Playz V8 Combustion Engine Model Kit That Runs - Build Your Own STEM Mini V8 Model Engine Kit for Adults & Kids Age 12+, Visible V8 Mini Engine Kit That Works for Adult w/ 270 STEM Parts

I bought the Playz V8 Combustion Engine Model Kit That Runs as a hands-on project, and overall it delivered on what it promised: a legit working model of a V8 engine with moving pistons and belts. Watching it run after you finish building it is genuinely satisfying. The good: • It actually runs. The pistons, crankshaft, and belt system move like a real engine, which is awesome for learning how everything connects. • Great STEM-style project. This is way more engaging than a normal model kit. • Fun to build with someone else. It’s a solid bonding project if you’re doing it with a kid, teen, or even another adult. The not-so-great: • The instructions could be clearer in a few steps. Some parts are tiny, and one mistake early on can cause issues later. • A couple of pieces felt a little flimsy. Nothing broke, but the plastic quality isn’t premium. • This is not a “quick build.” It takes patience and a steady hand. Bottom line: If you enjoy building things and don’t mind a bit of trial and error, this is a really fun and educational kit with a great payoff at the end. Just don’t expect it to feel like a high-end model or to be easy for younger kids without help. Would I buy it again? Yeah—just with the expectation that it’s more of a project than a toy.

Bought this for my son for Christmas. He enjoyed every part of it; from the level of difficulty to put together to the clear parts that allowed viewing the internal workings of a v8 engine. Had a small issue up arrival, but customer service went the extra mile to solve it quickly and beyond what was needed. The set itself gets 5 stars, would rate customer service 6 if I could. Highly recommend.

This is a good model if you take it for what it is. I learned a lot about how a V8 engine works. It took about six hours to build due to some mistakes. I learned about the 4 stroke cycle and could see it in action. I also learned about how the cam shaft rotates the pistons and why timing is so important in an engine. Thus, if you are only wanting to learn how a combustion engine works, without relation to a car, this is really good. As stated, I learned a lot. I will talk about the model build and then some weaknesses below. Building the model: The instructions give you the guidelines to build the engine. It took me about six hours to builkd including mistakes. Once in a while the instructions are vague which could lead to mistakes, or at least it did for me. But, the mistakes were good as I learned about the engine build from those mistakes. The parts fit together relatively easily. There are some parts requiring patience. The plastic parts sometimes need to be filed when removed from the plastic frames to make them fit correctly, but I am sure that is true of any plastic model. One plastic piece does have a thin tip and broke while removing it from the frame. I contacted customer service and they are replacing the piece, but I just continued without it as I didn't want to wait to finish the model. When finished the model is powered by batteries, instead of gasoline. The model does show the turning of the pistons and the timing of the spark plugs and valves extremely well. As another reviewer stated, it would be nice if there was a way to turn off the artificial engine noises. Overall, I learned a lot about an engine. Weaknesses: Well, it doesn't really show you how a V8 engine works in relation to a car. For instance, I have no idea how oil is circulated through the engine. I don't know how the radiator is involved in cooling. It doesn't have any indication as to how it might connect to a transmission. It also doesn't really show how the battery and alternator might work together with the engine. Now, what I will say is the model never claimed to do these things. But, if you are looking for those types of things, you might want to select a different model.

Great product for Grandpa and grandson

Playz V8 Combustion Engine Model Excellent service and enjoyable learning experience – do not hesitate to buy! Purchased as a Christmas gift for my 11-year-old nephew. During assembling he noted that one of the connecting rods and connecting rod cap was missing and stopped building. His mom attempted to contact Playz but received no response – I suspect that she was using the QR code method or missed their reply, do not know. About month later I reached out to Playz support via their email and received a response from them within 24 hours. Within 72 hours of forwarding the details needed - Playz support had agreed to send on the missing parts and MUCH more! Playz support did ask for: • Amazon order ID or Website purchase ID • A clear photo of the missing part marked in the instruction manual (already sent) • Your full shipping address (if different from the one sent above) • The email address used for warranty registration We received FULL replacement kit in a couple of days. Please note Playz did state it would be 5-7 days but it was much quicker. Nephew re-started the build – he had to rework a few steps but that is part of the learning process. Once completed he took pictures and videos and shared with the family and his friends. Both he and I were proud of his work and patience. All and all, outstanding support and fun project!

