Life-size working Lego car built in Australia

It's the stuff children dream about. A crowd-sourced project by an Australian man and a Romanian teenager has made driving a car built with 500,000 Lego bricks a reality.

The life-sized two-seater has a top speed of 30 km per hour (20 mph) and is powered by four orbital engines with 256 pistons - all made of Lego - that run on compressed air. The car was designed by entrepreneur Steve Sammartino and Romanian tech guru Raul Oaida through a crowd-funding venture via Twitter.

"I wanted to do something interesting that shows there are a myriad of possible innovations for cars. We wanted to be an example to open people's minds," Sammartino told Australian media. "It's something the car industry needs."

The yellow and black car, designed like a hotrod, took 20 months to complete. Apart from structural gear such as the wheels, tyres, gauges and load-bearing components, only Lego bricks were used. Forty Australians supported the "Super Awesome Micro Project" campaign and the car was built in Romania before being shipped to Melbourne for finishing touches.