Technic

Mack LR Electric Garbage Truck

The tiny Technic truck that hides a genuinely clever side loader.

Brick Rated Score

4.2/5

Set 42167 · 2024

Pieces503

Minifigsn/a

Year2024

Set number42167

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The verdict

I did not expect a garbage truck to be one of the most charming small Technic sets I have built in a while, but here we are.

The side loader that reaches out, grabs the bin, lifts it, tips it, and sets it back down is a proper little mechanism, and it feels great in the hand. At around 35 dollars it is honest fun for the money. If you want a big display piece or motorized functions, this is not that, but as a first real taste of Technic gearing it is hard to beat.

Best for: younger builders (or anyone) wanting their first hands-on Technic gear mechanism

The full review

What it is

This is the first time LEGO has given the Technic line a proper garbage truck, and they picked the real Mack LR Electric as the model, which is a nice touch of realism. It is a side loader, meaning the arm reaches out from the side of the truck, clamps around the bin, lifts it up and over, tips the contents into the hopper, and lowers it back to the curb. Then the whole rear body tilts up to dump the load out the back. Both functions work off the little gear knob on top of the cab, and both actually do what they promise. For a 503 piece set aimed at ages 8 and up, that is more mechanical personality than I expected, and the arm is the part that got me.

The catch

I will be straight with you about where it asks for patience. The side loader is fairly complex for the recommended age, with several gears and a lot of small moving parts, and the instructions do not color code those gear steps as clearly as they could. It is not hard exactly, but it is easy to place a gear a notch off and not notice until the mechanism binds. The other honest caveat is size and scope. This is a small model, there is no motor, and there are no minifigs, so once the novelty of the mechanism settles you are left with a modest desk piece. The front also depends on stickers for the headlights, so if you are a sticker skipper the truck loses a bit of its face.

Who it's for

Get this if you want a first real Technic build that teaches how gears translate motion into something useful, or if you just love working vehicles and want an hour of clever, hands-on assembly. It is a lovely bridge set for a kid moving up from System bricks into Technic, and honestly a nice palate cleanser for an adult between bigger builds. Skip it if you are chasing a large display centerpiece, motorized functions, or minifig play, because none of that is what this truck is about.

The parts story

What the build is actually like, and the pieces worth knowing about.

Building it takes a seasoned builder roughly an hour, and it stays engaging the whole way without tipping into frustration. Most of that hour lives in the side loader assembly, where a cluster of gears, beams, and panels come together into the gripping arm. When you finally turn the knob and watch the arm swing out and clamp, it clicks in a way that feels earned. The four bags of parts also hide a decent stash of gears, beams, and panels, so there is real MOC potential once the truck has had its time on the shelf.

The headline piece is a brand new mold: the Technic Knob Wheel with Axle Hole 45 Degree (element 5405). The classic knob wheel has been around since 1998, but this version rotates the central axle hole 45 degrees, which lets two knob gears sit side by side with their connecting axles aligned, so the gripper arms end up in matching positions. It is a small part with a specific job, and this set is where it debuted. Beyond that you get a welcome amount of white and green Technic elements, plus 4L axles in both black and red, all of which make this a genuinely useful parts pack for the price.

Fun facts

01This is the first garbage truck LEGO has ever produced in the Technic line.
02It introduced a brand new part, the Technic Knob Wheel with the axle hole rotated 45 degrees (element 5405), a twist on a knob wheel design that had gone unchanged since 1998.
03The model is based on a real vehicle, the Mack LR Electric, an actual battery-powered refuse truck built by Mack Trucks.
04BrickEconomy pegs the part-out value near 54 dollars, comfortably above the roughly 35 dollar retail price.