LEGO 31138 Beach Camper Van is a missed opportunity

An upcoming LEGO Creator 3-in-1 set – 31138 Beach Camper Van – may be inspiring déjà vu in long-term fans of the theme.

The LEGO Creator 3-in-1 theme offers a variety of different models for LEGO fans to build, with March giving us plenty to look forward to. Several new sets have been added to LEGO.com ahead of their March 1 release, including a motorcycle, a unicorn and even a trio of dogs.

If you prefer your LEGO sets with minifigures, then 31138 Camper Van might be your best bet. This cheerful scene depicts a van at the beach, complete with a pair of beachgoers and beach huts for them to use. However, older LEGO Creator fans may find it oddly familiar. 

That’s because the set bears an uncanny resemblance to 31079 Sunshine Surfer Van, a LEGO Creator 3-in-1 set released back in 2018. Like its 2023 counterpart, this set depicts a Volkwagen-esque vehicle with a yellow, white and blue colour scheme. It even features a pair of portable seats and a surfboard to ride the waves with. 

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There are, naturally, some points of differentiation; the beach huts in 31138 Beach Camper Van are a particularly nice touch, and the overall design in the newer set is more elegant. But it’s a shame the set didn’t take the opportunity to offer a different colour scheme for its main build.

The likeliest explanation for this design choice is that yellow remains an attractive option for a summery vehicle, and offers a nice point of contrast with the beach huts. However – while LEGO sets are often fairly iterative – it’s unusual for one to resemble a predecessor quite as closely as this one does. If you’re a long-time fan of the LEGO Creator line, you may need to have a think about this one – or hit up the secondary market for a new colour scheme.

If this set doesn’t take your fancy, you can check out the other LEGO Creator 3-in-1 sets – old and new – now available at LEGO.com.

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