Playmobil School Bus Vehicle Playset

Littles love it

This school bus is classic Playmobile quality and is a big hit with the little ones. Our daughter turns 4 soon and this set seems like the perfect fit for her age (the box recommends 4+). I doubt if it would be very interesting much beyond 6-7 years old, and it's not recommended for under 3 years old (unless you remove the mini figures and their tiny backpacks), so that's a pretty tight age window. Age aside, I really like the quality, attention to detail, diversity of the mini figures (skin tones akin to what kids will actually discover in school), and the fact that it *just* makes lights and NO SOUNDS (the pet peeves of every parent are the loud, repetitive toy sounds that were cute the first ≈100 times!).The other thing you should consider for a pretend school bus is that this toy *might* make your pre-school age child EXCITED about getting to ride to school. There's a huge set of fears (separation anxiety) related to leaving home for the first time, so if your youngster is nervous about riding the bus, buying this ahead of time may be a good way to play out and discuss those fears, instead focusing on the excitement of getting to ride a bigger version of a favorite toy!What I like (PROs):• Four great mini figures• Solid construction and nice flashing lights• Trusted company that shouldn't have any lead/toxin issues• Easy AAA battery replacement (no weird lithium button cells); takes 2 standard AAA batteries, which are included and pre-installedNot so great (CONs):• There is really very little to complain about--the collapsing STOP sign seems potentially fragile and *might* break off. If you take out the mini figures for your 2 year old due to choking-hazard concerns, take off this sign as well. I'm really reaching for any cons here--this is a pretty nice little toy.

It’s good quality toy. I also bought the 2022 version of this school bus by Playmobil. The 2022 version is an upgrade. It’s a little more realistic. It also requires a little bit more assembly. One thing that both buses have in common is it the roof is difficult to take off. I gave my kids a butter knife and they figured out how to use it very quickly to pop the roof off whenever they wanted to open the thing up. It has real tires. This version came with batteries already installed. The lights flash, but it doesn’t make any noise, which is a relief to parents. The 2022 version did not come with batteries like this one did. The price was a little bit cheaper, maybe that’s why.

This is made well. As others have said, the little people are a bit difficult to keep seated in the bus. However, I found they WILL hold onto the bus wall seat rail with their little opened hands. Haa. They sort of click into place. That will keep them seated. Additionally, the bus driver (who is difficult to get into place) will hold onto the gear shift with one hand and the steering wheel with the other. Also, the bus top comes off easier if pulled from the short ends, and one end is a bit easier than the other. I put the backpacks away for now, as they are tiny and could cause choking with a 3-yo. Lights are a nice touch and turn themselves off. A horn would have been nice, but considering how children might continue to blast it, maybe better this way. :-)

Update.I just increased the stars from 3 to 4. Left my original narrative unchanged.This was the first toy our 34 month old grandson asked for, on his last visit.Apparently, frustrating or not, he loves it.Original review.School Bus. The bus itself is nice. Good luck trying to get figures to stay in place. Very frustrating.Our nearly 3 year old loves it. The flashing lights, and realistic bus look makes him happy. Our 4 1/2 year old has no interest in it.The shame is, the figures and the bus are nicely detailed. Appears durable except for the door. If you open it, you can’t get it closed. We don’t have problems with the top.The child riders have hands that look like they will grab the bar on the lower seat. They don’t.They need a bar on the back of each seat, for the little hands to grab.Our grandson gave up trying to put the figures in the bus, and asked us.We are equally frustrated.I did get the bus driver in place, his hand grasping the wheel.That frustration drops it to 3 stars.I have 3 more coming. Bought them Black Friday at a good price.Would like to return them unopened.Wish I didn’t buy them.FYI. The toddlers favorite vehicle line is the Driven Line. We have the whole series. The Garbage truck is their favorite.

Great toy! We bought this for a two year old who loved it. The top is very easy to take off. It is also easy to securely put the figures in their seats: If you put their hands down to the side, they latch on to the side of the seat and stay firmly seated. The toy is very sturdy. The two year old can put all of his weigh on the bus as he's pushing it and there's no wobble on the bus--wheels stay aligned and straight. The light up lights are beautiful and look real. The only small parts or the backpacks and baseball caps of the figures and you can easily separate those accessories from the figures.

The media could not be loaded. I am a school bus driver and I actually drive one of these type 2 busses as they’re called. I really wanted to craft my exact bus and this toy was just the perfect thing. I modified a lot of aspects about it and it came out really cool. It’s more than just a toy. Now I own 4 of them 😅