Fauxrarris And Other Kit Car Replica Shite

[warren t claim]

Sadly I have a soft spot for fake supercars which has haunted me for the last 30 years or so. 

 

Here's a typical rolling abortion.

 

 

A snip at £20,000

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/LAMBORGHINI-COUNTACH-REPLICA/253743267114?hash=item3b1446fd2a:g:pFsAAOSwhOpbRLsN

 

Some have a slightly better image than others. Although the Pontiac Fiero has been rebodied many times the Mero was carried out at Pontiac dealers.

 

http://www.fiero.net/mera/article.html

 

One of my favourites and they have a strong following today.

 

Here's a classic McBurnie Daytona replica. To an 80s throwback like myself these are pure porn as it was McBurnie who made the fake Daytona used in Miami Vice.

 

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1980-Replica-Kit-Makes-DAYTONA-SPYDER-365-GTB/223055971422?hash=item33ef2c045e:g:1C0AAOSw5mpbRWib&vxp=mtr

 

This looks quite tasty and to be honest if I had the money...

 

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1998-Replica-Kit-Makes-Ferrari-F355-Berlinetta-Coupe/283057095438?hash=item41e784830e:g:MuYAAOSwetxbHUFd&vxp=mtr

 

 

 

[Sigmund Fraud]

Some have a slightly better image than others.

 

...and others don't :

 

 

[Talbot]

Not a replica of anything, but I own the majority of one of these:

 

 

It was my daily driver for a little while back in 1997/1998, and was utter shit. I grenaded two type-2 bus engines in it, It leaked like a sieve, could barely see out of it, it broke down more times than I can remember, and was utterly impractical.

 

Still brilliant though. It's barely a shell now, as the Beetle running gear became too valuable, so I sold those bits with a view to building a tubular chassis of my own. I still may one day..

[sierraman]

There's kit cars and there's kit cars. There's the Dutton Sierra type rough as a badgers arse slipshod jobs made out of dead Escorts and then at the other extreme there is stuff like those hand crafted Daytona replicas.

 

The worst thing is someone stood back and looked at that TR7 undoubtedly after many many hours of work and thought "Shit that looks great!"

[Pillock]

I think I'd love a Nova.

 

They're ridiculous, but fun ridiculous. Those FerrariMR2s are trying too hard but a Nova screams "yeah, what of it?"

[Sigmund Fraud]

I much prefer original design kitcars to replicas, the Nova above is such a cool car and the same can be said of many others !

 

This Belgian APAL Coupe, for instance, is super-fit and looks far better than the dull Porsche replicas the company also made :

 

 

Having said that, there are many replicas that work well :

 

 

The Sbarro 328, for instance, retains the spirit of the original car but uses modern (modern in the 1980s !) running gear to add performance, reliability and practicality.

 

 

The Intermeccanica Kubelwagen is another example, with a build quality that exceeds that of not only the originals but also anything that has rolled off the production lines at Zuffenhausen.

[Supernaut]

Stolen from the ebay thread.

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ferrari-Dino-Replica-Kit-Car-Red-Project-Spares-Or-Repairs-Classic/113147564441?hash=item1a581ed199:g:1t0AAOSwVxpbSGzG

 

[Fat_Pirate]

Stolen from the ebay thread.

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ferrari-Dino-Replica-Kit-Car-Red-Project-Spares-Or-Repairs-Classic/113147564441?hash=item1a581ed199:g:1t0AAOSwVxpbSGzG

 

I sort-of knew Adrian Flux's son in the '80s and he knocked about in one of these.  Whenever he referred to his' Ferrari' I would feign ignorance and ask if he meant that 'plastic beetle thing', much to his annoyance.  I imagine he can afford the genuine item now.

[Volksy]

A chap I know decided to build one of the 355 replicas built on a Fiero.

 

He was quite the perfectionist and hired a real 355 to take measurements off to make his look more correct. Unfortunatley as well as being a perfectionist he was also a lunatic and then proceeded to sink vast sums of money into the project, race tuned engine, fully leather trimmed bespoke interior, proper 355 wheels, bespoke suspension arms so the wheels sat right etc etc etc..

 

He never finished it, and after about ten years, he bought a real 355 for around the same sum that he had thrown at the replica. I think I did see the replica on sale on the Bay for around 10k as an unfinished project.. No idea if it sold like....

[Matt]

There's some good ones too.

 

This is a Mazda MX-5 Zero Mazda by Great British Sports Cars. It's clearly a Lotus 7 / Caterham lookalike but I think it look good.

 

This is a Mazda MX-5 SPR1 by Widow Sports Cars. The headlight arrangement is basically the same as an Ascari but those are obscure enough to the point that it doesn't matter.

 

This is a Mazda MX-5 Manta Ray by Simpson Design. (I can't find a high-res photo of the front)

 

This is a Mazda MX-5 Catfish by Baur Ltd.

