LEGO version of McLaren Senna hypercar will also be part of ‘LEGO Speed Champions’ expansion pack for Forza Horizon 4.
For the past 25 years, hardware manufacturers, software developers, and publishers who work in the video game industry have been getting together at the Electronic Entertainment Expo, aka E3, to make major announcements and reveal new products. This year’s event at the Los Angeles Convention Center also had something for car enthusiasts, particularly fans of the McLaren Senna.
LEGO staff constructed a 1:1-scale replica of the Senna entirely out of LEGO pieces – 467,854 of them, to be exact – and parked it in the convention center’s Microsoft Theatre. It took teams of up to 10 model makers working shifts around the clock to assemble it. By the time the 42 craftspeople were done, they had spent 2,725 hours literally putting their creation together (with design and development time rolled in, they invested a total of 4,935 hours into the LEGO Senna). What makes that figure even more impressive is the fact that it takes “only” 300 hours to assemble a real Senna by hand.
That eight-bit build wasn’t the only Mac making news at E3. At last year’s event, Microsoft announced the debut of the Forza Horizon 4 driving game, which features a McLaren Senna on its cover. The software giant used this year’s E3 as an opportunity to launch the LEGO Speed Champions expansion pack for the driving game, which is set in the UK and features changing weather and seasons, and 4K and HDR clarity. The LEGO Speed Champions content went live on June 13 on Xbox One, Windows 10 PCs, and Xbox Game Pass (as an Xbox Play Anywhere game) and gives players the ability to drive a variety of vehicles, including a LEGO version of the McLaren Senna, through a LEGO city and compete in new challenges and races.
Forza Horizon 4 LEGO Speed Champions is included in the Forza Horizon 4 Expansions Bundle, Forza Horizon 4 Ultimate Edition, and Forza Horizon 4 Ultimate Add-Ons Bundle. Otherwise, prices start at $17.99 (Xbox Game Pass for Console or PC).
If you weren’t able to make it out to E3 and you’re not a gamer, you can always just buy a smaller version of the LEGO McLaren Senna and put it together all by yourself.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
