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40 of 40 found the following review helpful:
Great interactive toy, but needs some workAug 12, 2008
By AZmom
I was so excited when I first saw this toy. It looked like it came with quite a few of Manny's Tools and my son could actually take things apart and 'fix' them. There are 9 different fixing activities: toaster, clock, camera, fan, radiator, engine, air filter, battery, and spark plug. Most of the parts come completely off of the truck (not the engine or the spark plug). Manny makes suggestions on what to fix, your child may receive a phone call from a client stating that their item is not working properly, or your child can choose. The truck hood opens to fix the engine parts and the bed of the truck converts into Manny's Repair Shop. This set comes with: Rusty (pipe wrench), Felipe (phillips head screwdriver), Squeeze (pliers), Dusty (saw), and a vise. Once a project is completed, Manny congratulates the child on his/her accomplishment.
Here are the problems that I have discovered: 1. The wrench (Rusty) does not work very well. You cannot move him in a circular motion given the tight spaces of the screws. You need to constantly take him off and re-adjust. Therefore, my son opts to use the pliers (Squeeze), but he is not coordinated enough at this age to do so. He becomes frustrated and wants me to fix the item. 2. The saw (Dusty) has no real purpose and is not interactive. A piece of wood sits in the vice and you may freely saw the wood. No instruction is given and it doesn't really fit in with the rest of the toy. 3. Occasionally, Manny states (as he does in his show) to measure it twice and cut it once. However, this toy does not come with a tape measure. Not really sure what we are supposed to measure. It is just a random statement. 4. Where is Manny? There is a front seat that is large enough to store all the parts and still have room for a Manny doll. 5. The roof of the truck cab removes too easily. My son tries to push the truck or lift it by the roof and it pops off. I am constantly having to put it back together.
Overall, my son (and husband) like this toy. We do not watch the show, but it is a unique toy for children who like to try and fix things on their own. I only gave it four stars primarily for the price. We purchased this toy from Target for $55 (less than listed on Amazon), but I still would expect a Manny doll to come with it for the price.
15 of 15 found the following review helpful:
 Best Toy Ever!Oct 17, 2008
By Dan R. Spencer
My son (almost 4 yrs old) saw this on TV and really wanted it. I almost didn't get it because of the price but he was willing to do chores and he put some old toys in a yard sale and even set up a little pop and cookie stand. So it shows up at 2:00 pm and he played with it non-stop until bed. The next day we finally had to tell him to give it a break and play outside for a while. He absolutely loves it. The coolest thing is he now knows where the air filter, spark plugs, battery, and radiator is in Manny's truck. He also knows how to use a screw driver, wrench, hand saw, and pliers. He loves to work on all the little fix-it projects that he gets via the cell phone that came with it. Very cool toy and well worth the $60 bucks I spent. It put away small enough to be out of the way too! So if your kid likes the Handy Manny show, trucks, tools, fixing stuff, toy cell phones, and learning spanish/english words, buy this toy.
6 of 6 found the following review helpful:
 Feeding the obsessionJan 29, 2009
By Langtreats
"langtreats"
My son cannot get enough of Handy Manny. He got this truck from Santa. He likes it, but does not play with it as much as he does his other Handy Manny toys. He actually plays with it more when my 6 year old starts playing it, but I think it is more from the sibling rivalry standpoint rather than true desire to play with it. It is cumbersome to assemble as the workbench, then to put back together as a truck. My son definitely needs help in changing it from one mode to the other, which frustrates him. If you are hedging between the large tool box or this, definitely opt for the tool box.
4 of 4 found the following review helpful:
Pure joy for my 3-year-oldJan 02, 2009
By Jeddy 3
Neither my son nor I know Handy Manny from Adam. Apparently it's a Disney show, but we've never seen it, so I had no particular expectations when he got this toy as a Christmas gift. At first I was skeptical -- it seemed very complicated, with a lot of moving parts and loose pieces, and various voices that seemed to say things at random in English, Spanish, and Spanglish.
How wrong I was. I may have been a little baffled by this truck/tool bench combo, but my kid, who just turned 3, seemed to know intuitively what to do. He immediately started screwing in the "air filter" and "battery" under the hood of the car and adjusting the "spark plugs" with the wrench, etc. The voices, which I had thought were blurting random things, were actually giving instructions. For example, if the child touches the air filter, the voice says, "Okay. Let's fix the air filter!" When the child screws the air filter down, the voice says, "Great! You fixed the air filter!" The constant encouragement is a real boost for my son. There are many, many (Manny, Manny?) things to do with this toy; once the child is bored with fixing the engine, he can scoot the truck around like a regular car or open the back of the truck, which transforms into a workbench covered with items (camera, fan, etc) awaiting "repair." Voices of "customers" tell him what's broken and thank him when he screws in the appropriate piece to repair the item. Interestingly, almost all the voices are Spanish-accented, even when speaking English. I'm guessing this has to do with the show this toy is based on, but it seems a bit odd.
My only complaint is that the cheerful salsa theme songs can get to be a bit much. Thankfully, they're not too loud or offensive, but I wouldn't recommend this for any parent who strongly dislikes salsa music. Fortunately, I've noticed that just when I've reached my temporary limit on hearing chipper voices sing "We work together! Todos juntos!," my son seems to drift away to another toy. All in all, if you have a child who has been looking on longingly while others work with tools and he (or she) is told he's too little to help, this will be a dream come true for both of you.
PS: My son says "They should have hard-hats with this truck." Either he's really safety-conscious, or he just wants to look cool. So, on his recommendation, maybe this would be a fitting accessory.
2 of 2 found the following review helpful:
My son can't get enoughDec 05, 2010
By J. Rud
My son is 2 and I recently purchased this for Christmas. I couldn't wait, so he got it today, which happens to be the day it arrived.
For all those complaining about the top of the cab coming off. I have no doubt there are many intelligent, DIY parent's out there. But I cannot believe so many complained about something I fixed in 5 minutes. Super glue the top on! I did that while my son took a nap, now the top stays on no problem and I will never have to worry about it again.
I'm also surprised so many complained there is no Handy Manny doll with it. If there was, it would have said so on the box. The Handy Manny Let's Get To Work doll is made to fit inside this truck. That was the first gift I purchased for my son on his birthday earlier this year. He loves the doll and the tools, he also loves to fix things, so I knew he would love this toy.
The wrench, Rusty does fit, I used it myself on a few of the pieces, my son mimicked me no problem. He has also used the piers, Squeeze, on a few things. Phillipe is his favorite but that is because he's used real screw drivers and other various tools helping Grandpa in the garage. Dusty, the saw, is another favorite. He loves putting the piece of wood in the vice and sawing it. The wood stayed in no problem and the vice didn't move from the bench.
As for the plastic being flimsy, not at all! My son has sat on the truck and it doesn't flinch. The wheels are also great and roll no problem on the carpet of the living room. I bought ours from amazon, after checking the date on the instructions it is from 2008, so I don't know if mine is a newer version than some out there or if I'm out of the loop in terms of "great plastic" for toys. But I have a hard time imagining my son would break this easily at all.
I have no doubt my son is going to get hours and hours of enjoyment from this toy. Just from watching me he all ready knows how to change it from a tool bench to a truck. He needs a little help here and there but that's my job! I enjoy Handy Manny and am thankful there is a show on that I don't get sick of, all the fun characters and Manny's always happy and polite disposition are a great start to our day!
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