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.
There’s a Bremen Sebring project car up for sale on eBay (#140255718617) right now in Marshall, Texas (where that nice Aztec 7 is also up). I think at $3,500 it’s probably overpriced, although given that it’s sat since purchased and is covered in a mountain of dust, it’s hard to tell. The buyer had intended to convert it to electric, but never ended up doing anything… For someone willing to tackle it, the current driveline has potential as it’s a rotary engine out of an RX-7.
A nice looking Fiberfab Aztec 7 with a great light treatment (redesigned front pods and an array of lights across the back) just got posted to eBay (#140255352417) in Marshall, Texas. The rear bumper/hatch is freshly repaired (as you can see in the pictures), so it will need to be repainted, the speedometer cable needs replacing, and a short somewhere in the electrical system is draining the battery, but other than that it’s said to be a solid car. It’s on a ‘71 VW pan with a Ghia motor (which they’d planned to convert to electric, but at 54mpg highway mileage, why bother?), but is currently registered as an ‘82 (presumably when the car was completed). One of the side windows has a crack in it, which the seller estimates as a $200 repair, but since it’s just flat plexi, it should actually cost quite a bit less than that — only the front windshield in an Aztec 7 is an expensive repair since it’s out of a Lamborghini Muira. The car comes with manuals and paperwork (receipts, letters, etc) and is up with a “buy it now” price of $4,800 which seems like about the right price for this car.
Up for sale right now in Payson, Arizona, is John’s Kellison GT-40K, one of the rarest and most authentic GT-40 inspired kit cars made in the late sixties. This one sits — 4′3″ — on a ‘68 VW Beetle pan, and for a forty year old car it looks pretty good. Everything seems to work and the car runs, but one of the 4-to-5 lug wheel adapters broke so that’ll have to be fixed before it’s driven, and minor touches will need to be done including windshield wipers, speedometer cable, and minor wiring. It’s on eBay right now (#290250477431) and you can also email John at johnfkrause@yahoo.com — he’s asking $7,000.
Not that it makes a big difference, but this Fiberfab Avenger GT-12 Kit is mounted on a 1971 VW Karmann Ghia pan with an 1835cc engine. It has the tilt front and rear (which can be completely removed in about ten minutes for maintenance), front disk brakes, roll up windows, full gauges, and CD stereo. On the whole everything works, although it could use some touches like proper weatherstripping, inner fenders, more sound insulation, and tweaking of a couple of the senders. The current owner is 6′2″, so drop-floors were added. The trunk stores tools, a floor jack and a high pressure compact spare mounted on a VW rim.
The car is located near Disneyland in California and is currently on eBay (#280250061617).
Due to immigration of the owner, the original Tornado demo car of their Mclaren M6GTR replica is for sale in Oxfordshire, UK (eBay #120288988375). It seems to be in great shape with a current MOT, and a new 440 HP 357 V8 and 21 Turbo transmission, and a recent year-long conversion giving it fixed headlights and a rear end modification (take a look at the previously posted Tornado to see what a difference it makes).
Up on eBay right now in Michigan (#260267705177) is a stunning tribute to the Cody Coyote from Hardcastle and McCormick built on the tube chassis version with the Pontiac Grand Am 3300 engine and an automatic transmission. Four wheel disc brakes, adjustable suspension (Mustang II front), and a Dakota Digital dash, modern stereo system, a Vintage air AC system, and a rear-mounted rad that keeps the car cool. As part of the Coyote conversion, the top half of the doors have been been removed, so the car is now a full-time open targa… If you’re alright with this, this is one of the nicest Montages on the road, although I think that with a buy it now price of $59,900 it’s extremely unlikely to sell, although it does have a “make an offer” link (personally I think it’s worth around $25,000).
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