Pretty straight forward build. Lots of little screws with a magnetic screwdriver provided. Camshafts were tricky to assemble, consists of two steel shafts( two cams) with a flat grind one side of the shaft. The cam lobes are stacked on this rod in a certain order. One side is DACBBCAD The other side 87654321.Numbers on the cam lobes hard to read. So far no problem.The problem comes in toward the end of the engine assembly. After installing the electric drive motor, and “spark plugs” it asks you to Test the engine. Engine ran for 3 seconds before cam drive gears fell off the cams as there is no mechanisms to control the end play of the cam steel drive shaft, so the inner steel shaft walked out of the cam lobes, cam drive gears fell off decoupling the cams, preventing them from turning. Had to take part of engine back apart to correct.. Ended up using JB Quick to carefully glue the cam drive gears to the solid shaft of the cams . Also the toothed drive belt is molded in an oval shape which results in choppy operation .So stars from me, but overall ok, just expect problems with the cams.

It is not often I take time out of my busy schedule to leave a product review, but I was so overwhelmed by the exceptional way this seller, PLAYZ, handled an annoying situation, that I had to. My husband ordered the V8 Combustion Engine Model Kit to put together with our 8 year old grandson. We own a car repair shop so it was an especially exciting idea, so he could "fix car engines just like Grampa does". They got more than 1/2 of the way into it & there was a broken piece in one of the sealed plastic bags. I emailed the company & they got back to me immediately, requesting a little more information. The very next day their very sweet customer service rep, Rachel, emailed me they have already sent us an entire brand new kit, at no charge to us. I was overwhelmed. I had expected I would have to jump through flaming hoops to even have the one small part sent, & that they would at least charge me shipping. But they went waaaay over & above, and I was especially impressed with the kind personal emails from Rachel besides the fact that they were sending a whole kit at no expense to us. Now maybe my husband & grandson can invent a new engine with all the extra parts we got for FREE!!!!! I always wondered if these kind of comments that companies post are real, but you can be sure this one certainly is!!! PLAYZ IS THE BEST!!!!!

I’m a homeschooling mama of 5, and This seemed like a cool product for a shop project when the kids didn’t want to work in the real shop since it’s still so hot out. I had my older 2 boys start to put it together. They are 14 and 16 and love to work with real tools in a real shop. They thought it looked nerdy, but I thought it would be a great way for them to learn the inner workings of an engine. Besides the fact that it’s not a combustion engine(obviously, cause it’s plastic!) it seems to operate like a real engine. I loved that they give a quick overview of how the engine will work and a few pictures of how the intake works (pictured). As they started to put it together they got aggravated because it doesn’t have any written instructions. I THOUGHT this would be great since my 14 yo is dyslexic and hates to read, but he pointed out that since no pieces are marked, you have to search through everything to find a specific piece instead of just grabbing the appropriate piece and putting it in place. (Included pictures of instructions and pieces laid out as they come.) After they laid out all the pieces separated from the plastic sheet they were attached to, they could see all the pieces easier, but it would have been better if the pieces or bags were marked in some way for identification purposes. There were a couple instances where they had to figure out which screw to use because it didn’t say which one, and they all look very similar (picture of 2 types of screws included). The main problem with this set is that there are little nubs where you detach the small pieces from the plastic sheet they come on. (Close up picture included) Those little nubs get in the way of putting the tiny pieces in tiny holes. You need to file the nub off to make them fit. After filing the nubs off some of the small dowels still don’t fit quite perfectly into the place they are supposed to, and you have to really jam them in. My boys got board with it and I am now working on finishing it with my 11 and 8 year olds. Overall, I think when it is complete it will be a neat project. I like that the body is translucent so you can see the inner workings as it runs. It is expensive, but if you look at all the other plastic toys around it is comparable in price.