Going through the new paper catalog one of the items which caught my eye was the caravan with car, which is essentially a marriage of sets 5434 (caravan) and 5436 (family SUV), both of which were originally released in 2013. The new set retails for $84.99 in the US. The original caravan went for $47.99, although it was marked down to as low as $19.99 in 2015 (as noted by a member here at the time). I don't know what the original price was on the family SUV.
The reason the new one caught my eye is 5434 and 5436 are both rather expensive NISB on Ebay (especially considering the SUV seems to only surface on Ebay in Europe), so I thought 71423 would be a great substitute... until I started breaking down the pieces and discovered the new set was now missing the following:
- BBQ grill, tongs and food
- Tool set w/6 tools
- Small green base w/plants, stump and RV charging station
- RV charging cord
- Dalmation w/leash
- Toy boat
- Teddy bear
- Baking pan
- Map
- Green apple
- Child's swim floats
- Mother's sunglasses
- and a few other small sundry items
The ONLY addition to the new set? A child seat. Yup, that's it. One extra child seat for the SUV.
Some of the missing items can be found in the new "Family Camper" (70088, which isn't being sold in the US) and "Family BBQ" (71427, which is being sold in the US), but my question is why did PM decide to strip out all the fun details from THIS new version of 5434? It just strikes me as cheap -- which is funny, because the new set is anything BUT cheap at $84.99. I wasn't in love with the new colors (the old bright white and reds of 5434/5436 are better imho), but once I found out they removed so many play elements I decided against buying it. It may take longer and cost more to acquire the old sets, but at least they will have more play value.
