MOTORWORKS Customizable Vehicles and Tri-Level Garage {Review & Giveaway}

One would think that, by this point, I would be able to design or describe my girls' ideal toy. The one that would combine the quality and educational aspects that I look for with the entertainment and imaginative properties that they love.

But, I can't.

There are times that I think that we've come close... but then I'll find that particular item discarded and ignored a few weeks later, same as all the rest because, as with everything else, it remained static. The same. Fixed. Unchanging. My girls' creativity kept on going, but the toy remained... stagnant.

And then a set of MOTORWORKS customizable vehicles and the Tri-Level Super Garage arrived and we discovered the difference when playing with toys where the fun never stops.

Designed for ages 3 and up (due to the removable small pieces), Manhattan Toy's new MOTORWORKS line of vehicles, accessories and play sets take traditional "playing with cars" and gives it a modern, interactive twist.

Each of the three different trim levels of MOTORWORKS vehicles — Street Series, Speed Series and Extreme Series — starts with a sleek, modern, detailed European beech wood body. But then, instead of adding flashing lights, beeping sounds or batteries of any kind, the wide assortment of interchangeable pieces turn regular cars into custom rides limited only by imagination.

With everything from car decals to monster wheels to spoilers, young builders simply snap their own selection of colorful parts and pieces into place (either those that come with the vehicle or from a separate accessory kit or different vehicle), and they are able to make them their own.

Interested to see how much my girls would enjoy being able to create and re-create their own cars time and time again, when the STS Stealth Police Cruiser, FSX Monster Truck, Police Pursuit 1.0 Accessory Kit and Tri-Level Super Garage arrived, we were all clamoring to get started building.

As the girls began to eagerly examine the vehicles, I was pleased to see that Manhattan Toy had made the Tri-Level Super Garage very intuitive and easy to put together.

With the help of the well-labeled parts and pieces and the clear, step-by-step instructions...

...it didn't take more than around 15 or 20 minutes before I had the entire thing complete and ready for play.

With three different levels, a working elevator and more than 30 repositionable decals, this solidly constructed, nearly-all wood ramp was instantly the site of all future MOTORWORKS tales, stories and pretend play.

While both girls expressed their awe over the colors and quality of the Tri-Level Super Garage, they really couldn't get enough of all of the possibilities that came along with the MOTORWORKS vehicles.

You can just pull them apart? And replace this piece with any other piece that I want? It's all up to me?

In stark contrast to the majority of kids' toys that have set directions and instructions, the open-ended, innovative aspects of these vehicles truly stimulate their minds to come up with new ways to redesign them over and over!

I love watching Big Sister E and Little Sister B play together with these MOTORWORKS toys and hear the ideas and interpretations that they come up with one minute after the next.

They'll be right in the middle of a make-believe episode about the cars living on the different levels of the Super Garage when Little Sister B will stop, pull the wheels off of her STS Stealth Police Cruiser, and replace them with others.  

Because they needed to be changed, she'll tell me confidently, as Big Sister E nods in agreement.

Then, in the course of the story continuing, I'll shake my head in amazement as Big Sister E manages to turn her FSX Monster Truck from monster truck form...

...into some sort of hybrid police drag racer...

...and then into a regular pickup truck, all in about five minutes.

No, really. Can these vehicles get any cooler?

Not once during the hours of playtime and numerous times that my girls have returned to play with their MOTORWORKS vehicles and Super Garage have they even remotely seemed to notice that these toys aren't sparkly or that they don't play music and that they don't move on their own. Because who needs that when your imagination is the driving force for an extremely good time?

For a short demonstration of the continuing fun that MOTORWORKS has provided more times than I can count, take a peek at this unique collection in action:


No matter what style, design or form of car or truck your child prefers, it exists in the Manhattan Toy MOTORWORKS line-up... not to mention that it can then be customized and personalized to create even more of a perfect fit.

Best of all, the whole collection is extremely affordable, as the initial vehicles are priced from $13.99 to $29.99 (two-pack vehicle sets). Accessories start at $4.99 and the Tri-Level Super Garage, the largest item in the collection, sells for $100 (and is sure to be an investment that will last for years and years to come).

To find out much more about all of the entertainment and infinite possibilities that MOTORWORKS can provide, visit DrivenByFun.com and connect with Manhattan Toy on Facebook and Twitter.

Plus, thanks to their generosity, one person will soon get to see just how many ways that the child in their life can turn a single vehicle into the coolest rides around, because...

One lucky person will win their choice of MOTORWORKS 

vehicle AND accessory pack (ARV $31.98)!

Entry-Form

A big thank you to Manhattan Toy for providing the above products for me to review as well as the vehicle and accessory kit of choice for one lucky giveaway winner. The opinions shared are my own and honest and if you really need to see more, click here to see how I roll.