LEGO City 60163 Coast Guard Starter Set review

After a brief hiatus as a LEGO City subtheme, the popular Coast Guard range is back. But is the starter set enough to get you hooked?

Price: £8.99 / $9.99 / €9.99 Pieces: 76 Available: Now

Coming in just above the entry level price point, LEGO City Coast Guard is given the ‘Starter Set’ treatment that has been gracing the City range since 2015. A lifeguard tower, small ATV, three minifigures, and a shark are included – but is it worth spending pocket money on?

As you might expect in 60163 Coast Guard Starter Set, there is nothing challenging whatsoever in the assembly of any of the builds, but packing in a vehicle and a small land-based build with so few pieces can’t have been that easy for the designer. The coast guard tower is simple but uses the white 1×2 bricks with handle effectively as a ladder at the back. The classic white/orange/blue colour motif, consistent across all coast guard sets, is represented in just a few pieces but it’s enough to place it within the theme. A yellow rubber ring is also situated on the outer side of the wall, though I’m not entirely sure how the lifeguard is meant to reach it if the need should arise…

When disaster strikes slightly further afield, your minifigures will appreciate an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) in order to get them to the scene of the incident quickly. Again the colour scheme is mostly white with subtle hints of blue and orange along with a printed (yes, not a sticker) Coast Guard logo on the front of the bonnet. A roll cage on a hinge can be opened/closed to allow a minifigure to be positioned more easily in front of the small steering wheel and a large red surf/body board is resting on the top ready for when duty calls. A small area on the back could be used for storage though it looks like a more convenient spot to perch a second minifigure. It’s not the most aesthetically pleasing ATV that the LEGO Group has ever done, especially from the front view, but it’s still fun to zoom around and would fit in well to a beach scene without much need to change it, unless you really felt the urge.

 

60163 Coast Guard Starter Set contains three minifigures that are bound to be welcome for any generic LEGO display. Whilst not exclusive in the way that super hero characters are, they can easily be customised and bought in multiples to build a bigger team of coastguards.

The female coast guard has a nicely printed shirt torso and features a very small Coast Guard logo on the left pocket. Unfortunately, there is no printing on the legs, though there probably isn’t much the designers could add. Her face print is a very useful female head with glasses, but it’s one sided printing only. She also comes with a pair of binoculars and a walkie-talkie as accessories. The ATV driver is seen wearing a lifejacket, but underneath has a nice dark red/orange wet suit, again featuring the Coast Guard logo on. There is no hair piece for him, but I’m a big fan of pieces in dark red, so getting a cap in that colour is quite pleasing. The third minifigure is the floppy-haired surfer who no doubt gets in trouble when finding himself in deep waters with a rogue shark. Did I mention this set also comes with a shark?

Everybody loves LEGO sharks, so if you were on the fence about this Starter Set before, this might help your decision. The surfer’s lime green/black wet suit is fairly plain but has a nice bit of printing on the back with a silver zip. He also comes with a matching lime green surfboard that has only appeared in two other sets previously.

It’s easy to negatively judge a set of this size, dismissing it straight away as there are certainly far more exciting sets out there. That said, I found myself quite enjoying it once I’d built it five minutes later. Starter Sets serve as a gateway to discovering the wider theme and this has some nice qualities to it which will almost definitely leave the builder wanting to experience more from the Coast Guard range.

This set was provided for review by the LEGO Group.

60163 Coast Guard Starter Set is available now from shop.LEGO.com. You can help support Brick Fanatics’ work by using our affiliate links.