A new LEGO flotation ring accessory is on the way in 2025, and the designers had both toilet seats and Batman in mind when figuring out how to produce it.
Debuting across both LEGO Minifigures 71051 Series 28 Animals and LEGO City’s Coast Guard sets in January 2026, the new flotation ring is a dual-moulded minifigure accessory that will come in two colours at launch: orange and white, and pink and white. But while Minifigures is often a treasure trove of new accessories, the design for this one actually originated in the LEGO City team.
It also isn’t the first flotation ring (or device) in LEGO, but those that have come before, and their own restrictions and limitations, heavily influenced the approach the designers took to this one. The first and perhaps most unlikely guiding hand for the new piece was from The LEGO Batman Movie’s first Collectible Minifigures series, which features a yellow rubber duck ring for its Vacation Batman character.
“We looked into loads of stuff for this,” LEGO City Design Manager Chris Stamp told New Elementary. “So if you remember a few years ago, we did the rubber ring with the duck in LEGO Batman, that went around the waist. The problem with that is that it's great for minifigures, but it doesn't look great on the side of a model, because you've got the leg connector in the middle of the ring.”
The alternative element that the LEGO Group has used for many years as a flotation device – including as recently as 2024 in LEGO City in 60419 Police Prison Island – is part number 30340, which has been in production since 1999 and which Chris affectionately refers to as the ‘toilet seat’. That has its own limitations, however, which the team hoped to solve with the new piece.
“If you look at the history of the toilet seat and where that's used, it's always on the side of buildings or next to the beach or on the side of a vehicle because it can't fit a minifigure hand,” Chris added. “So this one, we said that it needs to look great in the minifigure’s hand, on the side of a vehicle, or a model.”
The new element for 2026 features a small bar cut-out that allows it to be held by minifigures, or otherwise attach to clip elements. That simple adjustment makes it far more versatile than either of the previous pieces – although Chris acknowledged that while it can ‘wrap around the waist of a mini-doll, because they've got such a tiny waist… it can't wrap around the waist of a minifigure’.
Versatility is very much the order of the day for LEGO City in 2026, not only with this new flotation device but also with the minifigure badge accessory that’s debuting in 60502 Airport with Airplane (printed there with a Sunflower Lanyard design). Head here to read more about that piece and how it’s building towards a ‘completely inclusive city’.
You’ll find the new flotation ring piece in 71051 Series 28 Animals, 60503 Coast Guard Helicopter and
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