LEGO’s 1967 Ford Mustang is the ultimate gift for the aspiring gearhead

The toy department in your local big box store may be carefully crafted to appeal to actual children, but an important part of the toy industry today is selling relatively expensive toys to former children—AKA adults. Not many kids have the funds to buy a $600 1/6th-scale Jabba the Hutt.

The interlocking plastic building blocks known as LEGOs were invented by Ole Kirk Christiansen in 1932. That means there are at least two generations of adults who grew up with the toys, making a ready market for advanced LEGO sets for a more mature audience. No, LEGO isn’t making anything rated PG or R, they’re making detailed kits to build some of car enthusiasts’ most beloved vehicles.

The latest set is a 1470-part, $150, 13-inch-long 1967 Ford Mustang with accurate details including a hood scoop, five-spoke Cragar style wheels, a galloping Mustang emblem for the grilles, and real rubber tires. It wouldn’t be a model car kit if you couldn’t customize it, so you can change the stance of the car, and add a supercharger, side pipes, decklid and chin spoilers, or even a nitrous tank for the trunk. The ’67 ‘Stang is part of LEGO’s Creator Expert series. The new LEGO Mustang comes in reverse American racing colors, with two white racing stripes over a dark-blue body.

The steering works, and the trunk lid and hood both open up. The latter reveals a detailed Ford V-8 engine with ancillaries. The doors open to reveal a detailed interior with bucket seats, a radio, and a console-mounted gearshift, just like in the original. You can even choose from a selection of license plates.

The Creator Expert 1967 Ford Mustang will be available starting March 1, 2019.

Started in 2011, the Creator Expert series includes a James Bond Aston Martin DB5, a double-decker London Bus, an original Mini Cooper, the Ferrari F40, and two VWs, a Beetle and a ’62 split-window MicroBus. Less elaborate models of the McLaren Senna, the Ferrari F40 Competizione, a ’68 Ford Mustang fastback, and a Chevy Camaro ZL1 in racing trim are available from the LEGO Speed Champions series, along with three sets with two cars, a MOPAR kit with a 2018 Dodge Challenger Demon and 1970 Dodge Charger R/T, a Mini Cooper set with a ’67 Mini Cooper S Rally and a 2018 MINI John Cooper Works Buggy, and a Porsche set with a 911 RSR and 911 Turbo 3.0. Lego Technic offers a Corvette ZR1.