Lightning McQueen

"Lightning McQueen in Speed Champions is a bold concept with a genuinely inventive build, but the stickered eyes, absent minifigure, and premium pricing land it squarely in Mixed Reviews territory at a BrickScore of 71.3 Owners rate it 4.8 out of 5 across 1,766 ratings, so Cars fans who buy it are rarely disappointed, but critics are harder to please."

Four expert reviewers land in genuinely split territory on Lightning McQueen (77255), producing a BrickScore of 71.3 that earns a Mixed Reviews tier. Two reviewers praised the advanced build techniques and the impressive brick-built smile, while two others scored it in the mid-to-low 60s and flagged it as overpriced for a set with no minifigure and 21-22 stickers. Owner ratings tell a very different story: 1,766 buyers across Amazon, Walmart, and Target give it an average of 4.8 out of 5, suggesting Cars and Speed Champions fans are far happier than critics.

Where they split: The core split is between reviewers who scored it 72-80 and found the build experience rewarding and the result charming, versus those who scored it 55-65 and focused on the sticker-heavy execution, absent minifigure, and proportions that fall short of the cartoon source. Jay's Brick Blog recommends buying now; JANG recommends waiting for a sale; RacingBrick recommends skipping.