[Aston Martin]

There's a Dino kitted 911 Turbo on eBay.

 

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Porsche-911-turbo-Dino-bodied-total-one-off-car-Alloy-upper-body-/163122223442

[Talbot]

after about ten years,

This is the main problem with replicas. If you wait a bit* the genuine article may come down in price enough to make the replica pointless, and hence completely valueless. See Banham X99 for details.

 

That said, the genuine article may then go up in value somewhat again, making the replica marginally* more cost effective. Mrs. Talbot has often commented that she would like a frog-eye sprite. They are eye-wateringly expensive, but I think there is a replica available for a much more reasonable* price.

[Supernaut]

There's a Dino kitted 911 Turbo on eBay.

 

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Porsche-911-turbo-Dino-bodied-total-one-off-car-Alloy-upper-body-/163122223442

WTF?!

 

 

 

 

 

Also, the Mazda MX-5 SPR1 is ace! It looks like a mini TVR Sagaris. Love it.

[Guest Hooli]

Also, the Mazda MX-5 SPR1 is ace! It looks like a mini TVR Sagaris. Love it.

 

Indeed, that one looks great.

[vulgalour]

Best way to get a Frogeye Sprite is to buy a Midget, throw away the rusty bits, and replace it all with the fibreglass Frogeye conversion kit.  You end up with a car that handles better and rusts less than the thing it's trying to be and the thing you built it on.  They're fairly convincing too, and a fraction of the cost/liability of the genuine article.

[Felly Magic]

Here's an AutoKraft Daytona replica that was built in Wakefield, it even had a Ferrari engine, I dread to think how much it cost, rumour has it that the measurements were so perfect on this, that many body panels would fit the real car

 

[Bradders59]

I would like an Alfa V6 engined stratos replica. Cant see it happening anytime soon though.

[Dirk Diggler]

Best way to get a Frogeye Sprite is to buy a Midget, throw away the rusty bits, and replace it all with the fibreglass Frogeye conversion kit.  You end up with a car that handles better and rusts less than the thing it's trying to be and the thing you built it on.  They're fairly convincing too, and a fraction of the cost/liability of the genuine article.

This made me remember James Ruppert doing just that 20 years ago in CAR; then its role in this video

 

https://youtu.be/6KxtgS2lU94

[sierraman]

I've a road test in am old Top Gear of a Frogeye replica, GRP body with a K Series mated to an FSO gearbox. Made in isle of wight iirc.

[Scruffy Bodger]

Sometimes kit cars allow you to do daft things with them you might not want to do to an original?

 

 

 

My mate did a colour change on that a while back. I think it's still waiting on its new engine?

[Sir Snipes]

I really like those MX5 and Z3 based 60/70s GT replica things. Some of them look really good, especially when they don't pretend to be anything other than what they are.

[bezzabsa]

Stolen from the ebay thread.

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ferrari-Dino-Replica-Kit-Car-Red-Project-Spares-Or-Repairs-Classic/113147564441?hash=item1a581ed199:g:1t0AAOSwVxpbSGzG

 

That is TRULY gopping!!!!

 

reminds me of the fad in the 90's of throwing a 6R4 bodykit on any metro in range...but failing to get the correct wheels, so big chunky kit, sat on 145x12" wheels!!!

 

edit - here ya go!!

[Guest Hooli]

That is TRULY gopping!!!!

 

reminds me of the fad in the 90's of throwing a 6R4 bodykit on any metro in range...but failing to get the correct wheels, so big chunky kit, sat on 145x12" wheels!!!

 

 

See also Dimma/reiger kitted anything. The difference being, they also looked shit even with big wheels.

[fordperv]

That is TRULY gopping!!!!

 

reminds me of the fad in the 90's of throwing a 6R4 bodykit on any metro in range...but failing to get the correct wheels, so big chunky kit, sat on 145x12" wheels!!!

 

edit - here ya go!!

See also 3 door cosworth replica and escort cosworth replica

[sierraman]

That Metro looks like it could float.

[bezzabsa]

SOME cossie replicas were quite well done.....others, erm, well not so much!! LOL

[Guest Hooli]

That Metro looks like a floater.

 

FTFY

[Supernaut]

That is TRULY gopping!!!!

 

reminds me of the fad in the 90's of throwing a 6R4 bodykit on any metro in range...but failing to get the correct wheels, so big chunky kit, sat on 145x12" wheels!!!

 

edit - here ya go!!

That adorned the front page of Barryboys for the entire 6 years I was a member.

[Talbot]

That adorned the front page of Barryboys for the entire 6 years I was a member.

Likewise. It summed up the ethos of the forum quite well. I often wonder how many people who were on there in the early/mid 00's are now members here.

[chatsharris]

That was a BarryBoys Shed Of The Year and everything.