennae/control sticks and a 2x6 black plank holding it together. Not as cheap as the secondary vehicle from, say, 'Gold Heist', but not all that great.

Overall, if you can find it for the price I did, I don't think you'll be disappointed. You get a cool vehicle, two villains, and two sets of handcuffs.

The set came with enough extra parts to put a set of red and blue cheese wedge lights on top of the cockpit canopy - I found once you put together the chase vehicle, there were no lights on it what-so-ever, so thought it appropriate. I also placed the sticker above the pilot/driver's head as opposed to where it's placed on the photo, as it seemed to perfectly obstruct the forward view of the figure seated therein. I also angled all the wedges (red, white, blue) that appear around the target in the same orientation following the slope of the bricks below it. I found the recommended jagged saw-tooth orientation jarring. Of course, the fixed canopy on the cockpit is a bit of a drag, but not a huge problem. A hinge would've been nice, and with a few mods can be taken care of. The big plastic wheels would've been nice in rubber, but also not a deal-breaker.