► Remote-controlled AMG One in brick form
► 1:8 scale to real car; a 3295-piece kit
► About half the price of a comparable Lego Technic set
Owning a Mercedes-AMG One might be a little tricky. Not only do you have to be a multi-millionaire, but you’ll have to have the patience of a saint waiting for one to ever come on to the market. This brick set might be your only alternative.
I say ‘brick set’ because, while it may look incredibly like Lego, it’s not. It’s from CaDA Bricks – a brand that’s part of the Double Eagle Group that manufactures toys in China. CaDA has been producing brick sets for a few years now, but few have been officially licenced. This Mercedes-AMG One kit we’ve built has actually been officially licenced by Affalterbach and is brimming with details and clever touches.
That looks like a big, serious kit…
Because it is. This is a 1:8-scale set, comprising of 3295 pieces and is part of the CaDA Master series – largely equivalent to some of the most detailed and intricate Lego Technic sets on the market.
The original design came from brick builder Bruno Jenson, who has worked with CaDA to commercialise the set. It’s a pretty faithful recreation, with some fascinating details and unique parts to the set; Jenson and CaDA have made an effort to make this feel like more of a bespoke item. As well as the official nod from Mercedes-AMG, the kit also features a set of approved Michelin-branded tyres.
What sets the Master AMG One set apart from an equivalent Lego Technic set of a similar size is that it comes out of the box with electronics and power equipment, allowing you to make a remote-control car from a brick-built car. As well as motion front and back, and the ability to steer, the lights and butterfly doors are powered, too.
CaDA is also fighting Lego on price, undercutting many 1:8-scale Lego Technic sets significantly as it hovers around the £200 mark; a Lamborghini Sian retails for around £390, as does a Lego Technic Ferrari Monza SP3. Add to the fact that the AMG One is powered, and CaDA makes a strong case for itself.
The brick brand has its own website you can order kits from, and they are also available on Amazon. Our kit was supplied by The Hobby Company Ltd.
Come on then… what is it like to build?
If we were to put it politely, this is definitely a challenge for a master builder. For those who admire a little more hyperbole, some swear words were emitted at times trying to connect certain parts. If you were to build this on your own, like I did, this will take several nights worth of work to put together and you may need a calming cup of cocoa with you.
The box the kit comes in is enormous, with six compartments that each feature at least two sets of bricks designed to build a particular section. Naturally you start with the base chassis, then move onto the transmission (which allows you to build either a two-wheel drive or four-wheel drive model) and engine, which also comes with moving pistons. All the while, you’re slowly fitting wiring for the drive motors and lights, before starting on the interior and then the bodywork.
It’s as complex to build as something like the Lamborghini Sian Lego Technic set, or the Land Rover Defender with its locking differentials. This AMG One kit, too, comes with differentials designed into the chassis, and steering mechanisms you need to integrate, too. I’d recommend you have some small tools with you; we needed a blunt knife, pliers with a pointed end and a tiny screwdriver – as well as the supplied brick remover – to help take parts off or move certain bits so they fit right.
That complexity means some tricky connections and some at-times complicated instructions. Some of the graphics in the build need scrutiny before proceeding to ensure you plug a peg in the right place or slip a cog in so it’ll work properly. The assumption that some pegs will fit in with ease, or that you don’t have fat (or even merely adult-sized) fingers can make the build fiddly, too.
I also noted a couple of iffy tolerances in a part or two, with the odd beam piece completely sliding through a connector instead of being tight enough to stay fixed in place. Another peg looked like it had been chewed by a dog (pictured below) and was borderline useless. There was also a disconcerting number of spares in one pack, despite all instructions being followed.
The power electronics all interlink and connect to a junction box that features a rechargeable battery, too. Sadly, the kit hasn’t included a mechanism to remove it easily, so you have to do some serious cable management (which we didn’t really achieve with our build) to make sure the button to turn it on and the socket to charge it are easily accessible.
On that point about the rechargeable battery, it appears there’s a disconnect between the instructions and the pack itself. The operating instructions say the box lights up blue when it’s charging, but ours flashed red and green. This, according our guides in the customer service team of The Hobby Company, say that’s normal and now the new way the battery communicates that it’s charging – just that the instructions haven’t been updated yet. They may be updated in newer kits.
How do the electronics work?
It gives the kit an edge for the money, at least, but this isn’t some Tamiya Squash Van you can do serious work with. It moves slowly forward and backward, and only very gently steers – that’s about it. Still cool, yes, but maybe manage your expectations.
What’s arguably more interesting is the addition of headlights and taillights that really work, and the fact the butterfly doors open electronically.
CaDA AMG One kit: verdict
You get what you pay for? I wouldn’t say it’s as simple as that, as the CaDA Master AMG One kit offers power electronics you wouldn’t get anywhere near with Lego (or any other brick toy manufacturer) for the same kind of money.
It’s an impressive kit when it’s (finally) built, though, with tonnes of really clever details and bespoke parts – Bruno Jenson and CaDA should feel proud. Details like real Michelin tyres, yellow elastic band seatbelts, an intricate steering wheel and centre console, multiple headlight and taillight lenses… the list goes on.
But holy moly is it a complicated, and at times frustrating build. The quality isn’t there when you compare it with Lego, with a few iffy pieces and sometimes confusing instructions.
Is it worth joining the ranks of your brick sets? The build process will be arduous at times, which may make you ask that question again in a haze of irritation. But the end result is impressive.