Thanks to an eBay auction in Asheboro, North Carolina (#220267546925), I finally have an ID on those hilarious miniature Camaro kits that I’ve posted a couple of. The seller writes,

The kit was built by KAR Manufacturing Company, of Monson, Massachusetts, owned by Dick & Leroy Shorette, who — back in the day — were as big as Bruce Meyers and George Barris in the dune buggy industry, from the 60’s until 1975, when they were forced by oppressive Federal and Commonwealth regulations to shut down. They built thousands of well-known kit car models, including the “Wildcat”, the “Cheetah” and the “Touring T”.

They also claim that this is one of only five ever made, which I think is probably a little low. Sitting on a shortened ‘63 VW pan, this example is powered by a 1965 140HP Corvair engine with a Corvair powerglide transmission (it’s not mated to the VW transmission). It’s the nicest example of this rare kit that I’ve ever seen with a gorgeous paintjob and a solid interior (dash is out of a Corsa model Corvair, and the windshield is from a ‘66 to ‘69 Corvette). Everything except the gas tank sender works. The t-tops are removable and can be stored behind the rear seats. Inner door panels (not that it has doors) come with the car but are not currently installed.

On one hand this car is sort of cartoonish and silly — with a few changes you’d expect it to be a kiddie car… But on the other hand, I think that’s part of its charm. The asking price is a very fair $3,995 — if you like the look of this toy, now is the time to get it, because you probably won’t see one in this shape for sale again.

Although I’ve seen a couple of these for sale over the years, this heavily “buggified” second-gen Camaro-style body mounted on a shortened VW Beetle chassis (with a secondary tube frame on the rear) is still very rare so I’ve been able to find out very little about it — if anyone knows anything about the history of the manufacturer, please do mention it in the comments. The body is a single piece with no doors (although this example does have removable t-tops) and is finished in a metalflake green. I’m not sure if this one has been modified to fit a new windshield and top, because most of the ones I’ve seen (one, two) are running a flat windshield with no top.

Anyway, Wayne, the current owner, is asking $5,000 — amusing because of course an actual Camaro is dime-a-dozen — or is willing to trade for a beach buggy or motorcycle. He’s located in Manchester, KY, and can be reached at felicia@newwavecomm.net.