Mystery Laser 917D in Toronto

A while back I had a really lucky day when it came to car sightings… first I followed a Pantera down the street, and then a stunning V8-based Manta Montage. Finally I noticed a VW-based D-type Laser 917 in a state of slight disrepair sitting in a driveway near Eglington Ave. West and Jane St. in Toronto… I stopped to see if I could find the owner, but no luck.

Unfortunately, like too many kits, it’s sitting in the dirt with tailpipes full of mud… I left a note on the car, but never got a call, so if you know anything about this car, drop me a line.

Yes, this means that I have no ethical obligation to trespassing when it comes to seeing kit cars.

No point in breaking the habit now. Again, if you’re reading this and one of these is or was your car and you’ve got an update, please write me with some pictures. Let’s start with Bill Barker’s in-progress Laser 917C #592:

Here’s another C-series, #636:

Here’s one with a mystery owner; it was spotted by a friend in Kingston, Ontario, Canada:

Anyway, I’ve got tons more Lasers to post… but I’ll leave them for another day.

Since I seem to be on a Laser 917 kick, let me share with you some old ads so you can get an idea of what they sell for (well, sold for in the nineties, not that they’ve really gone up). If any of you own (or have owned) these ones, drop me a line.

I had to follow up on the previous Laser 917 post with a couple more photos because Barry’s car is just so nice. Check it out:

Those of you who know how “kit car” the Laser 917 A-series looked can see the massive effort that’s gone into making this vehicle into something far more “production” looking that most.

I was really wowed when Barry from San Diego sent me this photo and description of his car. It’s a series A Laser 917 (serial number unknown), although you can see that extensive body work has been done. The core chassis is Porsche 914, as is the built 5-speed transmission, and the suspension and brakes are Porsche 911. To top it all off, it’s powered by a Chevy 350 V8 — this is almost certainly the fastest and best handling Laser 917A on the street.

Oh, and he’s running Potenza tires and a custom interior…. I should post more pictures of his supercar I think!

George Parker’s Laser 917A is serial number 005 (thus not only is if the first of about five variations on the car’s design, but it’s the fifth Laser 917 of any sort to ever roll out of the Elite Enterprises factory).

(If you’re not familiar with Lasers, compare this to the model shown below — and I’ll post some other models later as well).

Bob from East Haven, CT tells me,

“You can’t have a website about kit cars without a Laser 917!”

As a fellow Laser 917 (a rather dune buggy-esque Porsche 917 replica) enthusiast and owner, I have to agree with Bob. His red beauty is a Quint Industries kit he picked up in 2003, onto which he’s added West Coast Core’s2378 cc Type I engine and their pro street tranny, so it’s as not lying when it looks fast. Check it out: